George Washington University
EN-3: Student Life

• Green GW - The mission is to unite the student body, administration, and faculty alike to create a more environmentally friendly and green campus while simultaneously increasing awareness of environmental issues. Green GW runs various events on and off campus to raise awareness of sustainability issues and encourage sustainable behaviors, including coffee giveaways for students who bring a reusable mug to the event. They also perform innovative student engagement activities, such as an annual "Trashion Show", where students compete to create clothing out of trash and recyclable materials.

• Net Impact - Net Impact’s mission is to improve the world by growing and strengthening a network of new leaders who are using the power of business to make a positive net social, environmental, and economic impact.

• Environmental Law Association - ELA is a student-run organization that works to bring together law students interested in environmental protection and provide educational, career, and networking opportunities in the practice of environmental law. http://docs.law.gwu.edu/stdg/ela/.

• Campaign GW - Campaign GW is an ongoing forum for students to directly share their ideas with the administration and participate in the decision-making process on future GW campus development issues, including sustainability.

• GroW Community – The GroW Community is a GW student organization founded the spring semester of 2009 to restore the environment, promote community, build relationships, and pursue justice through food. The GroW Community partnered with the Office of Sustainability to launch the first on-campus community garden in fall 2009.

• GW Energy Club– The GW Energy Club strives to enhance the networking and educational opportunities for students and the GW community interested in investment, development and regulation of the energy and sustainable development industries. With a focus on the Renewable Energy, Cleantech and Green Building markets, the group meets regularly to develop skills, share experiences, contacts, and coordinate speakers/events.

• Sustainable Urban Planning Student Organization: SUPSO engages GWU, the District of Columbia and the global community through advocacy and outreach to advance the overall field of sustainable urban planning.

• Fossil Free GW: Fossil Free GW's ultimate goal is the complete divestment of GW's endowment from 200 companies that own the world's economically recoverable fossil fuel reserves. They advocate for the design and implementation of a reinvestment strategy that will replace fossil fuel investments with investments in the green economy. They work with similar movements in other universities including Harvard, Columbia, Tufts, American, Brandeis, Stanford, UC, and dozens of others.

• Engineers for a Sustainable World: The mission of Engineers for a Sustainable World is to foster cooperative action in advancing the common purposes of its members and to promote activities designed to develop, implement, and share sustainable technologies and practices worldwide. In addition, the chapter aims to assist members with their professional network development, educational opportunities, and potential collaborations.

• Capital Food Recovery: The mission of Capital Food Recovery is to help alleviate hunger by collecting edible, surplus food that would be thrown away and distributing it to agencies that feed the hungry. Food is collected from various farmers’ markets, as well as cafes, food stores, and restaurants in the Washington D.C. metro area. The concept of picking up and redistributing food is a simple weapon in the fight against hunger. Though the program does not address the root causes of poverty and socio-economic inequalities, it does have a major impact on hunger locally.

• The George Washington Humanitarian Mapping Society: GWHMS's purpose is to support international development, and international disaster preparation/response efforts through the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

• The mission of the George Washington University Student Association is to further the interests and promote the welfare of all students at GW. Their responsibilities are defined in four ways: to advocate, allocate, advertise, and assist. Sustainability has recently become a priority issue for the Student Association, who are working on Developing a Green Investment Fund as well as running a campaign to limit printing and save a million sheets of paper.

• Me to We GW is associated with an international non-profit, WE Charity, whose mission statement is to reduce world poverty through sustainable development. We further this mission here at GW by holding fundraisers, awareness campaigns, and other events focused on development-related topics.

All of the student groups above are student-governed, with the exception of the Student Association, which is the Student Government facilitated through the GW Center for Student Engagement, and CampaignGW, which is not a traditional student organization. CampaignGW is a group of student volunteers led by staff in the Division of Operations. These students serve as volunteer Eco Reps to promote sustainability among students living on campus.

In fall 2009 GW opened its first on-campus garden: The GroW Community Garden. It is a project of the student group, The Food Justice Alliance, implemented in partnership with the GW Department of Landscape Design and the GW Office of Sustainability. The group was founded in spring 2009 to "restore the environment, promote community, build relationships, and pursue justice through food". The garden was the recipient of a Fulbright Grant for Eco-Leadership and the funds were used to enhance and expand the garden.

In Fall 2011, the garden received a $20,000 award from a contest put on by Nature's Path to fund expansion and enhancement in the space. Each year since then, 500 - 1000+ pounds of food from the garden are donated to a local soup kitchen, Miriam's Kitchen.

