University of California, San Diego
PA-2: Sustainability Planning

Strategic Plan Goal 3: Nurturing and supporting a collaborative and interdisciplinary research culture that advances the frontiers of knowledge, shapes new fields, and disseminates discoveries that transform lives.

• Strategy: Identify emerging and future trends and strategic thrusts to increase our impact and enrich society. 

Strategic Area of Focus: Focus and Differentiate Our Academic Product 

Section E. Sustainable Building and Laboratory Operations for Campuses 

Community Enrichment (Goal 4): Supporting and promoting just and sustainable forms of economic development, shared prosperity, and social and cultural enrichment regionally and globally. Includes measurement of public and community service and volunteer activities performed by faculty, staff, and students, and partnerships between academic units with companies and school systems focused on shared education and training. 

Goal 1: Our Students: Support our students’ entire well-being by providing a four-year housing guarantee, enhancing the various HDH touchpoints, and providing real-time support for both undergraduate and graduate students. 

Goal – Resourceful Resilience: Optimize adaptability, compassion, and creativity to enhance efficient resource utilization. 

Goal – Communal Responsibility: Demonstrate accountability via transparent, equitable, and data-informed practices. 

Supportive Infrastructure (Goal 5): Creating an agile, sustainable, and supportive infrastructure by ensuring a dedication to service, people, and financial stewardship 

Climate: Reduce total emissions (scope 1, 2 and 3) at least 90% by 2045 without relying on carbon offsets. 

Food Service: Procure 25% sustainable food by 2030. Procure 25% plant-based food by 2030 and strive to procure 30%. 

Green Building: Design and construct all new buildings and major renovations to a minimum LEED BD+C (Building Design and Construction) Gold rating. 

Procurement: Achieve full compliance with required level green spend criteria per product category; reach 25% preferred level green spend per product category; reach 25% economically and socially responsible spend. 

Sustainable Building Operations and Labs: Implement an ongoing Green Labs assessment program and report the number of researchers directly and indirectly engaged by the program annually. 

Fleet: All sedan and minivan acquisitions will be zero-emission or plug-in hybrid vehicles, except for public safety vehicles with special performance requirements. At least 50% of all vehicles acquired by each UC location after July 2023 will be zero-emission or plug-in hybrid. 

Commute: Have no more than 40% of employees and no more than 30% of all employees and students commuting to the location by SOV by 2050. 

Water: Reduce growth-adjusted potable water consumption at each location by 36% by 2025, when compared to a three-year-average baseline of fiscal year 2005–06, fiscal year 2006–07 and fiscal year 2007–08. 

Zero Waste: Divert 90% of municipal solid waste from the landfill at each campus. Reduce and eliminate single-use plastic items, such as bags, foodware accessory items and beverage bottles, by 2024. 

Continue to meet objectives of the UC Sustainable Practices Policy and implement greenhouse gas reduction strategies; 

Optimize the use of existing facilities, sites, and campus space through repurposing, renovation, infill, and consolidation where appropriate;  

Embrace sustainable facility designs and encourage “green” operations where appropriate; 

Continue to provide and expand on-campus housing opportunities to reduce vehicle miles traveled to/from campus, thus reducing the campus’ carbon footprint; and  

Model and promote a campus living laboratory, leveraging the many innovative sustainability research solutions for which UC San Diego is known. 

Sustainability considered at the project level including, 20% post-consumer recycled content material, bicycle facilities, cool roof system, reclaimed water for irrigation, storm water treatment system, and more.  

Life cycle cost analyses are to be part of the building design process so that economy and sustainability in the design of systems and selection of equipment may be achieved. 

Open space design guidelines including landscape palette recommendations that ensure consistency with and connection to the larger campus context. 

Habitat impact and mitigation tracking and vegetation mapping updates through the UC San Diego Campus Planning-maintained AutoCAD database. 

Evaluate the status of preserve sensitive habitat and species within the Ecological Reserve and institute protective measures if any threats are identified. 

Prepare a memorandum summarizing the status of the Ecological Reserve, specifically addressing each mitigation area. 

Encourage participation by UC San Diego students, faculty, and staff in the stewardship of the Ecological Reserve.  

Mobility: Maximizing connectivity and accessibility by providing clear and efficient routes for all travel modes including pedestrians, bicycles, transit and vehicles, is the best strategy for minimizing unnecessary vehicle trips, enhancing public safety, and encouraging use of transit options. 

Resiliency: A changing global climate requires greater attention to conservation strategies and management of the landscape to reduce resource inputs and maximize ecological function.  

Energy use and resource extraction: Greenhouse gas emissions should be targeted for education through public transit and active transportation initiatives. 

Water use: Stormwater should be viewed as a resource and designs should include resources for treatment, detention and storage of stormwater. 

Diversity and Access (Goal 2): Evolve our campus culture by requiring actionable initiatives and measurable outcomes that enhance equity, diversity, and inclusion. We embrace inclusion when we create a climate for work, research, and learning that is empowering for all individuals. 

Access and Success (Goal 1): Attract, retain, and support a diverse faculty, staff, and student body with the goal of reflecting California demographics and achieving institutional excellence at UC San Diego.  

Climate (Goal 2): Create and foster a positive and welcoming climate where we value, include, and support all at UC San Diego.  

Accountability (Goal 3): Ensure institutional accountability throughout UC San Diego departments and divisions. 

Goal 1: Our Students: Support our students’ entire well-being by providing a four-year housing guarantee, enhancing the various HDH touchpoints, and providing real-time support for both undergraduate and graduate students. 

We are committed to the creation of a sustainable relationship between human societies and the natural environment upon which we all depend. 

We recognize that sustainability is a key part of our mission, and that sustainability encompasses social, economic and cultural interactions set within a supporting ecosystem. 

We recognize that UC San Diego can make vital contributions to sustainability solutions through its research, teaching and operations. 

We encourage the development of academic programs to create sustainability solutions through research and experiential learning. 

We encourage the discussion of sustainability concepts in appropriate academic disciplines and across all levels of education. 

We encourage the incorporation of sustainability concepts in education, research and campus operations. 

We commit to conduct open, periodic assessments of UC San Diego’s progress toward sustainability to guide campus policy and decision making, and to openly communicate assessment results to the university community. 

We are committed to the development and enactment of policies that promote the fulfillment of these principles. 

Values: Public service, sustainability, integrity, and ethics are core principles guiding our activities. 

Research Theme – Understanding and Protecting the Planet: Providing innovations in areas such as technology for renewable-fuel energy strategies and sustainability of dwindling natural resources, and creating solutions to predict and respond to natural disasters (e.g., earthquakes, fires, extreme climates, sea-level rise and acidity, drought, famine) 

Diversity and Access (Goal 2): Evolve our campus culture by requiring actionable initiatives and measurable outcomes that enhance equity, diversity, and inclusion. We embrace inclusion when we create a climate for work, research, and learning that is empowering for all individuals. 

Community Enrichment (Goal 4): Supporting and promoting just and sustainable forms of economic development, shared prosperity, and social and cultural enrichment regionally and globally. Includes measurement of public and community service and volunteer activities performed by faculty, staff, and students, and partnerships between academic units with companies and school systems focused on shared education and training. 

Supportive Infrastructure (Goal 5): Creating an agile, sustainable, and supportive infrastructure by ensuring a dedication to service, people, and financial stewardship