Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 66.48
Liaison Dayna Cook
Submission Date Sept. 28, 2020

STARS v2.2

Northern Arizona University
AC-10: Support for Sustainability Research

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Matthew Muchna
Sustainability Manager
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution have an ongoing program to encourage students in multiple disciplines or academic programs to conduct sustainability research?:
Yes

A brief description of the student sustainability research program:

Both the Hooper Sustainability Award and the Green Fund offer funding opportunities for students to do sustainability research.

Hooper -
Applicants are encouraged to propose projects in the following areas:
• NAU campus sustainability
• local community-based sustainability projects
• environmentally sustainable business practices
• natural resources and ecosystem science/management
• environmental health in tribal and rural communities

Green Fund -
This funding can be applied towards any number of projects, ranging from reducing our carbon footprint, to using more renewable energy, to increasing recycling efforts on campus. As long as the project aims to improve the environment, the Green Fund can support it. (http://green.nau.edu/greenfund.html)


Does the institution have a program to encourage academic staff from multiple disciplines or academic programs to conduct sustainability research?:
Yes

A brief description of the faculty sustainability research program:

The Arizona Board of Regents gave formal approval to for the third set of five-year TRIF business plans. Northern Arizona University was approved for two initiatives that encourage faculty research in sustainability for Fiscal Years 2012-2016:

•Environmental and Economic Solutions for Arizona's Rural Landscapes -- $5.7 million over five years to encourage viable and vital rural communities. Focus will be to minimize catastrophic wildfire risks, rebuild a forest products economy, promote collaborative conservation planning and analysis using landscape-scale spatial data, and convene rural and tribal community stakeholders to explore economic alternatives, such as renewable energy development.

•Climate and Energy Solutions -- $4 million over five years to establish a new Sustainable Energy Solutions Institute, continue the nationally significant climate research capacity of the Merriam Powell Center, invest in productive and innovative faculty, and develop ground-breaking curricular programs.


Has the institution published written policies and procedures that give positive recognition to interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary, and multidisciplinary research during faculty promotion and/or tenure decisions?:
Yes

A copy of the promotion or tenure guidelines or policies:
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The promotion or tenure guidelines or policies:

Approved by Vote of the CEFNS Faculty January 28, 2009: 110 yes, 34 no, 14 abstain
I. Principles and Values
This document describes the process of annual faculty review and promotion and tenure consideration within the College of Engineering, Forestry & Natural Sciences (CEFNS);
acknowledging the diversity of our strengths and reflecting our individual, collegial and institutional values. In this context, the process of faculty reviews and evaluations within all CEFNS units shall include:
• clarity of expectations
• constructive, proactive evaluation and formative feedback
• objective appraisal by peers
• consistent and high standards.
The CEFNS values diversity in the ways an individual faculty member develops excellence in his or her academic career and contributes to the collective success of the department and college. In particular, the CEFNS encourages:
• an emphasis on students
• cross-disciplinary activities
• commitment to scholarship and professional involvement
• assessment for continuous improvement
• collegiality and professionalism
• service to the university and community.


Does the institution have ongoing library support for sustainability research and learning?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s library support for sustainability research:

The library has been very responsive to requests for publications and electronic journals in sustainability and the environment. For example, it now subscribes to the GreenFile database. It has also established sustainability initiatives to reduce paper and energy usage and has 7 Energy Mentors on staff.


Website URL where information about the institution’s support for sustainability research is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

Data and information provided by Nick Bilyk in the VPR office.


Data and information provided by Nick Bilyk in the VPR office.

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