Since Fall 2013, the GroW Garden has been collaborating monthly with the neighborhood Farmers' Market to promote the garden and the benefits of urban gardening at the market. At Farmers' Markets in Foggy Bottom and Dupont Circle, students can pay with their dining dollars. Students can also use dining dollars to purchase tokens that are accepted by eight other Farmers' Market locations across the city.

The GroW Garden team also facilitates Community Supported Agricultural (CSA) shares for students, distributed through Lancaster Farm Fresh Cooperative. Shares are delivered for pick-up weekly, and students participating in the CSA share program can pay with their university dining dollars.

The garden is organic and the student gardeners consistently seek out local vendors who can provide them with pesticide-free soil, mulch and compost.

In Summer 2016, the GroW Garden received a grant from the DC Department of Energy and Environment to install a rainwater harvesting system. The system captures up to 400 gallons of rain water for the garden and is in a visible place, bringing greater attention and awareness to the GroW Garden.

The Office of Sustainability funds a garden manager student intern position to maintain the space and coordinate student and community involvement with the garden. The initiative is not student-governed, rather is it supervised by the Office of Sustainability. However, the student group GroW Community, who were critical in making the garden a reality, is student-governed, and most of the student Garden Managers are also part of this student organization.

In December 2017, the GW Student Association announced a pilot program partnering with Hungry Harvest, an organization that takes leftover or unwanted produce that couldn’t be shelved at a supermarket, and sells it for a discounted price. The goal of this program is to help provide healthy, sustainable foods at an affordable price for the GW student body on campus.

GW provides institutional support for student-run sustainable enterprises through several programs across the university.

GWupstart is GW's central hub for social innovation training, mentoring, and funding. Based in the Center for Civic Engagement and Public Service, it builds on GW’s strength as an institution that fosters the next generation of citizen leaders. It provides the know-how and support to students to turn their ideas into practical action that makes a measurable, sustained difference.

The DC Climathon at GW provides student and citizen innovators with the financial resources, mentors, and support to launch ideas that address sustainability and climate change in the District of Columbia. Past winners include a small business that creates green jobs while refurbishing appliances for the deaf community, a start-up to recover and transport leftover meals to the hungry through crowd sourcing, a furniture company that reclaims and redesigns old items into new furnishings, a low-tech communication device to help vulnerable populations communicate during weather related disasters, and a green job training program on new building technologies.

The GW New Venture Competition provides GW students, faculty, and alumni with a real world educational experience in developing, testing, and launching their own startups. The competition fosters entrepreneurship at GW through workshops, mentoring, non-dilutive cash grants, in-kind prizes, networking opportunities, publicity, and concept validation. Monetary awards are given to the best student business plans. Students access experts in social and sustainability start-ups as mentors during their preparation for the New Venture Competition. Past winners have included a local farming hydroponic start-up, a producer that grows tea ethically on rooftops in internationally developing communities, clean water for gardeners, and a water desalination company.

The AccelerateGW program provides $3,000 grants to entrepreneurial GW students and faculty in science and engineering to move their projects from the lab toward commercialization. GW students are incubating projects related to building energy efficiency as well as solar-powered self-charging batteries.

GW supports its researchers and their student teams in participating in the National Science Foundation I-Corps Program. Through I-Corps GW provides research infrastructure and training that help researchers and their students transition fundamental science and engineering discoveries to the marketplace. Resulting projects at GW have focused on energy efficiency and renewable energy technology start-ups, as well as others.

The Store is a student-run food pantry at the George Washington University (GW) that is managed by the Store student organization and the Center for Student Engagement, providing resources and support for students living with food insecurity. Awareness of this need has increased on college campuses as students make hard choices about how to spend their limited resources. The Store was founded on the principles of Faith, Trust, and Respect and these values guide the Store's work. The mission is to address student need at GW by offering food and other resources to ensure that every student has the opportunity to succeed.

The Committee for Sustainable Investment was approved and announced in February 2018. Its charter is under development and will have significant student involvement, seeking to engage stakeholders on issues relevant to responsible investing for a designated portion of the endowment to be directed to the recently announced Sustainable Investment Fund. GW will establish the Sustainable Investment Fund with an initial $2 million from the university endowment.

