University of Virginia
AC-8: Campus as a Living Laboratory

Since Fall 2009, over 700 students in the Global Sustainability foundation course have completed Think Global/Act Local Projects. Each semester student teams collaborate with diverse community partners to implement meaningful research service learning projects in the community and on UVA's Grounds. Several projects have focused on air & climate aspects, which can be viewed here: http://www.globalsustainability.virginia.edu/course/projects/

The University is also committed to using its campus as a living laboratory for Buildings, especially given that Thomas Jefferson designed the Lawn as a teaching tool, specifying that the columns on the pavilions and Rotunda illustrate the different orders of classical architecture. An example of this commitment and opportunity to emulate this strategy is seen in the design of the Engineering School - Rice Hall, and information technology building. With the assistance of Trane, a leading manufacturer of commercial heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems (HVAC), and the geotechnical, environmental and civil engineering firm of H.C. Yu & Associates, the School transformed the building into a Living Laboratory. It instrumented Rice Hall with 17,000 sensors to monitor the building’s heating, cooling, lighting and energy recovery systems. In essence, these sensors transformed the building into a test bed for sustainable use, setting the stage for faculty and students to work with Trane engineers to develop new energy efficient HVAC strategies and products. “There are few buildings like this in the country,” says Larry Cummings, Trane’s market leader for strategic partnerships. A special feature of the Living Laboratory is its six pairs of offices and laboratories, all sharing a similar size, orientation and use pattern, but each outfitted with different heating and cooling technologies. “In most cases, this kind of comparative analysis — especially at the room level — is conducted in carefully controlled test facilities,” says Ronald Williams, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering. “Students will be able to see how these systems perform in real spaces occupied by real people on a daily basis.” Trane views its participation as a strategic investment. “Certainly, we’re helping the Engineering School meet its facilities needs and serve its mission,” Cummings says. “At the same time, Trane will be learning things that will help us develop new products and differentiate ourselves in a very competitive marketplace.” The functionality and design of the building has contributed greatly to the studying environment and aided in the collaborative nature of the space. More information can be found at: Rice Hall Living Laboratory (http://seas.virginia.edu/pubs/unbound/fall13/ricehall.php)

In 2017, the Introduction to Green Engineering class partnered with the Office for Sustainability to assess rooftop solar potential at UVA. The students were provided with a data set that captured over 4,000 roof segments on Grounds. They used that dataset to determine the optimal locations for solar panels. This work actively informed UVA's solar PV investigation and planning and has been incorporated into a rooftop solar plan, with additional rooftop solar PV installations beginning in 2018. Also, the Energy Working Group, under the Environmental Stewardship Subcommittee, is comprised of students, faculty, and staff, and formed in October 2013. The group's goals focus on three primary areas – changes to the physical infrastructure towards increased energy efficiency, education to inform students about energy conservation issues, and initiatives to change energy consumption behavior. In 2016-2017 the group designed a display to help students understand how energy at UVA works.

The UVA Morven Kitchen Garden is a one-acre living laboratory and an opportunity for students to run a garden and run a CSA business. https://morvenkitchengarden.wordpress.com/ In 2016-2017, a group of students researched and built give indoor hydroponic systems and worked with staff to install them on Grounds using sustainability funding. These installations grow plants in nutrient-rich solutions without the use of soil. The Green Dining Working Group, under the Environmental Stewardship Subcommittee is comprised of students, faculty, and staff was established to facilitate work in on-grounds projects. During the 2016-2017 academic year, Green Dining initiatives demonstrated significant progress in the furtherance of sustainable dining practices at the University. The students held dining sustainability residential-themed events through tht year and expanded UVA Dining's partnership with Morven Kitchen Garden.

The University has displayed its promise to using the campus as a living laboratory for Grounds by establishing the Open Space Working Group. This group consists of representatives of both UVA (students, faculty, staff) and UVA. Foundation. In 2016-2017 the group worked with Global Sustainability course students to design open space for the McCormick Road dorms, conduced an open space survey, provided a proposal to the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences for hydropower phone charging stations, and created an O'Hill trail map.

