Overall Rating Silver
Overall Score 47.95
Liaison Karen Marin-Hines
Submission Date March 7, 2025

STARS v2.2

Texas Tech University
AC-10: Support for Sustainability Research

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.00 / 4.00 Karen Marin-Hines
Campus Sustainability Officer
Operations
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Student sustainability research incentives 

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:

Institute for Sustainability and Circular Economy
ISCE serves as a university-wide platform that catalyzes sustainable solutions via an engineered-system approach. Simultaneously, ISCE connects TTU academic units, centers, and programs that address topics related to sustainability.
We proudly boast a multi-disciplinary approach to sustainability, because the answer to lasting sustainability is collaborative and multifaceted. We are a group of TTU researchers, staff, and students who are working together toward the common goal of a sustainable circular economy. The Institute is headquartered in the Maddox Engineering Research Center, but has laboratories and faculty across campus in a multitude of disciplines from Chemical Engineering to Plant & Soil Science to the Center for Water Law & Policy.
https://www.depts.ttu.edu/isce/

NRM and Davis College both have active undergraduate research. In the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources there are a variety of student research projects that are designed to improve sustainability and of natural resources. Some of these projects include landscape sustainability, population ecology, range expansion, coastal restoration, vegetation, and water dynamics. All of these studies are designed to promote sustainability in natural habitats.

Faculty sustainability research incentives 

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 Climate Center at Texas Tech University (TTU CC) conducts interdisciplinary research to address the interactive effects of climate variability across the full array of landscapes within Texas, the South Central U.S. and the world. We provide the science, tools, and information to link current conditions with regional climate projections, and examine the real-world decision making and planning that can be used to best anticipate, monitor, and adapt to this projected climate change.
The TTU CC serves as the regional hub on climate change, providing expertise on linking regional climate projections to soil processes, plant productivity, patterns of biodiversity, conservation initiatives, ecosystem services, water policy and planning, agricultural production, rural economic preparedness and the sustainability of natural and agroecosystem. The CC works with stakeholders to develop and apply this information to real-world decision making and planning in Texas, the South Central U.S., and the world.
https://www.depts.ttu.edu/csc/welcometoourcenter.php

"In the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, there are a variety of faculty research projects that are designed to improve sustainability. These projects range from finding solutions to environmental issues that support ecological health, research water resource economics, and water use and conservation. This college is also are part of the Texas Alliance for Water Conservation.

https://www.depts.ttu.edu/agriculturalsciences/WaterCenter/index.php"


Recognition of interdisciplinary, transdisciplnary and multi-disciplinary research 

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?:
No

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

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:

Texas Tech University's Libraries offer students the opportunity to use research guides. 

This guide provides resources for researching about and engaging with issues involving sustainability, climate change, and eco-studies in architecture and the built environment.          

Sustainability in architecture and the built environment is a broad and complex topic. This guide is broken into three topical sections: 1. Climate and Climate Change,  2. Sustainable Architecture, and 3. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)  rating and certification. Two additional sections on the research process are included to help provide strategies for finding information.  This guide is a living document and will be updated with new resources as they are collected.

In this research guide you will find information on where and how to locate:

Physical and electronic books about sustainable architecture, construction, and climate change.
Specialized journals and data bases for finding articles. 
Government sources for finding data and climate reports. 
Peer-sourced, open-web, places for images, and other sustainability information. 

https://guides.library.ttu.edu/sustain-arch

 

The National Wind Institute has more than 40 years of research collected in the Southwest Collection on campus.


Optional Fields 

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