Overall Rating Platinum - expired
Overall Score 86.82
Liaison Richard Demerjian
Submission Date March 28, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of California, Irvine
EN-4: Outreach Materials and Publications

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.00 / 2.00 Rachel Pennington
Program Coordinator
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution have a central sustainability website that consolidates information about the institution's sustainability efforts?:
Yes

A brief description of the central sustainability website (optional):

UCI's Sustainability website provides a central location for students, faculty, staff, and the public to find information about sustainability news and events, policies and practices, curriculum, research, opportunities, and faculty, student, and community engagement.


The website URL for the central sustainability website:
Does the institution have a sustainability newsletter?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability newsletter:

UCI's Global Sustainability Resource Center publishes the weekly GSRC Digest, which is distributed via email to interested members of the campus community. The Digest includes information about sustainability events and opportunities.

UCI Hospitality & Dining publishes a monthly sustainability newsletter to promote upcoming sustainability events and educate the campus about sustainable practices. The newsletter is sent to subscribers via email.

UCI Housing Sustainability publishes a monthly sustainability newsletter highlighting monthly sustainability challenges residents and staff can participate in. This newsletter also provides information on sustainability-related events happening in on-campus housing communities. The newsletter is sent to subscribers via email.


The website URL for the sustainability newsletter:
Does the institution have social media platforms (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, interactive blogs) that focus specifically on campus sustainability?:
Yes

A brief description of the social media platforms that focus on sustainability:

UCI Sustainability
- Facebook page (this is the main Facebook page for campus sustainability): https://www.facebook.com/ucisustainability

UCI's Global Sustainability Resource Center
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ucigsrc
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ucigsrc/

UCI Housing Sustainability
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UCIHousingSustainability/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/uci_earthreps/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ_7AEbqmjfdDQTYC5KbWEw
- Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/LiveGreenUCI/

UC Irvine Hospitality & Dining Services uses sustainability-focused social media (Facebook and Twitter) to convey facts and tips for being sustainable as well as information about outreach and education events.
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ucidining
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/ucidining
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/UCIDining

UCI Costa Rica Program
Blog: http://sites.uci.edu/costaricaprogram/category/2017-blog/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UCICostaRicaProgram/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ucicostaricaprogram/?hl=en


The website URL of the primary social media platform focused on sustainability:
Does the institution have regular coverage of sustainability in the main student newspaper, either through a regular column or a reporter assigned to the sustainability beat?:
No

A brief description of the regular coverage of sustainability in the main student newspaper:
---

The website URL for regular coverage of sustainability in the main student newspaper:
---

Does the institution produce a vehicle to publish and disseminate student research on sustainability?:
No

A brief description of the vehicle to publish and disseminate student research on sustainability:
---

The website URL for the vehicle to publish and disseminate student research on sustainability:
---

Does the institution have building signage that highlights green building features?:
Yes

A brief description of building signage that highlights green building features :

UCI has decals or glass plaques for LEED buildings. Mesa Court Student Housing and other campus buildings provides interpretive signage identifying green features. Additionally, the campus highlights green building features on the Sustainability website.


The website URL for building signage that highlights green building features :
Does the institution have signage and/or brochures that include information about sustainable food systems?:
Yes

A brief description of the signage and/or brochures that include information about sustainable food systems:

UCI Hospitality & Dining provides educational signage at all campus retail outlets and dining commons. The information covers such topics as: healthy and sustainable eating; water conservation; minimizing food waste; reusable and recyclable containers; water bottles, and mugs; local sourcing; fair trade; and recycling. Information on sustainable dining is also available at the website shown below.


The website URL for food service area signage and/or brochures that include information about sustainable food systems:
Does the institution have signage on the grounds about sustainable groundskeeping and/or landscaping strategies employed?:
Yes

A brief description of the signage on the grounds about sustainable groundskeeping and/or landscaping strategies employed:

Signage around the campus indicates that UC Irvine uses recycled water to irrigate main campus vegetation.


The website URL for the signage on the grounds about sustainable groundskeeping and/or landscaping strategies employed:
Does the institution produce a sustainability walking map or tour?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability walking map or tour:

The sustainability walking and biking tour highlights green buildings, transportation, and renewable energy on campus. The walking tour directs visitors around the Ring Mall and through the campus park where they can view LEED Platinum and Gold buildings, bike-share stations (ZotWheels), the National Fuel Cell Research Center, and urban forestry. The biking tour directs visitors to east campus where they can see concentrated solar photovoltaic panels, community gardens, and habitat restoration efforts.


