Loyola University Maryland
AC-8: Campus as a Living Laboratory

An intern (for credit) with Loyola's Office of Sustainability redesigned a sustainability module for first-year students. The new module had updated information and was designed to be more engaging by incorporating more two-way conversations and a Jeopardy-like game to assess understanding. The module touches on the basics, defining terms such as "sustainability," "integral ecology," and "environmental racism," with an overarching emphasis that sustainability is an intersectional concept that involves all academic disciplines at Loyola. The module also touches on what opportunities and resources Loyola offers to its students that relate to sustainability. This includes, but is not limited to sustainability-focused events, on-campus internships, on-campus employment opportunities, and opportunities in the community local to Loyola. It also outlines what materials are and are not accepted as recyclable materials on our campus.

Chemistry students are collecting data to see how much carbon trees in Loyola's arboretum sequester each year. This data can not only be utilized for internal emissions calculations but as evidence of the arboretum's importance in more ways than one to the university.

Chemistry students also monitor air quality through installed sensors on campus and are assessing some of the factors that influence neighborhood air quality in north Baltimore. This project is designed to support the university's commitment to social justice, education, and the work of community partners in the city. Students have established a small network of particulate matter sensors in the Baltimore area. This data is available in real time from PurpleAir which has nearly 300 sensors in locations around the country and the world. Clicking on the sensor location on the map will allow you to see more detailed data for that location. Zooming out on the map will allow you to see additional PurpleAir sensors from other users. If you are interested in regional air quality, check out AirNow.gov.

https://map.purpleair.com/1/mAQI/a10/p604800/cC0#12/39.34213/-76.61187
https://www.loyola.edu/academics/chemistry/faculty/dahl/dahl-research-group

Loyola Chemistry students are using Loyola grounds and leaf litter from trees on our campus to study leaf litter's impact on soil health. The right balance of leaf litter in the correct climate can impact soil health greatly and serve many species of insects and birds well over the winter months. Properly understanding leaf litter's importance also educates students about harmful landscaping practices. Leafblowing, for example, can not only damage the biodiversity of an ecosystem but can also lead to carbon emissions from the leafblowers themselves, as well as noise pollution. Having the quantitative data to back up these arguments regarding soil health can lead to innovative solutions and a change of practices at our university and in student's personal lives.

Loyola Arboretum—The Evergreen campus has achieved the status of Level II Arboretum, recognized among other professional public gardens in the Morton Register of Arboreta. The Loyola Arboretum is also recognized by the Arbor Day Foundation as a Tree Campus USA by the Department of Natural Resources as a PLANT
(People Loving and Nurturing Trees) Community at the Green Level. Students in upper-level Botany courses identify new trees in the collection.

The Loyola Peace Meadow—The Peace Meadow is a native meadow garden that supports and enhances native biodiversity on the Evergreen campus by providing favorable food and shelter for local wildlife and pollinators. This tranquil space
encourages visitors to find peace in nature, reflect, and pray. Students in biology and sustainability related courses help maintain this area.

Conservation and Experiential Learning Garden—This garden is a certified native wildlife habitat and organic community vegetable garden established by sustainability leadership and more than 100 student volunteers in 2019. Students in biology and sustainability related courses help maintain this area.

Tree Walking Tours—Self-guided audio walking tours developed by faculty, staff, and students are available to the Loyola community and the public to encourage the exploration of the landscape and get to know the trees of Loyola.

Loyola Studio Art students made sculptures out of improperly recycled material they found in campus landfill bins in the 2022-2023 academic year. These sculptures were put on display on our Quad during Earth Week while the Studio Art students gathered signatures of fellow students pledging to embrace the goals of our Laudato Si Commitment, which includes a commitment to living a more sustainable lifestyle, that involves waste reduction. The sculptures are still on display throughout Loyola's communications department. The sculptures raised awareness about improper recycling and the relationship our society has with waste, reframing the "out of sight, out of mind" philosophy so many are accustomed to by repurposing the waste.

Chemistry students are currently researching the effectiveness of natural stormwater mitigation systems, such as rain gardens, on parts of our campus that can impact a local stream, which also serves as a tributary to the Chesapeake Bay. They are attempting not simply to speak to the benefits of a rain garden but quantitatively prove its benefits at certain sites. Through this, the students are learning about the complexity of stormwater management experientially, rather than exclusively in the classroom. Their project can help Loyola's Grounds crew secure funding for such a project while also guiding their work.

Students who register for Finance-434 are guided by their professor and create finance portfolios with money from Loyola's endowment. Students must follow Loyola's core values and the United States Conference for Catholic Bishops's Socially Responsible Investment principles, which include avoiding "morally wrong business activities" which include companies who engager their employees' lives with unsafe working conditions companies who deny or overcharge loans on the basis of race and/or ethnicity, and companies who "unnecessarily harm the environment." Thus, students may not invest in fossil fuel companies. Students must also consider the ESG scores of the companies they choose to invest in.

Finance-434 Course Description: Exposes students to the portfolio management process through experiential learning. Students serve as portfolio and investment managers charged with managing the Sellinger Applied Portfolio Fund in a manner consistent with the core goals and philosophy of the Loyola University Maryland Endowment. Topics include asset valuation, constraint setting, asset allocation, asset selection, risk management, and performance evaluation. The behavioral aspects of finance are also considered. Students also gain experience with databases used within the profession. Written or electronic permission of the instructor.

Relevant Links:
https://www.catholicinvestments.com/catholic-investing/company-exclusions/immoralbusinessactivities/
https://www.loyola.edu/sellinger-business/academics/departments/finance/sellinger-applied-portfolio-fund