Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 48.07
Liaison Tony Gillund
Submission Date May 9, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

The Ohio State University at Lima
PA-2: Sustainability Planning

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.50 / 4.00 Tony Gillund
Sustainability Manager
Energy Services and Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution have a published strategic plan or equivalent guiding document that includes sustainability at a high level? :
No

A brief description of how the institution’s strategic plan or equivalent guiding document addresses sustainability:
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A copy of the strategic plan:
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The website URL where the strategic plan is publicly available:
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Does the institution have a published sustainability plan (apart from what is reported above)? :
Yes

A copy of the sustainability plan:
The website URL where the sustainability plan is publicly available:
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Does the institution have a published climate action plan (apart from what is reported above)? :
Yes

A copy of the climate action plan:
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The website URL where the climate action plan is publicly available:
Does the institution have other published plans that address sustainability or include measurable sustainability objectives (e.g. campus master plan, physical campus plan, diversity plan, human resources plan)? :
Yes

A list of other published plans that address sustainability, including public website URLs (if available):
Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Curriculum?:
No

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Curriculum and the published plans in which each objective is included:
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Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Research?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Research and the published plans in which each objective is included:

As one of the country’s leading research universities, Ohio State has made important contributions to sustainability science, technology, and human behavior. The university strives to integrate the recognized works of its faculty researchers and apply this expertise to problems on local, regional, national, and international scales. Sustainability efforts at Ohio State are embedded into the full range of university activities and with the university’s strategic sustainability goals, which supports Ohio State's overarching core goals of teaching and learning, research and innovation, outreach and engagement, and resource stewardship. Ohio State has two sustainability goals for research and innovation:
• Magnify Sustainability Scholarly Output and Impact to create new knowledge, solve real world problems, including for our own operations, and increase Ohio State’s national/international reputation as a sustainability research leader.

• Reward Sustainability Scholarship, including the scholarship of engagement, by providing incentives for students, faculty and staff to make discoveries and stimulate creative efforts that promote and achieve sustainability.

As part of achieving these goals, Ohio State has selected three Discovery Themes to promote the research, teaching and engagement surrounding sustainability issues. These three programs are up and running at the university and will each be hiring faculty explicitly to enhance Ohio State’s expertise and impact within and across the three areas. The Discovery Themes Initiative funding will allow for an 8% to 10% net increase in the tenured/tenure-track faculty, in accordance with the university’s stated strategic vision.

Source: Sustainability Plan, https://stars.aashe.org/media/secure/678/7/679/6090/OSU%20Sustainability%20Plan%20May%202011.pdf


Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Campus Engagement?:
No

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Campus Engagement and the published plans in which each objective is included:
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Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Public Engagement?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Public Engagement and the published plans in which each objective is included:

Ohio State’s Sustainability Plan identifies the university’s major role in shaping the intellectual, economic, and social environment in Central Ohio. Ohio State achieves continuing outreach through three primary methods: partnerships, capacity-building, and social learning. Partnerships involve institutional collaboration with entities engaged in planning for sustainability, including government agencies at various levels, quasi-governmental authorities, and private companies and corporations. Capacity-building involves engagement with grass-roots efforts that address emerging areas of concern, such as recycling and/or transportation. At the community level, it means enhancing opportunities for civic understanding, deliberation, and decision-making. Social learning is a function of how the university is seen to approach sustainability and how prominently the issue figures in Ohio State’s public profile. All of these continuing outreach methods will be enhanced through the university’s primary public engagement goal to catalyze Engagement, Ownership, and Buy-In to Sustainability via engaged and inclusive partnerships, on and off campus, that support the long-term economic, social and environmental welfare of the campus, surrounding neighborhoods and the global community.

Source: Sustainability Plan, https://stars.aashe.org/media/secure/678/7/679/6090/OSU%20Sustainability%20Plan%20May%202011.pdf


Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Air & Climate?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Air & Climate and the published plans in which each objective is included:

Ohio State developed a Climate Action Plan (CAP) which describes a portion of the steps Ohio State has taken to reduce GHG emissions and its ideas for future steps toward a goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. The CAP lays out the measurable objectives through the mitigation strategies, which includes meeting Green Building Standards Energy Utilization Index (EUI) reduction targets, achieving Conservation Outreach and Behavioral Change through outreach and education to the broader campus population, and implementing Energy Conservation Measures to increase infrastructure efficiency.

Source: Climate Action Plan, https://fod.osu.edu/sites/default/files/ohio_state_climate_action_plan.pdf


Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Buildings?:
No

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Buildings and the published plans in which each objective is included:
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Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Energy?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Energy and the published plans in which each objective is included:

Measurable Objectives: Energy central to sustainability at Ohio State. The university closely monitors its Energy Utilization Index (MMBTU per square foot of conditioned space) and has the goal to reduce total campus building energy consumption by 25% by 2025. This will be achieved through reductions in demand and improvements upon energy supply.

