| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 50.50 |
| Liaison | Ryan Chabot |
| Submission Date | March 2, 2017 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of Central Florida
AC-8: Campus as a Living Laboratory
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
3.60 / 4.00 |
Patrick
Bohlen Director Lanscape & Natural Resources |
"---"
indicates that no data was submitted for this field
Air & Climate
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Air & Climate:
UCF Landscape and Natural Resources Department supported student Service Learning Projects to study Urban Heat Island (UHI) Effects. The student poster is uploaded below.
Students put data loggers out across campus to collect temperature data to measure the temperature fluctuations in vegetated areas compared to non-vegetated areas like buildings, sidewalks, and roads. The students found that there was, in fact, a slight urban heat island effect happening on campus, meaning that the urban developed areas retained heat longer than areas that were covered with living plant material. This is a force that drives climate in urbanized areas and can affect the health and well-being of humans living in these dense urban populations. With this knowledge, the administration is able to rationalize budget spending on maturing our landscape beds in order to normalize our campus climate.
Buildings
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Buildings:
Students conducted a service learning project where they studied which native plants did best in a Florida green roof microclimate as well as which substrates were best suited for use on a green roof. This study can help in deciding which plants to place in that extreme climate to sustain a functional green roof garden, in turn reducing costs within the building and reducing stormwater runoff. The poster is uploaded below.
Energy
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Energy:
A senior design project under the supervision of the Office of Sustainability Initiatives resulted in a 20-panel floating solar farm a University retention pond.
The power generated from the 5-kilowatt prototype feeds into the campus power grid. It has given the office the opportunity to test the improved efficiency and environmental impact of floating solar. Floating solar provides an innovative means to scaling up renewable energy production without using precious land resources.
Food & Dining
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Food & Dining:
Students have completed service learning projects on multiple subjects relating to food production through UCF’s organic garden at the Arboretum. These projects include studies on organic fertilizers, aquaponic food production, mushroom production in EcoFarming, and Agroecosystem sustainability which looked into whether or not campus food production could be sustained by an on-campus farm with a component on comparing the growth of plants with different composts.
Grounds
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Grounds:
UCF Landscape and Natural Resources Department supported student Service Learning Projects for GIS irrigation mapping including the campus' irrigation system, urban canopy, landscape beds, and buildings. A soil and groundcover study was completed where students measured the effects of soil conditions on plant health in landscape beds across campus. They measured soil compaction and pH and compared this data to the health of the plants in the beds. This study allows the landscape department to make better decisions during and after construction projects when dealing with soil compaction and species choice for those areas, as well as pH and plant selection.
A natural herbicide treatment project was also completed comparing the use of Jugland, a derivative compound of the walnut tree that has been known to have herbicidal properties, and glyphosate on treating weeds and invasive plant species. The study concluded that the commercial product was much more effective in treating problem plant species than the
Purchasing
No
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Purchasing:
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Transportation
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Transportation:
Landscape and Natural Resources supported a student Service Learning project on implementation of a bike share program on campus. The students did research on different bike share companies and implementation process and compared pricing to determine what the best options might be for the University. The student gained an understanding of what it takes to implement a bike share program and how that would offset carbon production on campus.
Waste
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Waste:
In collaboration with UCF Recycling, a new Environmental Capstone course student team will be examining the current status of diversion efforts on campus and formulate plans to expand capacity and increase recycling rates. Phase 1 of the project will include surveying the student population on recycling literacy, behavior and perceptions as well as conducting several waste audits throughout campus.
Water
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Water:
UCF Landscape and Natural Resources Department supported Service Learning Projects on stormwater and the amount of chlorophyll "a" that was present in stormwater ponds versus natural systems on campus. This gave the student an understanding of the difference between man-made ponds and natural water bodies algae production.
Another student project related to water was a study on water lettuce and apple snails for the bioremediation of copper in our stormwater ponds on campus, as copper is often sprayed into these ponds to reduce the amount of submerged aquatics and algae growing in the ponds.
Another study was done by students where they conducted research on amphibian abundance in wetlands. The students correlated the numbers of amphibians they encountered with the proximity to urban development, finding that runoff from impervious surfaces may be cause for a decline in amphibian populations in these urban-wildland interface situations.
Coordination & Planning
No
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Coordination & Planning:
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Diversity & Affordability
No
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Diversity & Affordability:
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Investment & Finance
No
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Investment & Finance:
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Public Engagement
Yes
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Public Engagement:
UCF Landscape and Natural Resources Department celebrates an annual UCF Arbor Day event to engage students and staff about the importance of trees.
Students completed a Service Learning research project on the understanding of the meaning of "Sustainability" to students and faculty in different colleges within the University.
Wellbeing & Work
No
A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Wellbeing & Work:
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Other Impact Areas
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A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to other areas:
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Optional Fields
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The attached document is a compilation of the student research papers discussed above. There are a total of 14 different research papers in the attached .pdf.
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.