| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 72.29 |
| Liaison | Jonna Korpi |
| Submission Date | Sept. 11, 2024 |
University of Minnesota, Duluth
PA-1: Sustainability Coordination
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
Jonna
Korpi Sustainability Director UMD Sustainability |
Sustainability committee(s)
The charter or mission statement of the committee(s) or a brief description of each committee's purview and activities:
Provide faculty, staff, and student expertise to:
- Facilitate continued incorporation of sustainability into UMD operations, education, outreach, and research activities
- Guide efforts at UMD to meet commitments for climate protection and support implementation of the U of MN Board of Regents Sustainability and Energy Efficiency Policy (July 2004) and the UMD Strategic Plan (May 2011)
- Advance opportunities for sustainability-related education, service, and research
- Serve on work teams to support sustainability improvements at UMD
- Promote sustainability inclusion in departmental and campus decision-making
- Set/adjust campus goals around key initiatives including: waste, energy, re-use, food, water conservation & resources, etc.
- Contribute to regular reports regarding campus sustainability efforts, programs
- Develop metrics/expectations for curriculum development
Members of each committee, including affiliations and role:
Current committee membership can be accessed here for both the Sustainability Education and Sustainability Operations Committees: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1eAGzL4GyrGbI_Ogsnx3W1Rs63N_JDQeGq3IQmh1jRTA/edit#gid=0
Sustainability office(s)
A brief description of each sustainability office:
The UMD has an office specific to campus and is comprised of a Sustainability Director and Sustainability Coordinator (2 FTE). The University of Minnesota has a systemwide sustainability officer led by the institution's Chief Sustainability Officer (1 FTE) and supported by a Sustainability Project Manager (1 FTE). Interns are hired on a regular basis for individual projects and general office support.
The Director provides leadership on strategic planning to reduce carbon emissions campus-wide, and communicates and measures sustainability progress. The Coordinator guides student involvement in campus sustainability through creating opportunities for peer-to-peer education, outreach, professional development, and community engagement.
UMD Sustainability Office Mission: The Office of Sustainability and the UMD campus are committed to communicating, educating, and inspiring action to integrate sustainability into all aspects of campus life.
Full-time equivalent of people employed in the sustainability office(s):
Sustainability officer(s)
Name and title of each sustainability officer:
Institution-wide coordination
A brief description of the activities and substantive accomplishments of the institution-wide coordinating body or officer during the previous three years:
Recent accomplishments include managing the joint Campus and Climate Action Plan process that occurred at UMD over 16 months, kicking off in October 2022 and concluding with the Campus Plan's approval by the Board of Regents in October 2023 and the Climate Action Plan's approval by the system President in February of 2024. Guided by the priorities and goals of MPact 2025, the University’s first Systemwide Strategic Plan, the result is a deeply integrated, seamless set of plans that unites the common themes and recommendations that provide a framework for the next 30 years in terms of physical plans and climate action strategies for the UMD campus.
Another major accomplishment was the Office of Sustainability taking over operations of the UMD Land Lab (aka the student-run organic farm). The Land Lab is a space for hands-on and experimental education around sustainable agriculture and renewable energy. It was previously housed under an individual academic department, but with the change in management we hope that the space will be better utilized across all academic departments to engage students in learning outside of the classroom. In 2024, approximately 1.5 acres will be in production of vegetables, climate-forward tree seedlings, and biochar application experiments.
A third project of note is the transformation of just under one acre of parking lot and grounds staging area from impervious and invasive species-choked land area to a highly visible and accessible pollinator park featuring native plants, shrubs, and trees, intentional low-mow and no-mow areas, and hammocking recreation space for studying and relaxing. This project began in spring 2023 and will be substantially complete by June 2024.
Optional Fields
Job description (1st position)
Job description for the sustainability officer position:
Job description for the sustainability officer position:
Job description (2nd position)
Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
Job description (3rd position)
Job description for the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
Job description for the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
Website URL where information about the institution’s sustainability coordination is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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.