Source: Ohio State Sustainability Goals, https://www.osu.edu/SustGoals%20FINAL%20updated%20030817.pdf


Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Food & Dining?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Food & Dining and the published plans in which each objective is included:

Measurable objectives: Dining Services within the Office of Student Life closely tracks the percentage of purchased food products classified as local and/or sustainably sourced. Additionally, as part of Ohio State purchasing policy, preference is given to local providers. The purchasing data along with the preference given to local providers assists the university in reaching its food sustainability goal to increase production and purchase of locally and sustainably sourced food to 40% by 2025.

Source: Ohio State Sustainability Goals, https://www.osu.edu/SustGoals%20FINAL%20updated%20030817.pdf


Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Grounds?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Grounds and the published plans in which each objective is included:

The University’s grounds goal is to double the tree canopy, increase multifunctional and productive acreage by 10%, and reduce maintained acreage by 2025. In order to increase the tree canopy, the university will both increase the number of trees on campus and increase the health of existing trees to allow those trees to increase in size. As a preliminary step, the university is mapping all existing trees on the Columbus campus with approximately 15,000 of the estimated 50,000 trees identified, measured, and mapped.

Source: Ohio State Sustainability Goals, https://www.osu.edu/SustGoals%20FINAL%20updated%20030817.pdf


Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Purchasing?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Purchasing and the published plans in which each objective is included:

Moving forward, the university has the purchasing goal to develop university-wide standards for targeted environmentally preferred products and fully implement preferable products and services by 2025.

Source: Source: Ohio State Sustainability Goals, https://www.osu.edu/SustGoals%20FINAL%20updated%20030817.pdf


Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Transportation?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Transportation and the published plans in which each objective is included:

Ohio State has a transportation goal to reduce the carbon footprint of university fleet by 25% by 2025. Ohio State is committed to this goal by its continued strong support for sustainable transportation initiatives aimed to reduce on-campus stationary combustion and fleet combustion emissions. Currently, Ohio State has purchased four compressed natural gas (CNG) buses for its Campus Area Bus Service (CABS) fleet and is embarking on a long-range plan to transition the remaining fleet of diesel-powered buses over to cleaner-burning CNG. Additionally, Ohio State’s Vehicle Idling Policy ensures that university vehicles and equipment are operated and maintained in a manner that minimizes air pollution, maximizes fuel efficiency, and reduces wear to the vehicle.

Source: Ohio State Sustainability Goals, https://www.osu.edu/SustGoals%20FINAL%20updated%20030817.pdf


Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Waste?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Waste and the published plans in which each objective is included:

Ohio State has the sustainability goal to achieve zero waste by 2025 by diverting 90% of waste away from landfills.

Source: Ohio State Sustainability Goals, https://www.osu.edu/SustGoals%20FINAL%20updated%20030817.pdf


Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Water?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Water and the published plans in which each objective is included:

Ohio State closely tracks its potable water consumption and has set the goal to reduce potable water consumption by 5% per capita every five years, resetting the baseline every 5 years. Annual reductions will be achieved through several best practices including water use management, demand reduction, water reuse, and stormwater reduction and cleansing.

Source: Ohio State Sustainability Goals, https://www.osu.edu/SustGoals%20FINAL%20updated%20030817.pdf


Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Diversity & Affordability?:
No

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Diversity & Affordability and the published plans in which each objective is included:
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Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Investment & Finance?:
No

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Investment & Finance and the published plans in which each objective is included:
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Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address Wellbeing & Work?:
No

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address Wellbeing & Work and the published plans in which each objective is included:
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Taken together, do the plan(s) reported above include measurable sustainability objectives that address other areas (e.g. arts and culture or technology)?:
No

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives that address other areas and the published plans in which each objective is included:
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Does the institution have a formal statement in support of sustainability endorsed by its governing body (e.g. a mission statement that specifically includes sustainability and is endorsed by the Board of Trustees)? :
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The formal statement in support of sustainability:
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The institution’s definition of sustainability (e.g. as included in a published statement or plan):
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Is the institution an endorser or signatory of the following?:
Yes or No
The Earth Charter ---
The Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI) ---
ISCN-GULF Sustainable Campus Charter ---
Second Nature’s Carbon Commitment (formerly known as the ACUPCC), Resilience Commitment, and/or integrated Climate Commitment ---
The Talloires Declaration (TD) ---
UN Global Compact ---
Other multi-dimensional sustainability commitments (please specify below) ---

A brief description of the institution’s formal sustainability commitments, including the specific initiatives selected above:
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives 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.