Richmond’s sustainability efforts and goals touch every aspect of campus life.
In the two years since President Edward Ayers signed the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, the movement to reduce the University’s impact on the environment has become integrated into all aspects of campus life.
Environmental considerations factor into major administrative decisions. Faculty and staff meet regularly to discuss sustainability. And most importantly, the students are learning—and demonstrating—every day what it means to be environmentally responsible. By the time they graduate, Richmond students are steeped in sustainability.
President Ayers’ endorsement of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment brought with it other obligations that the University is energetically working to achieve. “The biggest of all is the Climate Action Plan, which is currently being developed,” says Hossein Sadid, vice president for business and finance. “Under the plan, the University pledges to work to become climate neutral by a certain date.” To begin moving in that direction, Richmond will set an initial goal of reducing emissions significantly by 2020.
To support this work, the University hired a sustainability coordinator, who has helped focus consistent attention on sustainability issues, ensuring steady forward progress. But achieving the goals of the Climate Action Plan will require the entire campus community to get involved, Sadid says, and that has begun already. From recycling, to the food that is served in the dining hall, to architectural design, to curriculum, there is no part of the University that is not making positive changes to enhance sustainability.
The Climate Action Plan, which will be presented to the Board of Trustees in the coming academic year, addresses five key areas: administration commitment, bringing sustainability issues into the classroom, transportation, energy use on campus, and materials management.
“The administration’s commitment is firm, and we already are making measurable progress in all of the key areas,” Ayers says. “The goals we have set are attainable with the continued enthusiasm and involvement of students, faculty, and staff. It is part of the nature of a university to be a steward of resources for future generations, and these commitments are a new way of fulfilling that obligation.”
Green power
Electricity usage accounts for about half of the University’s carbon footprint. So reducing power consumption will be vital to implementing the Climate Action Plan.
“One thing that we are really going to be pushing is a phantom energy or vampire energy initiative,” Sadid says, referring to the energy that is consumed by appliances that are turned off but still plugged in and drawing current. “Unfortunately, as we Americans have become more and more dependent on technology and electronic devices, this energy use has skyrocketed. Anywhere from 5 percent to 15 percent of the University’s electrical usage is phantom energy.” Just getting everyone to unplug cell phone chargers and other electrical devices when they are not in use will save a lot of energy and reduce the University’s carbon footprint.
Environmental studies major Megan Sebasky, ’10, says that the administration’s initiatives are laudable, but “it’s really up to the students to stop consuming so much electricity.” Until March, Sebasky was co-president of the campus environmental group Green UR. The organization’s goal is simple—to promote sustainability on campus. It started with just a few dedicated students, but lately, its core membership has grown to well over a dozen.
(From top) Anyone on campus can ride green bikes and eat takeout meals from the dining hall in reusable containers. Student organizers of URot plan to donate their compost to
the University’s
community garden.
Sebasky notes that as environmental awareness increases, students are becoming more willing to help. This year they stepped up recycling efforts and participated in a campus-wide competition to reduce energy use in residence halls. With a grant from the Dominion Foundation, Richmond installed energy-monitoring equipment in all 14 residence halls. A large display in the dining hall and an online dashboard shows energy use in real time so students can see the impact of their conservation efforts. It seems to be working. Electricity consumption is decreasing in the dorms.
Green eggs and ham
As they strive toward sustainability, Richmond dining services managers put everything on the table—from the food that is served, to where it comes from, how it is prepared, how it is served, and how waste is handled.
Dee Hardy, associate vice president for campus services, says sustainability has become a top priority in the dining hall. “It boils down to maintaining and improving what we have so it will be here for generations to come,” she says.
Some of the dining hall’s new initiatives cost money, says Cathy Moran, assistant director of dining services. “But as sustainability becomes a more prevalent movement around the world, I think the cost of doing some of the things … is going to come down.”
