| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 76.57 |
| Liaison | Katie Koscielak |
| Submission Date | April 11, 2023 |
Cal Poly Humboldt
PA-1: Sustainability Coordination
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
Katie
Koscielak Sustainability Analyst Facilities Mgmt |
Does the institution have at least one sustainability committee?:
The charter or mission statement of the committee(s) or a brief description of each committee's purview and activities:
The Humboldt Advisory Committee on Sustainability (HACS) was established in
2017 as a reflection of the campus’ commitment to sustainability as a strategic priority. HACS is responsible for advising the Office of the President, the President’s Cabinet and other President Advisory Groups on specific, recommended actions the campus can take to further the integration of sustainability into the core focus areas of campus operations, academics, infrastructure and engagement. Furthermore, the Committee fosters dialogue, supports the advancement of goals identified in sustainability-related plans and assessments, assists with metrics tracking and provides a venue for campus organizations, units and
programs to work collaboratively to promote sustainability throughout campus.
Charge:
● Advise and support the Office of Sustainability;
● Review and make recommendations on plans, policies, programs and procedures that integrate
sustainability into all facets of the university, including but not limited to:
○ AASHE STARS
○ Second Nature Climate Commitment
○ HSU Climate Action Plan 2.0
○ 2021-2026 Strategic Plan
○ CSU Sustainability Policy;
● Monitor campus performance on key sustainability metrics;
● Review campus practices that may prohibit or hinder progress on achieving sustainability goals, and
provide recommendations for improvements;
● Enhance the sustainability literacy of students, faculty and staff;
● Disseminate information about campus sustainability efforts throughout the campus and
community, and
● Be appointed to, and actively participate in, university committees, task forces, student groups and
programs to represent the interests of sustainability on campus.
Read more at https://facilitymgmt.humboldt.edu/sustainability-hsu-advisory-committee-sustainability
Members of each committee, including affiliations and role:
Membership
Co-chairs:
-One faculty co-chair appointed by the VP of Admin & Finance and the Provost
-One standing appointment co-chair: Director of Sustainability or designee
Students appointed from the following organizations:
-Campus Center for Appropriate Technology
-Green Campus
-Waste Reduction & Resource Awareness Program
-Associated Students
-At-Large
Faculty members:
-One faculty member from the Colleges of Professional Studies, Natural Resources, and Arts, Humanities & Social Science
-One at-large
Auxiliary Services staff appointed by:
-Housing
-Dining Services
-The University Center
-Athletics
Staff members appointed by:
-Staff Council
-Facilities Management
-Budget Office
-Academic Resources
One member of the community
Does the institution have at least one sustainability office that includes more than 1 full-time equivalent employee?:
A brief description of each sustainability office:
The Office of Sustainability (OS) was created in 2011 to be the campus focal point for sustainability. The OS is responsible for cultivating a culture of sustainability among the University community, which is composed of students, faculty and staff by conceptualizing, planning, developing, implementing, managing and overseeing campus-wide sustainability programs and initiatives. The office is housed under Administrative Affairs at Cal Poly Humboldt, and is further tiered under the purview of Facilities Management.
The OS is committed to tracking, reporting and managing progress on a number of sustainability reports and goals, including the Second Nature Climate Commitment, the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS), the CSU Sustainability Policy, the campus Climate Action Plan, campus Resilience Planning, energy efficiency and generation coordination and planning, waste management, and others. The OS also works closely with students and as such, staff members directly oversee and manage the following student groups: the Waste Reduction and Resource Awareness Program (WRRAP), Green Campus, the Humboldt Energy Independence Fund (HEIF), and the Earth Week Every Week Committee under Associated Students. In addition, staff members in the OS often directly advise the Campus Center for Appropriate Technology (CCAT) and sit on the CCAT Steering Committee, making recommendations to students on any and all operations and planning matters during monthly check in meetings. Relating to student matters, the OS also works closely with the Resident Sustainability Advisor who is supervised by Housing & Residence Life, and advises other student-led initiatives and projects as needed.
Generally, the OS acts as a resource to all areas of campus, (academics, Housing, Dining, student affairs, etc) for on-campus sustainability initiatives. The OS works to consistently identify areas of campus to integrate or improve sustainability operations, working closely and collaboratively with nearly all departments across campus. Although housed in Facilities Management, the OS coordinates significant work throughout other areas beyond operations and utilities, with special focus in the last three years within incorporating sustainability into Academics in a more robust and coordinated way. Over time, the OS hopes to gradually make sustainability operations commonplace across all of campus.
Full-time equivalent of people employed in the sustainability office(s):
Does the institution have at least one sustainability officer?:
Name and title of each sustainability officer:
Does the institution have a mechanism for broad sustainability coordination for the entire institution?:
A brief description of the activities and substantive accomplishments of the institution-wide coordinating body or officer during the previous three years:
There are two branches that coordinate institution-wide sustainability activities at HSU:
1. The Office of Sustainability housed in Facilities Management (which is comprised of the sustainability officers listed above) is the primary hub through which activities are coordinated, and
2. The Humboldt State Advisory Committee on Sustainability (HACS, also described above) assists these efforts through collaborative deliberation with diverse representation from campus stakeholders. This group provides recommendations to the Provost and VP of Admin Affairs about resourcing and action.
Substantive accomplishments of these groups include:
-Significant advancement of integrating sustainability into curriculum (improvement of the sustainability literacy assessment, coordination of faculty learning communities, put forth the idea for a faculty fellow in sustainability and close collaboration, facilitation of Indigenous-led professional development on topics of sustainability)
-Coordination of community partnership on climate change resiliency planning for the region
-Advancement of the development of an on-campus renewable energy microgrid
-Development of HSU Advisory Committee measurable goals and digital, online reporting dashboard
-Recognition as a Princeton Review "Green School" AASHE Sustainability Award Finalist two years in row (2022: Campus Sustainability Achievement Award Finalists, with California State University, Chico; California Polytechnic State University, and Strategic Energy Innovations – CSU Faculty Learning Community in Teaching Climate Change and Resilience); (2021: Racial Equity and Sustainability Collaborations with California State University System – California State University System-wide Climate Justice and Intersectional Sustainability Speaker Series)
-Recognition as a Sierra "Cool School" in 2021
-New membership of Post-Landfill Action Network (PLAN)
-Development and implementation of two inaugural peer educators groups, targeted at campus residents and employees
-Formation of a Sustainable Transportation Committee (https://facilitymgmt.humboldt.edu/sustainable-transportation-committee)
Job title of the sustainability officer position:
Job description for the sustainability officer position:
Job description for the sustainability officer position:
Job title of the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
Job title of the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
Job description for the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
Job description for the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
Website URL where information about the institution’s sustainability coordination is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.