Overall Rating Reporter - expired
Overall Score
Liaison Patrick McKee
Submission Date April 15, 2013
Executive Letter Download

STARS v1.2

University of Connecticut
ER-13: Sustainability Literacy Assessment

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete Reporter Jennifer Clinton
Sustainability Coordinator
Office of Environmental Policy
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Has the institution conducted a sustainability literacy assessment?:
Yes

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Did the assessment include a baseline evaluation of students and then a follow-up evaluation of the same cohort?:
Yes

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A copy of the questions included in the sustainability literacy assessment:
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A copy of the questions included in the sustainability literacy assessment :
1) What is the most important environmental issue on campus? Trash/litter; Recycling; Water issues; Air pollution; Energy issues; Landscaping; Global Warming; Food/Food Packaging waste; Green/New Buildings; Transportation; Resource Usage; Green Technology; Hazardous Waste; Unsure/Left Blank 2) In comparison to other UCONN students, how important is the environment to you? Very important; Somewhat important; Not very important; Not at all important; Blank 3) How important is it to you that UCONN's new buildings be designed to conserve water and energy? Very important; Somewhat important; Not very important; Not at all important; Blank 4) How important is it to you that UCONN purchase recycled and recyclable products? Very important; Somewhat important; Not very important; Not at all important; Blank 5) How important is it to you that UCONN consider using fuel-efficient vehicles and alternative fuels to Very important; Somewhat important; Not very important; Not at all important; Blank 6) How important is it to you that UCONN consider renewable energy sources for its energy needs? Very important; Somewhat important; Not very important; Not at all important; Blank 7) In comparison to other UCONN students, how important is it to you to recycle the products you use? Very important; Somewhat important; Not very important; Not at all important; Blank 8) What types of items do you regularly recycle on UCONN's campus? Newspapers Bottles/Cans Mixed Paper Cardboard Sneakers E-waste Other Blank 9) What types of items do you regularly recycle at your home away from UCONN? Newspapers Bottles/Cans Mixed Paper Cardboard Sneakers Other Blank 10) What do you think about the location of recycling containers on campus? Very convenient; Somewhat convenient; Not very convenient; Not at all convenient; Blank 11) How confident are you that items placed in recycling bins at UCONN are actually being recycled? Very confident; Somewhat confident; Not very confident; Not at all confident; Blank 12) What would be the single best way to encourage students to recycle more at UCONN? More bins in academic buildings More bins in residences More bins in dining halls More accessible bins around campus More Recycling Outreach More Janitorial training More clearly marked binsSTARS Reporting Tool | AASHE | Sierra Magazine Snapshot | Page 54 Other (specify) Blank 13) What would be the best way to encourage UCONN students to use bicycles more on campus? More bike paths More bike racks More storage facilities Loaner program More bicycle signage Other (specify) Blank 14) What types of things do you do to conserve water/energy on UCONN's campus? Limit shower time Use a clothing rack to dry clothes Turn off lights when not in use Turn off electronics when not in use Turn off the water while brushing my teeth or shaving Save my laundry for when I have full loads Use compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) instead of incandescent bulbs Lower thermostat when leaving the room Use double sided copies Use reusable plates, cups, utensils Carry reusable coffee mug Other Blank 15) Would you be willing to pay $2 more in student fees per semester to reduce UCONN's impact on the environment? Yes; No; Don't Know; More than $5; Less than $5 *2010 Survey asked students: Would you be willing to pay $5 more... 16) Have you ever heard of the EcoHusky student group at UCONN? Yes; No; Blank 16A) If yes, what interaction with EcoHusky have you had? Seen Articles Visited website Active member Volunteered for event Attended meeting Seen Poster Other 2010 Supplemental Questions and Results During the 2010 Environmental Survey, additional questions were asked and compiled. The results are below: How much impact do you think that people like you can have in making the world a better place to live? A big impact; A moderate impact; A small impact; No impact at all What types of things do you do to reduce waste on UConn’s Campus? Use double sided photocopying when possible Use reusable plates, cups, utensils instead of disposables (i.e. paper/Styrofoam) in your room Carry a re-usable coffee mug for use at campus dining halls/cafes instead of using disposables Carry a re-usable water bottle instead of purchasing bottled water I decline plastic bags with purchases at the Co-op What would be the single best way to decrease the number of students driving their personal vehicles on campus? (Please select one.) Make the campus more bike friendly Introduce a bicycle loaner program Offer incentives for car-pooling Make information about car-pooling options more readily available Increase the number of bus routes or frequency of buses on existing routes Introduce a car-share program on campus (cars available for short term reservations) How important is it to you that UConn reduce its carbon footprint? Very important; Somewhat important; Not very important; Not at all important; Blank Are you aware that UConn (Storrs) is committed to carbon neutrality and has written a Climate Action Plan to help achieve this? Yes; No Which three methods do you think would be the most effective in raising environmental literacy and awareness in order to reduce UConn’s carbon footprint? (Please select 3) Establish a UConn sustainable farm living-learning experience for students Expand the number of courses related to energy and sustainable design available to students Increase experiential learning opportunities through research or senior design projects related to campus sustainability initiatives Develop a green job training program Increase the number of environmentally-themed study abroad and international exchange program opportunities Develop and expand existing alternative transportation-based education and outreach programs Develop a student-led building energy audit program to identify building inefficiencies Would you support a national policy that gradually increases existing fuel taxes by $1 per gallon over the next four years in order to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions? Yes; No What is the largest source of greenhouse gases emitted by human activity? Deforestation Fertilizer Use Fossil Fuel Use In the last 100 years, global temperatures have increased about: 10 degrees Fahrenheit; 5 degrees Fahrenheit; 2 degrees Fahrenheit; It has changed very little Generally speaking, how concerned are you about climate change? Very concerned; Somewhat concerned; Not very concerned; Not at all concerned How soon do you think the consequences of climate change will affect you in a significant way? Soon- now, or within the next 10 years or so In the future- within the next 50 years or so Never, or only in the very distant future Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? “People throughout the country are taking significant actions to address the climate change problem.” Agree Disagree I am most concerned about the impact of climate change on… (Please choose one.) Myself and my loved ones My local community The United States as a whole People around the world Non-human nature I’m not really concerned at all I am currently a: Freshman; Sophomore; Junior; Senior; Grad Student My major is: Do you currently live: On-campus Off-campus Would you describe your political views as: Very conservative Somewhat conservative Somewhat liberal Very liberal Gender:

