Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 81.30
Liaison Patrick McKee
Submission Date June 30, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Connecticut
EN-11: Inter-Campus Collaboration

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.00 / 3.00 Sarah Munro
Sustainability Coordinator
Office of Environmental Policy
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Is the institution an active member of a national or international sustainability network?:
Yes

The name of the national or international sustainability network(s):

- AASHE: Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education
- ACUPCC: American College and University President’s Climate Commitment
- NECSC: Northeast Campus Sustainability Consortium
- CT Sustainability Coalition
- Colleges United for Climate Action: COP Higher Ed Networking
- Second Nature
- Tree Campus USA
- UI Green Metric (#4)
- The Sierra Club Coolest Schools (#9)


Is the institution an active member of a regional, state/provincial or local sustainability network?:
Yes

The name of the regional, state/provincial or local sustainability network(s):

- GreenCircle
- Connecticut Sea Grant College Program with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- Yale Forest holdings
- Audobon Society holdings
- UConn Law School
- CT Sustainability Coalition


Has the institution presented at a sustainability conference during the previous year? :
Yes

A list or brief description of the conference(s) and presentation(s):

- AASHE Conference & Expo


Has the institution submitted a case study during the previous year to a sustainability awards program that is inclusive of multiple campuses? :
No

A list or brief description of the awards program(s) and submission(s):

The Climate Action Plan (CAP) is a case study that was submitted to the GreenCircle Award Program. The CAP encompasses all UConn campuses and uses data from past experience to estimate greenhouse gas emissions/reductions to be achieved from ongoing and potential projects. It also includes funding, education, research and outreach strategies, adaptation, sustainable design and construction policy, and more. UConn has four regional campuses that are connected and work together in decision making. For example, Jim O’Donnell, a faculty member in marine sciences, was extremely involved in developing Section 6 (added in 2012), Adaptation and Resilience, of the CAP and he is located at the Avery Point regional campus. All decisions made in the CAP are promoted and initiated in the regional campuses after being thoroughly planned and discussed by members of each campus. After submittal of the Climate Action Plan case study to the GreenCircle Award Program, the University of Connecticut received the 2016 GreenCircle Sustainability Award.

Since 1998, DEEP'S GreenCircle Award Program has recognized businesses, institutions, individuals, and civic organizations who participated in energy conservation, transportation, pollution prevention or recycling related activities or projects that promoted natural resource conservation or environmental awareness.


Has the institution had staff, students or faculty serving on a board or committee of a sustainability network or conference during the previous three years? :
Yes

A list or brief description of the board or committee appointment(s):

- NECSC: Northeast Campus Sustainability Consortium; OEP Director Rich Miller is on the Steering Committee
- AASHE: OEP Director Rich Miller is on the Board of Directors as the Vice Chair
- GCAN: Green Campus Academic Network
- UConn ECOlition
- EPAC: Environmental Policy Advisory Council


Does the institution have an ongoing mentoring relationship with another institution through which it assists the institution with its sustainability reporting and/or the development of its sustainability program?:
Yes

A brief description of the mentoring relationship and activities:

The UConn Office of Environmental Policy Director, Rich Miller, works closely with the President and cabinet of Western Connecticut State University to provide guidance and assistance in accelerating and organizing WCSU's sustainability efforts. This includes discussions of, and mentorship in, the topics of climate action and sustainability reporting.


Has the institution had staff, faculty, or students serving as peer reviewers of another institution’s sustainability data (e.g. GHG emissions or course inventory) and/or STARS submission during the previous three years?:
No

A brief description of the peer review activities:
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Has the institution participated in other collaborative efforts around sustainability during the previous year, e.g. joint planning or resource sharing with other institutions? :
Yes

A brief description of other collaborative efforts around sustainability during the previous year:

UConn has been one of the lead organizers of the Colleges United for Climate Action: COP Higher Ed Networking events

The first year that Colleges United for Climate Action was held, UConn, in coordination with AASHE, Second Nature, and the Kedge Business School in Paris hosted. The event brought together individuals from higher education institutions from all over the globe to share best practices and to reflect on their experiences while attending the UN COP.

The second year UConn co-hosted the Colleges United for Climate Action networking session, the event took place in Marrakech. The University of Connecticut sent a cohort of students to Marrakech, Morocco to attend COP22. There, the students met with local students at Cadi Ayyad University to share ideas and opinions of current events surrounding climate and sustainability, as well as ways our university has been combating those issues. In all, students from institutions across the U.S., including HBC representatives, and many students from Cadi Ayyad participated.


The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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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.