GW hosts many events throughout the year related to sustainability. GW's location in Washington, DC, gives the university ample access to key decision makers and policymakers at the Federal and local level, and GW views itself as a vital convener on sustainability issues in the District. GW has recently hosted events including:

- DC Environmental Film Festival: GW hosts environmental films annually on campus as part of this festival annually, including most recently a documentary on urban farming, and the previous year one on international development. GW Faculty introduce the film.

- GW Planet Forward Storyfest recognize the best and most compelling student-told stories illuminating environmental issues and solutions. The winning submissions are part of a two day symposium for students from GW and other Planet Forward Consortium members.

- Earth Day Activities: Each year, GW hosts a series of student-focused events designed around a theme during Earth Month. The 2016 theme was "Urban Sustainability" and the event showcased the winners of GW's new Eco-Equity competition as well as other impactful sustainability partnerships at GW. The 2016 theme was "Urban Sustainability", and focused on the impact that students can personally make on the environment. Featured vendors in 2016 included Capital Bikeshare, Zipcar, Casey Trees, and many more. The 2017 theme was "Take Action for the Earth", which reflected student appetite for action and empowered them to make a difference while progress for the environment at the federal level stalled under the new administration.

-GW partners with Casey Trees to conduct tree plantings and inventories all over the DC area, especially in our neighborhood of Foggy Bottom in downtown Washington, D.C. These events cater to staff, faculty and students.

-The GW Sustainability Collaborative regularly hosts events on sustainability topics open to students. Examples include a discussion of international climate talks in Bonn, Germany https://www.eventbrite.com/o/gw-sustainability-collaborative-9384183657, a panel discussion featuring women with careers in the sustainable food industry https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-business-of-food-doing-well-by-doing-good-tickets-38807689845#, a discussion of sustainability in innovative business models featuring the company Lyft https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sustainability-student-lunch-building-sustainable-cities-tickets-38057640427#, and a conference on the role of urban agriculture in the 2018 Farm Bill https://www.facebook.com/events/543369442515259/.

- GW has hosted events to raise awareness about the Capital Partners Solar Project, which allows GW to get 50% of its energy from solar power. These events include a celebration of the one year anniversary of the solar project’s operation https://gwtoday.gwu.edu/gw-celebrates-solar-energy-milestone, and a ceremony to unveil a new student-designed solar charging station on campus, raise awareness of the Capital Partners solar project and release a report on GW’s sustainability progress https://gwtoday.gwu.edu/taking-stock-sustainability-gw.

- GW has hosted events that support students' sustainable enterprises. The DC Climathon launch event, hackathon, and final pitch event provides an opportunity for students and community members to develop real-world solutions to climate change challenges impacting the District of Columbia https://sustainability.gwu.edu/dc-climathon-gw. The Office of Sustainability and the Honey W. Nashman Center for Civic Engagement hosted a workshop in 2017 to guide students’ efforts to launch projects with an environmental and social justice impact in the District of Columbia. Finally, students who are launching new projects are eligible to apply for a mini-grant from the Sustainability Collaborative to support research, travel, and training costs associated with their project https://foodinstitute.gwu.edu/2017/02/03/sustainability-student-mini-grant-application/.

- GW has hosted events to raise awareness and foster discussion amongst students on sustainabilty in the community including a screening of the film City of Trees http://browse.calendar.gwu.edu/EventList.aspx?fromdate=10/16/2017&todate=10/16/2017&display=Day&type=public&eventidn=15142&view=EventDetails&information_id=28488, a seminar on the restaurant industry’s role in sustainability with chef Jose Andres https://gwtoday.gwu.edu/three-ways-build-%E2%80%98sustainable-plate%E2%80%99-chef-and-activist-jos%C3%A9-andr%C3%A9s-and-dc-food-scene-insiders, the 2017 Planet Forward summit bringing students, scientists, innovators, and policy makers together to discuss sustainability through storytelling https://www.planetforward.org/2017summit, and the Green Move Out, an initiative which donates items like bedding, clothing, and books to local charity partners that would otherwise be sent to the landfill https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiEi-SI2-zYAhXCnOAKHb1jD-cQFggqMAA&url=https%3A%2F%2Fliving.gwu.edu%2Fgreen-move-out&usg=AOvVaw28mckVQE7sDc8WSyntjaEQ.

- GW has hosted events to support student activism, including a discussion with students and faculty about sustainability activism under President Trump https://www.gwhatchet.com/2017/01/23/students-faculty-talk-sustainability-activism-under-trump/. The Office of Sustainability also serves as a liaison between university leadership and student activists like those in the student group GW Fossil Free, which regularly holds events to call on the University to divest from fossil fuels https://www.facebook.com/FossilFreeGW?fref=ts.