Dining services managers buy food and supplies locally as much as possible to cut down on transportation costs and carbon emissions. They recycle their cooking oil into biodiesel fuel, eliminating the oil from the waste stream and turning it into a useful product. They also conduct waste studies that let students know exactly how much food is being thrown away. To further reduce that waste and raise awareness, they occasionally promote “trayless Fridays.” Without the convenience of trays, students are less likely to take more food than they eat, and dining hall workers save water and energy by not having to wash trays.
Dining services also is working with the Virginia Department of Corrections on a composting initiative using a prison’s composting operation in Goochland County. “They’re going to produce compost from our pre-consumer waste, and we’re hoping we’ll get some compost back to use on campus,” Hardy says.
Even dietary considerations can have a positive impact on sustainability efforts. “If you eat healthier, you are eating fewer processed foods so there’s a reduced impact on the environment from the processing,” Moran says.
In recognition of its sustainability initiatives, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality has named the Heilman Dining Center a Virginia Green Restaurant.
Green everything
Richmond has been encouraging campus-wide recycling for two decades, and Al Lane, manager of custodial and environmental services, believes the University is approaching a tipping point that will bring dramatic results in coming years.
During an average week, for example, Richmond recycles more than five pounds of recyclables per person, including paper, cardboard, containers, scrap metal, wood pallets, yard waste, cinderblocks, tires, oil, grease, light bulbs, carpeting, yard sale items, and electronic waste. For the past several years, the University has participated in RecycleMania, a 10-week recycling competition among colleges and universities. In the per-capita category, the University placed 91st among 346 institutions. Richmond recycled 15.84 pounds per person, up from 13.88 pounds per person last year.
“Good things are happening, and great things are going to happen,” Lane predicts. “The awareness and the education and a lot of things that have been heading in the right direction for years are gaining momentum. The campus as a whole is just more focused on doing the right things.”
The University’s Sustainability Working Group, for example, sponsors a community garden on campus, where members of the faculty, staff, and students grow fruits and vegetables using organic fertilizers and no pesticides. Potted plants that decorate events such as Homecoming or Reunion Weekend are later planted on campus. Even the hard copy of this magazine is printed on 30 percent recycled paper that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.
Transportation is another area making many right turns. Richmond promotes carpooling and subsidizes public transportation, including free passes for local bus service for all students and employees. The University provides public bicycles for trips across campus and designates special parking spaces for hybrid vehicles and charging stations for electric cars. The University also is experimenting with alternative fuels. About half of its service carts run on electricity or propane gas, and much of Richmond’s heavy equipment uses biodiesel.
“What we’re seeing now really makes me feel good about where we are, where we have been, and most importantly where we are headed,” Lane says.
Green buildings
Sustainability goes beyond recycling, carpooling, and changing personal habits. Constructing and renovating buildings to higher environmental standards is also part of the solution.
In 2000, a small group of faculty and staff petitioned the University’s president to adopt LEED standards for all new construction on campus. LEED stands for leadership in energy and environmental design, the recognized rating standard for sustainable construction. LEED certification uses a point system to measure the sustainability of new or renovated buildings. A construction project earns points for everything from conserving energy and water to promoting indoor air quality and using construction materials that are more environmentally friendly.
Richmond strives to earn as many points as possible for each of its new or renovated buildings, starting with Weinstein Hall, which opened in 2003. Now there are nine buildings that are either LEED certified or in the LEED-certification process. “We’re something of a pioneer in the state,” says University Architect Andrew McBride. Weinstein Hall, for example, was the second higher education building in Virginia to become LEED certified. “Every building we have taken on since Weinstein Hall has been designed using the LEED rating system,” he says.
The nine LEED buildings include Weinstein Hall, Heilman Center, Weinstein Center for Recreation and Wellness, Lakeview and Freeman residence halls, Westhampton Center, Carole Weinstein International Center, Queally Hall (the Robins School addition), and E. Claiborne Robins Stadium.
