| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 65.54 |
| Liaison | C Jane Hagen |
| Submission Date | Sept. 3, 2024 |
Virginia Commonwealth University
PA-1: Sustainability Coordination
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
C Jane
Hagen Sustainability Data Analyst Sustainability |
Sustainability committee(s)
The charter or mission statement of the committee(s) or a brief description of each committee's purview and activities:
Members of each committee, including affiliations and role:
Sustainability office(s)
A brief description of each sustainability office:
At VCU, sustainability matters – for our university, our community and our world. As mindful stewards of the diverse human and natural environments we call home, VCU Sustainability strives to build a better, more sustainable future through education, innovation, collaboration and engagement. Addressing the needs of our students, faculty, staff and community, our programs promote positive behavioral change, responsible campus practices, and forward-looking, university-wide policies.
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:
Over the last three years under the leadership of the Director of Sustainability, we have strengthened our team and set the stage for future sustainability efforts at VCU. New leadership and reorganization have enabled us to take on fresh challenges and become more efficient in tackling existing projects. Our office has expanded to include two new positions for a total of five full time employees with VCU Sustainability. Expanding opportunities for students to be involved in our work and strengthening our capacity, we both expanded and substantially reorganized the internship program. As of spring 2024, we have eleven student interns supporting projects in four areas. In addition, ten student interns supported the ONE VCU Sustainability Plan development process.
Development of the multi-year ONE VCU Sustainability Plan, a collaborative effort involving the University and the VCU Health System, has been an important focus. Through an internally‐led process, working groups were convened in five major areas of Campus Environmental Impact, Biodiversity and Campus Ecology, Research, Teaching and Innovation, Health and Wellbeing, and Environmental Equity, Partnerships and Engagement. In addition to working group/subgroup meetings, we held several dozen stakeholder interviews, presentations and outreach events and a regular schedule of project management meetings. Following presentation of the plan’s draft initiatives to the Board of Visitors in May 2024, implementation will commence in the second half of the year.
In September 2023, our team moved to a newly-renovated space that accommodates the Free Store, the Ram Pantry and our expanded team. This has allowed for more effective approaches to our work, improved access, and greater visibility among students and the wider university community. We have been able to serve 1,075 students since the opening of the Free Store in its new location and the Learning Gardens provided over 300 pounds of produce to the RamPantry between 2023 and 2024. Changing our name from Office of Sustainability to VCU Sustainability, with new signage on the building and in other communications efforts has further helped to improve awareness and recognition of our work and programs.
We have strengthened collaborative partnerships with colleagues across VCU, the City of Richmond, local charities, and non-profit organizations to support our work. Hosting members of the Virginia Association for Sustainability in Higher Education (VASHE) at VCU’s Rice Rivers Center in July 2022 (the first in‐person meeting of VASHE members since before the pandemic) allowed us to make and renew valuable professional connections across the state. VCU will serve as host of the VASHE network for the next two years.
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.