This is just a sample of recent GW sustainability events. While these events are not student-governed, many students take place in the planning and organizing of these events, as well as participate in the programs. GW is committed to holding outreach events and convening thought leaders on sustainability.

• The GW Trashion Show is a student organized event that challenges students to create high fashion out of their trash. The past three shows have featured garbage bags, newspaper, and even plastic cups. The 2017 event featured NYC zero-waste designer Tabitha St. Bernard-Jacobs (http://tabiijust.com/), who spoke about her experiences as a designer and served on the panel of judges.
• The on campus art exhibition space, Gallery 102, has featured several art exhibits that incorporate sustainability. The Slow Food Photography exhibit displayed student work based on the Slow Food movement started by Carlo Petrini in 1989. Through photographic documentation, students explored the ecological effects of different food practices such as urban farms, community gardens, and farmers markets. Other exhibitions include Flora Forms: Inquiry into the art of biophilia technology and Architectures*Systems*Ecologies which dealt with ecological processes and systems thinking.
• GW’s Textile Museum featured an exhibit called “Scraps” in 2017. Scraps presents the work of three designers who have pioneered creative approaches to recycling textiles: Luisa Cevese of Riedizioni in Milan; Christina Kim of Dosa in Los Angeles; and Reiko Sudo of Nuno in Tokyo.

The Mission of GW TRAiLS is to provide the GW community with diverse outdoor experiences that promote leadership, self discovery, respect for the environment, and community service. Through these principles and actions, TRAiLS strives to foster an active outdoor community at GW that benefits our lives, our city, and our world.

TRAiLS strives to be environmentally-friendly and to leave as little of an impact as possible on trips using the Leave No Trace philosophy. This is done through considering the environment in waste disposal, campfire impact, leaving what is found, and respecting wildlife. TRAiLS is a student-governed organization.

GW provides sustainable features as part of the model residence hall rooms that all prospective students visit during their summer campus orientation. These features include sustainable cleaning products, reusable mugs, water bottles, and bags, a drying rack, shower timer, smart power strips, a water filtration pitcher, and more. These features were provided as part of the collaboration between GW Housing and the Office of Sustainability.

GW offers Affinity themed housing. The FoBoZero Affinity Housing is a shared living space for sustainability-minded students. FoBoZero affinity aims to reduce the environmental impact of selected students over the course of an academic year

GW's student Eco Reps engage student residents in a number of ways to encourage sustainable living, including hosting events in the residence halls on sustainable topics, going room-to-room for recycling "dorm storming", and encouraging students to reduce electricity and water use as part of GW's Eco-Challenge. In 2014, GW also launched NewU, a program on adjusting to college for first year students, and FutureU, a life skills program for third and fourth year students. Both of these programs seek to ensure GW students are successful as students and alumni through an optional program of module based experiential learning. NewU focuses on competencies including career planning, navigating life in the District of Columbia, and connecting with faculty. FutureU provides participants with skills like financial management and etiquette. A major focus of each program is how to eat healthy and how to purchase and prepare healthy, sustainable foods. This focus equips participants to make environmentally sounds choices and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

The Sustainability Academic Program Director works closely with the staff in the Career Center to provide students with career resources, career preparation workshops, and career and alumni networking events for sustainability students. In addition, Office of Sustainability regularly promotes external positions on the sustainability website. The university regularly maintains student sustainability positions within the Office of Sustainability, Facilities Services, the Division of Operations and the Sustainability Collaborative.

GW offers a green graduation pledge to graduating seniors, which states "I pledge to explore and take into account the social and environmental consequences of any job I consider and will try to improve these aspects of any organizations for which I work." Students who sign the pledge receive a ribbon that they can wear to graduation, and are added to the Green Alumni Network listserv to stay engaged in sustainability at GW in the future.

Additional URLS:

Information about the student-run enterprises is available
https://students.gwu.edu/store

Information about the cultural arts events, installations or performances is available
https://museum.gwu.edu/textile-museum and https://art.columbian.gwu.edu/gallery-102
https://www.facebook.com/events/1380770348641384/

Other student run enterprise emails:
https://serve.gwu.edu/what-is-gwupstart
https://sustainability.gwu.edu/dc-climathon-gw
https://innovation.gwu.edu
https://students.gwu.edu/store