Temple University
EN-9: Community Partnerships

Temple participates in the Mayor's Office of Sustainability's "College/University Sustainability Consortium", which looks at how to advance sustainability within the region's higher education sector. Temple also participates in the Manko Gold Katcher "Director's Sustainability Round Table" group, which convenes leaders in the sustainability arena in the city. The university also sits on the Solar Ready task force for the Metropolitan Planning Organization. The Solar Ready task force looks at ways to facilitate the growth of the solar industry in the delaware valley area. In addition to membership and participation in the aforementioned groups, Temple has also advanced its working relationship with the Greater Philadelphia Bicycle Coalition and the Philadelphia Water Department.

The university's Office of Sustainability partners the Delaware Valley Green Building Council (DVGBC) to promote sustainability within the region. In FY14, Temple co-hosted the Tri-State Sustainability Symposium, a one day event that brings together 800 people from around the region to discuss sustainability as it relates to business, building, education, community, technology and advocacy. The university allocates senior level administrative support, financial resources and sustainability planning for the event. As part of the conference, Temple's Office of Sustainability partners with a local high school to educate students on recycling and compost, and then invites them to serve as volunteers during the conference. As part of the volunteer experience, Temple organizes education sessions on sustainability specifically geared to the local high school students. In 2014, students worked with Solar States, a local solar provider to learn about solar energy and the potential job market associated with clean energy. Moreover, the university expanded its collaboration with DVGBC in FY14 to assist in the volunteer coordination for the Greenbuild conference, which was held in Philadelphia in November 2013. Temple hired a student worker to organize volunteers from its campus and provided senior administrative support to DVGBC's volunteer committee. Temple's Office of Sustainability also planned the Greenbuild volunteer appreciation party.

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