| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 68.22 |
| Liaison | Mary Ellen Mallia |
| Submission Date | Dec. 21, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University at Albany
EN-3: Student Life
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 2.00 |
Cassidy
Drasser Assistant Director of Sustainability Office of Sustainability |
Does the institution have one or more active student groups focused on sustainability?:
A brief description of active student groups focused on sustainability:
UAlbany Students for Sustainability - The purpose of this group is to serve the campus and community by initiating, coordinating and maintaining student driven sustainability projects on a campus and local level. The organization focuses on educating the community about sustainability and its meaning, it organizes student projects related to sustainability, holds fundraisers to engage specific projects, and tends to work in concert with other organizations on campus.
UAlbany Graduate Students for Sustainability - The purpose of this student group is to support graduate student's research and expertise in the sustainability field. This group allows them to continue their education by bringing in outside speakers, and funding students to attend conferences. They also work very closely with the Office of Environmental Sustainability and the undergraduate student group for sustainability.
Student Sustainability Leadership Council- The Student Sustainability Leadership Council serves as the advisory board for the Office of Sustainability on all student initiatives. The council is comprised of student chairs (ranging from 12-16 in number, Res Life representatives, and delegates from the Student Association, the Graduate Student Association, and environmental student groups.
The website URL where information about the student groups is available (optional):
Does the institution have gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects where students are able to gain experience in organic agriculture and sustainable food systems?:
A brief description of the gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects:
Heritage Garden - The garden demonstrates the ecological, social, and economic benefits of increasing biodiversity and incorporating native species in urban landscapes,
promotes local and organic food production by producing food in a sustainable manner, without the use of pesticides, chemical fertilizers, or genetically modified organisms
provides the campus community with an engaged learning community to apply classroom knowledge within a living laboratory, promotes discussions on access to local and healthy food choices within the region, the presence of food deserts in our community, and the health impacts of food choices and encourages civic involvement and social interaction as means of establishing strong, resilient communities.
Urban Agriculture - Each year, Educational Opportunities Program (EOP) and Living and Learning Community (LLC) students attend workshops on campus and at the Radix Ecological Center in downtown Albany, which promotes sustainable agriculture in an urban environment. Students learn the essential tools to start a garden either on their window sill or in a larger, urban environment. The Radix Urban Ecological Center also offers internship and community service opportunities to learn these skills.
The website URL where information about the gardens, farms or agriculture projects is available (optional):
Does the institution have student-run enterprises that include sustainability as part of their mission statements or stated purposes (e.g. cafés through which students gain sustainable business skills)?:
A brief description of the student-run enterprises:
The website URL where information about the student-run enterprises is available (optional):
Does the institution have sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives through which students can develop socially, environmentally and fiscally responsible investment and financial skills?:
A brief description of the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives:
The website URL where information about the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives is available (optional):
Does the institution have conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience?:
A brief description of the conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability:
The Office of Sustainability co-hosted a sustainability film series last year. The multi-part series was co-hosted with various departments on campus and included panel discussions with Q&A sessions.
1. Hudson River at Risk - Assemblymember Patricia Fahy, Dr. Chris Pastore (UAlbany Dept of History), Jon Bowermaster (filmmaker), Dr. Mary Ellen Mallia (Office of Sustainability)
2. Hope on the Hudson - Jon Bowermaster (filmmaker), Dr. Mary Ellen Mallia (Office of Sustainability)
3. Blue Planet II - Dr. Mary Ellen Mallia (Office of Sustainability), Dr. Arati Iyengar (UAlbany Dept of Biology)
4. Wasted film screening and panel discussion - NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, Radix Ecological Sustainability Center, Capital Roots, UAlbany Office of Sustainability
The website URL where information about the conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability is available (optional):
Does the institution have cultural arts events, installations or performances related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience?:
A brief description of the cultural arts events, installations or performances related to sustainability:
Future Perfect: Picturing the Anthropocene: The University Art Museum installed a major, semester-long exhibit, called, Future Perfect: Picturing the Anthropocene. The exhibit featured work of over 20 visual artists to explore humankind’s relationship to the natural world. Anthropocene is a term proposed for a new geological period defined by the impact of human actions on the planet’s ecosystems, geology and climate. The concept was explored through art and speaker events, performances, conversations and readings.
