| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 60.05 |
| Liaison | Jessica Thompson |
| Submission Date | Feb. 15, 2023 |
Northern Michigan University
EN-11: Inter-Campus Collaboration
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
3.00 / 3.00 |
Jessica
Thompson Professor/SAC Co-Chair Business |
Is the institution currently a member of a national or international higher education sustainability network?:
The name of the national or international sustainability network(s):
Northern has been an institutional AASHE member since 2016. We first joined after students and a faculty member attended the AASHE conference in Minneapolis, MN in 2015. NMU has continued its institutional membership ever since and staff, faculty, and students have used the resources available to us on AASHE's website.
Does the institution actively participate in a regional, state/provincial, or local higher education sustainability network?:
The name of the regional, state/provincial or local sustainability network(s):
NMU's Northern Climate Network and members of our Sustainability Council and SHINE team are also members of the Michigan Climate Action Network:
https://www.miclimateaction.org/organization_members
And we participate in Michigan's Climate Coalition bi-monthly calls (every two months on the third Tuesday), hosted by the Office of Technology Partnerships for the State of Michigan.
https://espp.msu.edu/engagement/mcc.html
NMU is also a member of the Energy Engineers subcommittee of the Michigan Association of Physical Plant Administrators, which is a committee composed of plant engineers from universities throughout Michigan. This committee meets up to twice a year for 4 to 8 hour session to discuss energy saving and sustainability initiatives that have been completed at community colleges or universities in Michigan and across the country and to share knowledge around energy savings.
Has the institution presented at a higher education sustainability conference during the previous year?:
A list or brief description of the conference(s) and presentation(s):
Individual faculty members have presented sustainability research at conferences, and in November 2022, Dr. Jessica Thompson presented on aligning the University's and College of Business's strategic plans with the UN SDGs. This presentation was made on behalf of Northern Michigan University at the AACSB Societal Impact conference: https://www.aacsb.edu/insights/articles/2022/11/solving-for-societal-impact
Has the institution submitted a case study during the previous year to an external higher education sustainability resource center or awards program?:
A list or brief description of the sustainability resource center or awards program and submission(s):
NMU SHINE and students enrolled in the Sustainable Business class wrote case studies on sustainability strategies for the Good For Michigan Best in State award competition. One of the case studies (authored by students) about Marquette's Ore Dock Brewing Company won the "Best in Environment" award in 2022:
Has the institution had employees or students serving on a board or committee of a sustainability network or conference during the previous three years?:
A list or brief description of the board or committee appointment(s):
Dr. Jessica Thompson of NMU serves on the board of directors for the Michigan Energy Options, regional nonprofit - https://michiganenergyoptions.org/
Dr. Sarah Mittlefehldt serves on the advisory board for the National Alliance for Green Heat, a national organization that advances cleaner and more efficient residential heating technology, particularly for low and middle-income families.
Does the institution have an ongoing mentoring relationship with another institution through which it assists the institution with its sustainability reporting and/or the development of its sustainability program?:
A brief description of the mentoring relationship and activities:
Members of the Sustainability Advisory Council are currently collaborating with Alan Turnquist, the Director of Sustainability at Michigan Technological University. Through conversations with Turnquist, our facilities team is actively working with MTU students and the Office of Sustainability and Resilience to develop a system for greenhouse gas and carbon footprint tracking at NMU. Additionally, we partnered on a Zero Waste hockey game event and continued to discuss how to collectively improve our campus sustainability efforts in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
Has the institution had employees or students serving as peer reviewers of another institution’s sustainability data and/or STARS submission during the previous three years?:
A brief description of the peer review activities:
Sarah Mittlefehldt (NMU, Professor in EEGS) peer-reviewed Michigan Technological University's STARS submission in 2020.
A brief description of other inter-campus collaborative efforts around sustainability during the previous year :
Website URL where information about the institution’s inter-campus collaborations 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.