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A brief description of how the assessment was developed:
The assessment was developed by the director of the Office of Environmental Policy and the student intern staff, in conjunction with survey experts from the Department of Public Policy. Minor wording modifications, and additional questions, have been added throughout the years, as noted in the questions. The results are used to target outreach strategies, and to provide policy and program feedback to the President's office.

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A brief description of how the assessment was administered:
The year the survey was developed, the OEP tabled its interns in high traffic areas to randomly select student volunteers. Roughly 200 surveys were collected in this fashion. Two years later, volunteers from sororities and fraternities were used to conduct random surveys, and an online version was offered. Results were compared, and found to be statistically equivalent (indicating limited self-selection bias), so results from the two sources were pooled. Roughly 400 surveys were collected randomly in this fashion. In 2010, only the online feature was used. For the upcoming 2013-14 survey, a group of volunteers and interns will table to collect random results, and an online option will be included, and made available to the entire student body.

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A brief summary of results from the assessment:
Student awareness and concern about recycling, water, and energy use has risen across the time period. The recycling program received the largest amount of comments and concern, with students expressing low confidence levels in the recycling program. Students are overall more concerned about the environment now (2010) than they were in 2004, but their support for sustainability initiatives (fees, renewable energy reliance)appears to be fluctuating to coincide with economic concerns and tuition raises, as well as waning public support for global warming/ climate change awareness and action. The rural location of UConn's main campus (Storrs) makes public transportation to and from the University very difficult, and the majority of students live on campus. Overwhelmingly, the students believe that car traffic could be reduced by overhauling the bus campus lines (in progress) and investing in making the campus more bicycle friendly (also in progress). Most students demonstrated high levels of individual energy consciousness, but were not aware of the University's Climate Action Plan initiatives.

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The website URL where information about the literacy assessment is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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