| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 66.65 |
| Liaison | Austin Sutherland |
| Submission Date | Aug. 9, 2021 |
University of Pennsylvania
EN-11: Inter-Campus Collaboration
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
3.00 / 3.00 |
Is the institution currently a member of a national or international higher education sustainability network?:
The name of the national or international sustainability network(s):
AASHE, IVY Plus Sustainability Consortium, Second Nature, Post Landfill Action Network, International Sustainable Campus Network
Does the institution actively participate in a regional, state/provincial, or local higher education sustainability network?:
The name of the regional, state/provincial or local sustainability network(s):
Green Building United and Southeast Pennsylvania Higher Education Sustainability Network
Has the institution presented at a higher education sustainability conference during the previous year?:
A list or brief description of the conference(s) and presentation(s):
2020 Green Building United Sustainability Symposium: Natalie Walker moderated a panel with Dr. William and Alexander Waegel of University of Pennsylvania and Dr. Forest Meggers of Princeton addressing the path to net zero carbon in higher education.
2020 AASHE's Global Conference on Sustainability in Higher Education: Nina Morris presented on both racial equity and social justice and catalyzing sustainable communities through change management.
Has the institution submitted a case study during the previous year to an external higher education sustainability resource center or awards program?:
A list or brief description of the sustainability resource center or awards program and submission(s):
Penn participates in the Ivy+ and Listening Post Institutions Sustainability Collaborative. As part of the Climate Action for Healthy Communities: Collective Progress on Carbon Reduction Report, Penn submitted a case study on Penn's carbon reductions planning.
Has the institution had employees or students serving on a board or committee of a sustainability network or conference during the previous three years?:
A list or brief description of the board or committee appointment(s):
Two student Eco-Reps worked with Post Landfill Action Network to conduct a waste audit and post-conference survey to improve conference accessibility for their Students for Zero Waste conference in 2019.
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?:
A brief description of the mentoring relationship and activities:
Penn is an active member of the Ivy+ Sustainability Consortium and collaborated with other institutions in the network to share best practices related to sustainability data and justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion; among others.
Has the institution had employees or students serving as peer reviewers of another institution’s sustainability data and/or STARS submission during the previous three years?:
A brief description of the peer review activities:
Through Ivy+ Sustainability Consortium, Penn has provided and discussed carbon footprints of member organizations.
A brief description of other inter-campus collaborative efforts around sustainability during the previous year :
Penn is an active participant in Ivy+ Sustainability Consortium meetings, sharing best practices and collaborating with other higher education universities to advance sustainability. Penn also has become an active member in the Southeast Pennsylvania Higher Education Sustainability Network in the past year and has participated in conversations around advancing environmental justice initiatives, maintaining and improving sustainability initiatives during COVID shut-downs, offsets, and other topics. The Netter Center at Penn has been convening local higher education partners to explore improved communication and collaboration regionally.
Website URL where information about the institution’s inter-campus collaborations is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Penn students, faculty, and staff participate in numerous boards and committees both locally and internationally. The list above does not cover all such activity, but does try to cover the majority of sustainability related work. In addition to the organizations listed above, Penn participates in SRAC, SCUP, APPA, NACUBIO, ASLA, ASUA, AIA, and many others.
The University of Pennsylvania is a major research institution, with over 3000 degrees granted annually from twelve professional and academic schools at the Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctorate levels. Penn is committed to engaging with both the campus and public community on sustainability, with a goal to make climate change and sustainability part of the Penn culture. This commitment and long standing tradition of both campus and public engagement around the issue of sustainability is seen through campus sustainability groups and community focused centers. Both public and campus engagement organizations partner with the Sustainability Office to create student internships, engage in environmental issues, and build knowledge around sustainability. For a more complete listing of engagement activities on campus, please see EN 10 to EN 14.
The submission relies on information related to the main, academic, West Philadelphia campus, but to more fully document efforts across the Penn system, information related to the Morris Arboretum and New Bolton has also been referenced and noted as outside the boundary in descriptions. The information is used to enrich examples of University efforts and is not intended to be the primary justification for credits. The responses for each of the questions and sub-questions are drawn from University materials, both internal and public documents. Each section notes the website where the information can be found.
Penn students, faculty, and staff participate in numerous boards and committees both locally and internationally. The list above does not cover all such activity, but does try to cover the majority of sustainability related work. In addition to the organizations listed above, Penn participates in SRAC, SCUP, APPA, NACUBIO, ASLA, ASUA, AIA, and many others.
The University of Pennsylvania is a major research institution, with over 3000 degrees granted annually from twelve professional and academic schools at the Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctorate levels. Penn is committed to engaging with both the campus and public community on sustainability, with a goal to make climate change and sustainability part of the Penn culture. This commitment and long standing tradition of both campus and public engagement around the issue of sustainability is seen through campus sustainability groups and community focused centers. Both public and campus engagement organizations partner with the Sustainability Office to create student internships, engage in environmental issues, and build knowledge around sustainability. For a more complete listing of engagement activities on campus, please see EN 10 to EN 14.
The submission relies on information related to the main, academic, West Philadelphia campus, but to more fully document efforts across the Penn system, information related to the Morris Arboretum and New Bolton has also been referenced and noted as outside the boundary in descriptions. The information is used to enrich examples of University efforts and is not intended to be the primary justification for credits. The responses for each of the questions and sub-questions are drawn from University materials, both internal and public documents. Each section notes the website where the information can be found.
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.