The website URL of the sustainability walking map or tour:
Does the institution produce a guide for commuters about how to use more sustainable methods of transportation?:
Yes

A brief description of the guide for commuters about how to use more sustainable methods of transportation:

UC Irvine's award-winning Sustainable Transportation program encourages students, faculty, and staff to limit the number of cars UCI puts on the road. The UCI Transportation and Distribution Services website has an entire page dedicated to serving as a sustainable transportation guide for commuters. Visit the page here: https://www.parking.uci.edu/at/. On the lefthand column of the webpage, there are individual connecting pages that walk through each of the sustainable transportation options for commuters including, walking, biking, carpooling, vanpooling, taking the campus shuttle, taking the train, riding the bus, and car sharing. The individual pages go through detail on how commuters can practice/use these forms of transportation, and why they are considered to be sustainable alternatives. In addition, the online guide provides information about incentives for choosing sustainable commuting options. For example, undergraduate students who carpool to campus will receive a train pass that provides them a 20% rebate on monthly or 7-day passes.


The website URL for the guide for commuters about how to use more sustainable methods of transportation:
Does the institution produce navigation and educational tools for bicyclists and pedestrians (e.g. covering routes, inter-modal connections, policies, services, and safety)? :
Yes

A brief description of the navigation and educational tools for bicyclists and pedestrians:

UC Irvine publishes a Campus Bike Map that provides cyclists with navigational information on biking routes and ZotWheels locations. See: http://bike.uci.edu/maps/

UCI provides online educational tools about bike safety (http://bike.uci.edu/general-info/bicycle-safety-and-operation/) and pedestrian safety (http://bike.uci.edu/general-info/pedestrian-safety/).

ZOTFinder is a mobile application specifically designed for navigating around the UCI campus. It allows users to search for faculty, buildings, departments or services on campus whose location can then be displayed on a map for easy identification. A routing feature then provides users with the shortest path to their destination. The app is available at no cost for Apple and Android operating systems. See: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/zotfinder/id915256719?mt=8


The website URL for navigation and educational tools for bicyclists and pedestrians:
Does the institution produce a guide for green living and/or incorporating sustainability into the residential experience?:
Yes

A brief description of the guide for green living and incorporating sustainability into the residential experience:

UCI Housing Sustainability provides several resources and opportunity for residents to incorporate sustainability into their housing experiences.

The Green Living Guide informs residents of sustainability practices that can be incorporated into their lifestyles and help reduce their carbon footprint.
See: https://housing.uci.edu/sustainability/#living

Programmer Resources provide residents with information about sustainability topics, such as, climate change, energy, food, green living, water and drought, and zero waste events. See: https://sites.google.com/uci.edu/housingsustainability/programmer-resources?authuser=0

UCI Housing Sustainability is also piloting a Green Room Certification program, which aims to inform housing residents about everyday lifestyle choices that will help create a more sustainable campus. The program provides students with green living resources, as shown here: https://sites.google.com/uci.edu/housingsustainability/green-room?authuser=0


The website URL for the guide for green living and incorporating sustainability into the residential experience:
Does the institution produce other sustainability outreach materials or publications not covered above?:
Yes

A brief description of these materials or publications:

UCI News, the website administered by the campus's Strategic Communications office, frequently highlights campus sustainability news.

UCI In the News, a daily compendium of campus news, is distributed via email to all campus employees and includes timely sustainability-related items.


The website URL for these materials or publications:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

The University of California is partnering with Vox to produce Climate Lab, a video series exploring the surprising elements of our lives that contribute to climate change and the groundbreaking work being done to fight back. Featuring conversations with experts, scientists, thought leaders and activists, the series demystifies topics like nuclear power, food waste and online shopping to make them more approachable and actionable for those who want to do their part.

Website: https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/climate-lab
Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkZ7BJQupVA&list=PLJ8cMiYb3G5fP5oq01TBp9fgh70vDDSMe


The University of California is partnering with Vox to produce Climate Lab, a video series exploring the surprising elements of our lives that contribute to climate change and the groundbreaking work being done to fight back. Featuring conversations with experts, scientists, thought leaders and activists, the series demystifies topics like nuclear power, food waste and online shopping to make them more approachable and actionable for those who want to do their part.

Website: https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/climate-lab
Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkZ7BJQupVA&list=PLJ8cMiYb3G5fP5oq01TBp9fgh70vDDSMe

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.