The Green Grounds student organization is dedicated to educating and advocating for sustainable planning, design, implementation and operations on the grounds of the University of Virginia. https://atuva.student.virginia.edu/organization/greengroundsgroup/ Formed in 2004 by planning and architecture students to address green design at the University, the group sponsors projects that encompass a range of sustainable design ideas – from green roofs to energy use to transportation. Through each project, Green Grounds works with a diverse set of university stakeholders including administrators, staff, faculty, students and community members. Holding a strong conviction that the University of Virginia can and should employ sustainable practices as part of their growth strategy, the Green Grounds Group promotes a broad range of projects from minimization of energy consumption to selection of low environmental impact materials to site and building water management to improved indoor air quality. Although this organization has members who are University of Virginia students and may have University employees associated or engaged in its activities and affairs, the organization is not a part of or an agency of the University. It is a separate and independent organization that is responsible for and manages its own activities and affairs. The University does not direct, supervise or control the organization and is not responsible for the organization’s contracts, acts or omissions. This information is quoted from: https://atuva.student.virginia.edu/organization/greengroundsgroup/about Additionally, the Procurement Working Group, under the Environmental Stewardship Subcommittee, partners students with faculty and staff and in 2016 the group developed zero waste criteria for caterer and held training for staff purchasers.

The University's commitment to using the campus as a living laboratory for Transportation is demonstrated through the Transportation Working Group, under the Environmental Stewardship Subcommittee. The group is comprised of students, faculty, and staff. In 2016-2017, the group held 22 bike UVA maintenance clinics, conducted an employee mode-split survey, and conducted outreach for UVA's UBike program.

The Materials Working group is comprised of students, faculty, and staff, is under the Environmental Stewardship Subcommittee and also includes several task forces dedicated to specific projects on Grounds. A primary concern of the group participants is the lack of co-location of trash and recycling bins inside buildings. In 2016-2017, the group worked on a Hoos ReUse move-out donation drive and provided outreach support for new co-located recycling and trash bins.

The Environmental Stewardship Subcommittee's Storm Water Task Force (SWTF) partners students with faculty and staff. This task force has an ultimate goal of improving local streams by reducing the volume of storm water that leaves Grounds and improving the quality of the water that does. A philosophy adopted by the SWTF is that a reduction in quantity of storm water runoff is a foremost priority, which will in turn reduce downstream erosion and transport of sediment, nutrients, and pollutants. In 2016-2017, the group created a functional bioretention area, held a stream clean up, proposed and implemented a portable water bar for events, and designed singage for a biofilter.

The Green Initiative Funding Tomorrow (GIFT) Grant is a $30,000 grant for sustainable initiatives around Grounds. Any student, student organization, faculty, or staff member can apply, and multiple grants will be awarded. All projects must be submitted as a PDF or word file to Story Hinckley at sah4yj@virginia.edu, and all projects will be evaluated on the following criteria: 1. Connection to University: Project directly addresses environmental sustainability on the University of Virginia Grounds or in the capacity that on-Grounds activities directly influence environmental sustainability in the surrounding community. 2. University Affiliation: Project proposal is submitted by a UVA student, staff member, and/or faculty member on behalf of an individual or UVA program, organization, office, or department. Non-university affiliated Individuals and organizations may not submit proposals. 3. Innovation: Project is innovative in nature and does not include routine maintenance or code-compliant activities. Fund may support the gap between code-compliant and more sustainable alternatives. 4. Feasibility and Institutional Support: Project is feasible and has support from appropriate University individuals and entities. Individual students or student organizations must have the signature of a faculty or staff advisor who is committed to advising throughout project implementation. 5. Appropriateness of Schedule and Budget Request 6. Cost/Benefit Analysis (as applicable): Project proposal outlines project payback, lifecycle costs and savings, etc. 7. Environmental Benefits: Project demonstrates a reduction in UVA’s carbon footprint or provides other environmental benefits such as water conservation, storm water management, biodiversity conservation, waste minimization, etc. 8. Student Experience: Project includes opportunities for student involvement and/or will positively impact the student experience. 9. Outreach and Education: Project considers education and outreach opportunities and has included them as part of its implementation plan. Additionally, students are an integral part of the University Committee on Sustainability, which is the highest-level sustainability committee at UVA and which reports to all three Executive Vice Presidents.

The innovative QuestBridge program connects high-achieving students who may have obstacles to attending college with some of the country’s best universities. In 2010, UVA joined the group of elite QuestBridge partners, which includes Princeton, Stanford, Yale, Emory and Dartmouth universities. The QuestBridge program is an important part of the University’s efforts to increase socioeconomic diversity. QuestBridge offers UVA a new way to recruit talented low-income students, and as such can be seen as an experiment in Diversity and Affordability at UVa. Nationally the program seeks to test the hypothesis that 1) Abundant low-income talent exists 2)Most top low-income students in America don't apply to top colleges who want them and 3) Better recruitment can close this gap. http://news.virginia.edu/content/first-questbridge-scholars-excel-grounds-are-poised-graduate http://www.questbridge.org/about-questbridge/mission-a-vision

The University is also committed to using the campus as a living laboratory for Investment. In 2014, an Investment Working Group was established which is co-chaired by a student and a staff members. Through this group, students are working with staff and faculty members to make a case for the university to commit to socially responsible investing. Students in the group are creating a benchmarking paper, and are working with faculty to also develop a proposal. This group not only demonstrates the reasons why it is important for the University to engage in sustainability issues, but that there is a demand from the students. This increasing demand will not only produce innovative ideas but assist the University making sure sustainable issues are at the forefront of discussion.

