| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 72.14 |
| Liaison | Kelsey Beal |
| Submission Date | March 2, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Indiana University Bloomington
AC-8: Campus as a Living Laboratory
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Andrew
Predmore University Director of Sustainability Sustain IU |
"---"
indicates that no data was submitted for this field
Air & Climate
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Air & Climate:
An intern at the IU Office of Sustainability (IUOS) assists with the greenhouse gas emissions inventory, which allows us to examine progress towards reducing our emissions and helps identify areas to address. In the summer of 2017, the Transportation Working Group Intern assisted with tracking carbon emissions from university and study abroad travel. Beginning in 2018, a group of students will assist researchers in converting emissions from the Central Heating Plant into campus fertilizer. https://news.iu.edu/stories/2017/10/iub/inside/30-photobioreactor-duke-energy-grant.html
Buildings
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Buildings:
An IUOS intern works to help certify IU buildings through LEED and make better resources available. Some outcomes include:
1) Acted as liaison between the campus and third part consultants 2) Created a database for common resource needs for LEED certification 3) Published documents to IU's website and disseminated information about green building features of certified projects.
Energy
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Energy:
Several internships through IUOS have created noticeable energy benefits. The largest and most frequent of which is the IU Energy Challenge, which is run twice annually by interns and a network of building liaisons, and encourages residence hall and academic and administrative building occupants to work together to reduce energy use. This engages RAs in residence halls, eco-reps in residence halls, the Residence Hall Association, Greek houses and their Sustainability Chairs, IU Athletics, as well as numerous other groups and individuals on campus.
Food & Dining
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Food & Dining:
Two undergraduate Sustainability Scholars are mentored by a post-doc fellow in Geography to track IU's Real Food Challenge expenditures. Eight nutrition interns in Residential Programs and Services also engage in this work.
The Office of Sustainability employs Campus Garden and Food Working Group interns, who are both working to advance sustainable food options at IU.
The recent addition of the IU Campus Farm will directly engage students in learning sustainable agriculture and providing food for IU to purchase.
Grounds
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Grounds:
In the past several years, student interns have mapped potential rain garden locations - even building two of them with the help of volunteers-- have organized volunteer clean-up days for woodland areas on campus, and have been compiling a tree inventory to assist with tree management. The GIS tree inventory is creating data that can be used by multiple classes across campus to calculate the ecosystem services delivered by campus trees and has become a component of several IU classes. Interns and undergraduate researchers are now estimating canopy cover on campus, evaluating tree planting techniques and maintenance, and working with IU facility operations to ensure that University arborists are updating and using the GIS tree inventory.
Purchasing
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Purchasing:
The Advanced Buildings Intern has compiled a Green Cleaning protocol document and worked with Purchasing staff in Facilities and Residential Programs and Services to confirm all purchased custodial products follow this protocol.
The Campus Engagement Intern is researching more efficient models of ultra-low temperature freezers and best-practice incentives to insure efficient models are purchased in the future.
Transportation
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Transportation:
IU has employed a Transportation intern since 2010. Accomplishments
include a partnership with the City of Bloomington to move towards a bike-share system, an inventory of bicycle parking, research on university and study abroad travel, and active transportation education at student orientation.
Waste
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Waste:
Students have used waste audits as a way to engage with and learn about the campus waste system.
2017-2018, the Resource Use and Recycling intern is working with a team of stakeholders to develop a large-scale waste characterization study.
Water
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Water:
The Utilities Conservation program internship also contributed to the Energy Challenge, resulting in reduction of water used in both academic buildings and residence halls. Student interns also worked with landscape division to identify potential rain garden locations, and planted two so far with the help of a number of student volunteers.
Coordination & Planning
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Coordination & Planning:
Students are involved in all aspects of sustainability at Indiana University. The Campus Sustainability Advisory Board has a number of student representatives, who often are working with a large, broad advisory body for the first time. Most of the seven sustainability Working Groups, although mostly comprised of faculty and staff, are organized and run by student interns. Students also participate in newer initiatives related to "statewide sustainability" - the effort to bring people together and begin collaborative conversations around sustainability at all of the IU system's regional campuses.
Diversity & Affordability
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Diversity & Affordability:
Many students are engaged in this work across countless units of the university, whether through the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Multicultural Affairs; advocacy groups like UndocuHoosier; cultural centers including but not limited to LaCasa; campus-wide art and performance series including China Remixed; and student-led speaker series on campus including the annual MLK Breakfast and Day of Service, and environmental justice themed conversations hosted by IU Student Association and the Student Sustainability Council.
Investment & Finance
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Investment & Finance:
The Office of Sustainability employs a Philanthropy Graduate Assistant who is researching sustainable fund development.
Public Engagement
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Public Engagement:
The Hoosier to Hoosier (H2H) Community Sale is a reuse program that aims 1) to divert reusable items from the landfill during student move-out, 2) to prevent additional resource consumption by selling collected items to students and community members during move-in in order 3) to raise funds for local charities and other organizations.
The 2017 Hoosier to Hoosier sale was a partnership between the City of Bloomington, Cutters Soccer Club, and the Indiana University Office of Sustainability.
Since its inception in 2010, the Hoosier to Hoosier Community Sale has diverted nearly 300 tons of material from the landfill and to the community, and has raised more than $250,000 for local organizations.
Our undergraduate research program in sustainability (Sustainability Scholars) has also worked in the community. One student, for example, worked with the City of Bloomington's Transportation Planner to study problem intersections that are situated on the boundaries between the campus and the city.
Wellbeing & Work
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Wellbeing & Work:
Healthy IU employs several graduate students who are actively engaged in campus research surrounding active transportation and employee incentives for health programs. In spring 2018 these students are planning a "Sustain and Move IU" campaign and employee bike share incentive grant.
Other Impact Areas
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to other areas:
There is an interdisciplinary collaboration between the School of Informatics and Computing and the Kelley School of Business to enhance sustainable technology solutions at IU.
Optional Fields
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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