Breathing Lights: Artist Adam Frelin in UAlbany's Art and Art History Department was one of four recipients of the nationwide Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge that provided up to $1 million over two years that "celebrates creativity, enhance urban identity, encourage public-private partnerships and drive economic development". The installation was titled, "Breathing Lights" and illuminated hundreds of vacant homes in the Capital Region that dimmed and glowed, to emulate the breathing of a living being. The installation aimed to regenerate interest in neighborhoods with high vacancy rates, and was a collaboration of three cities, and including public and private partners.
The website URL where information about the cultural arts events, installations or performances is available (optional):
Does the institution have wilderness or outdoors programs (e.g. that organize hiking, backpacking, kayaking, or other outings for students) that follow Leave No Trace principles?:
A brief description of the wilderness or outdoors programs that follow Leave No Trace principles:
UAlbany Outdoors -A student-run group that strongly encourages getting off campus and out of Albany and into the outdoors. Activities include hiking, backpacking, camping, snowshoeing, sledding/tubing. This group allows students to understand the importance of outdoors , and that they can enjoy the aesthetic and recreational benefits of the wilderness. The group follows the Leave No Trace guidelines. See: https://myinvolvement.org/organization/UAlbanyOutdoors
The website URL where information about the wilderness or outdoors programs is available (optional):
Does the institution have sustainability-related themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences (e.g. choosing a sustainability-related book for common reading)?:
A brief description of the sustainability-related themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences:
First Year Experience - The World of Sustainable New York and Learning Community is a chance for incoming freshmen to live in a residential building with other students interested in the environment and sustainability, to take specific courses as an academic introduction to sustainability, and work closely with environmental organizations and student groups on campus. A total of three classes are taken together as a group supplemented by weekly luncheons with faculty mentors and weekly meetings with the community graduate assistant. This was offered during the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 Academic Year.
During 2018-2019 academic year, several Freshman Seminar courses with Sustainability Themes were offered including: Intro to Environmental Advocacy; Storms, Climate Change and Environmental Impacts and Food and Our Future. The Intro to Env Advocacy course collaborated with another Freshman Seminar entitled Find Your Place at UAlbany. These courses held a joint weekly discussion session featuring a variety of speakers on sustainability topics.
The website URL where information about the sustainability-related themes is available (optional):
Does the institution have programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills?:
A brief description of the programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills:
Each fall, the apartments host a "Green Your Dorm" program. Appliances in the kitchen, living room, bedroom and bathroom are tagged with a sustainable tip that explains or suggests ways to make your living space greener. Students are also taught how to make effective green cleaning supplies.
The website URL where information about the sustainable life skills programs is available (optional):
Does the institution offer sustainability-focused student employment opportunities?:
A brief description of the sustainability-focused student employment opportunities offered by the institution:
The Office of Sustainability offers numerous employment opportunities for students. There are 2-3 Student Assistant positions open per semester. The job responsibilities include implementing events, conducting student focused outreach, maintaining the composting office program, ink jet/toner recycling and abandoned bike policy. The Office of Sustainability also employs a graduate assistant.
Credit bearing internships are available through the Community and Public Service Program. Additionally, the Department of Communications and Information Science both host internship positions related to Communications and Website Design and Maintenance.
The website URL where information about the student employment opportunities is available:
Does the institution have graduation pledges through which students pledge to consider social and environmental responsibility in future job and other decisions?:
A brief description of the graduation pledges:
The website URL where information about the graduation pledges is available (optional):
Does the institution have other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives?:
A brief description of the other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives:
The Office of Sustainability partnered with the Educational Opportunities Program (EOP) experiential learning initiative in which selected EOP students participated in sessions related to environmental sustainability during the summer orientation experience. The group completed three rotations including one at our heritage garden, one about alternative transportation and bike maintenance and a final one at our LEED Gold Res hall and adjoining campus pond. These helped to introduce the students to the campus, its sustainability programs and groups they could become involved with after they arrive on campus.
The website URL where information about other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives is available (optional):
Estimated percentage of students (full-time and part-time) that participate annually in sustainability-focused co-curricular education and outreach programs (0-100):
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.