Since Fall 2009, over 700 students in the Global Sustainability foundation course have completed Think Global/Act Local Projects. Each semester student teams collaborate with diverse community partners to implement meaningful research service learning projects in the community and on U.Va.'s Grounds. Through such initiatives, the University has successfully engaged in the larger Charlottesville community to establish relationships, share best practices and ideas, and engage in projects/discourse to benefit both the University and the larger community. Several projects have focused on public engagement and can be viewed here: http://www.globalsustainability.virginia.edu/course/projects/#

The Stall Seat Journal (SSJ) is a poster created by professionals and students from the Office of Health Promotion. It uses a social norms approach with data from UVA students to showcase the healthy choices they’re making. It also educates about safe, responsible choices around a variety of health issues. The SSJ hangs in the bathroom stalls of first-year dorms, Newcomb, and Elson Student Health Center. People tend to overestimate certain unhealthy behaviors. One reason is that many of these behaviors are visible and they draw our attention, like people smoking or a person passed out at a party. One survey showed 68% of U.Va. students overestimated the number of drinks per week that most U.Va. students consume. Likewise, people tend to underestimate certain healthy behaviors because they are largely invisible or “part of the pattern.” Studying, prayer and using a condom are all examples of this. 32% of U.Va. students didn’t realize that most U.Va. students, while drinking alcohol, make their own drinks or watch their drinks being made. Overestimating unhealthy behaviors and underestimating healthy behaviors can create internal pressure to behave a certain way. By correcting misperceptions like these and focusing on the accurate ‘norm,’ students have space to act on their own values." Through the SSJ and other programs such as the Peer Health Educators, the University has engaged in educating its students on the importance of understanding Health and Wellbeing. Moreover, these initiatives have helped students engage in ways that the University can better serve its students and other faculty/staff. The following is quoted from UVA's Department of Student Health's website. http://www.virginia.edu/studenthealth/socialnorms.html

Lastly, the University is also committed to using the campus as a living laboratory in other areas besides the ones mentioned above. In September 2013, U.Va. became the first university in the nation to set a reactive nitrogen goal when the Board of Visitors amended the approved Sustainability Commitment to include a goal to reduce the amount of reactive nitrogen lost to the environment to levels 25% below year 2009 amounts by the year 2025. This research, which created the first nitrogen footprint for a university, is a student led project, first developed as a 2009 undergraduate thesis by Allison Leach. The ongoing project is led by Allison Leach and Professor Jim Galloway in the Department of Environmental Sciences. The integrated nitrogen footprint project aims to develop a replicable model to help universities calculate and reduce their nitrogen footprint. The research team has designed this replicable model, has calculated the nitrogen footprint of U.Va., has helped establish the University’s goal, and is in the process of extending this replicable model to other universities. U.Va.’s progress towards meeting the nitrogen goal will be tracked by the Office for Sustainability through collaboration with others across the University to obtain data. Full updates to the model will occur every four years. A Nitrogen Working Group, under the Environmental Stewardship Subcommittee, formed in early 2015. In this group, students, faculty, and staff will collaborate to implement nitrogen-reducing projects on grounds. These successes not only speak to the University's overall commitment to be a sustainably conscious institution. Not only has it garnered local recognition, but the University has also garnered national recognition for its efforts.

The Environmental Stewardship Subcommittee (ESS), a subcommittee of the University Committee on Sustainability, promotes and enables environmental stewardship via student, staff, and faculty engagement and direct action on Grounds. There are currently 13 working groups and five task forces within the subcommittee. This subcommittee and its working groups are focused on enabling students to use the Grounds as a learning tool. https://sustainability.virginia.edu/about/committee/stewardship/index.html Since Fall 2009, over 1,350 students in the Global Sustainability foundation course have completed Think Global/Act Local Projects. Each semester student teams collaborate with diverse community partners to implement meaningful research service learning projects on Grounds and in the community. http://www.globalsustainability.virginia.edu/course/projects/