Green studies
The long-term impact of the University’s sustainability initiatives will hinge on what happens after students graduate.
Dr. Mary Finley-Brook (right) touts renewable sources of energy like the biodiesel that powers this backhoe. She and Carrie O’Rourke, ’11, are researching climate action plans at other universities.
“We are a university, we are about education,” says Dr. Mary Finley-Brook, assistant professor of geography and environmental studies. “If we are effective, we can change students’ behavior for the rest of their lives.” And that will pay dividends to the environment for decades to come.
Finley-Brook and Carrie O’Rourke, ’11, have been researching climate action plans at other universities. They are looking at such things as renewable energy credits and offsets, timelines, and whether students volunteer to pay a small annual fee for renewable energy, as they do on many campuses nationwide.
Finley-Brook says renewable energy “is the direction U.S. institutions, like universities and the world more broadly, are heading, so we might as well figure out how to do it now.”
Dr. Christopher Stevenson, associate professor of chemistry and environmental studies, coordinates Richmond’s growing environmental studies program. The University’s first six environmental studies majors graduated in 2003. Now the program produces about 20 graduates per year including majors and minors.
“The president’s initiatives are great and sweeping, and I have no doubt that they are improving our eco-footprint,” Stevenson says. “Now we need to connect this to the general student population. I’m not talking about the core students who are members of Green UR—people who tend to be favorable to all this—I’m talking about typical students. Because if you make a difference in their habits over their lifetimes, that’s huge.”
The long-term impact of environmental education is not lost on Richmond’s alumni. Many of them have become prominent advocates of sustainability. (See Vantage Point column by L. Preston Bryant Jr., G’88, Virginia’s former secretary of natural resources.)
“As societies transition to new and renewable forms of energy, universities like UR will play a special role,” says Dr. Robert Cox Jr., R’67, former president of the Sierra Club and a communications professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “Just as faculty in the arts, sciences, business, and other fields are discovering new principles and breakthroughs, universities will serve as incubators for the ideas and tools of sustainability.”
Shari Wilson, W’83, Maryland’s secretary of the environment, sees it much the same way. “UR’s commitment has multiple benefits,” she notes. “The University will realize meaningful cost savings in the short term. Students can accelerate those savings with their own actions, and in the process, we all benefit by being cognizant of the value of making decisions using lifecycle analyses and considering long-term consequences.”
Sustainability takes the long-term view, Stevenson agrees. “This concept has been around since the pioneer days. The end of the frontier came and all of a sudden they realized that resources are not endless. We need to be good stewards.”
Green future
Richmond’s next step is to complete the Climate Action Plan, a roadmap to carbon neutrality with milestones to pass along the way. One proposed milestone is to become a “zero-waste” campus by 2030.
“That gives us 20 years to improve our recycling efforts, to educate the campus community, to work with suppliers, and so forth,” Sadid says. That’s a pretty ambitious timetable, but the Climate Action Plan will have some flexibility. Richmond will revisit it every year or two to assess progress, adjust goals, incorporate new technologies, and consider economic constraints.
The plan will detail specific strategies for the next decade, but after 2020 it becomes somewhat speculative, Sadid notes. “I don’t feel comfortable going beyond 2020 in stating what specific technologies will be incorporated, for example. We just don’t know what’s going to be available.”
Financial constraints are also difficult to anticipate. Though many initiatives can save money, being environmentally responsible and sustainable will require new investments. But the hidden costs of environmental damage must also be factored into the financial equation. “What price do we put on external costs like impact on future generations, altering natural resources, and health considerations?” Sadid asks.
Richmond does not have all the answers, but people are beginning to applaud its efforts. In October, the Sustainable Endowments Institute named Richmond a campus sustainability leader. As part of the institute’s College Sustainability Report Card, Richmond earned top marks for administration, food and recycling, green building, and transportation.
The recognition is encouraging, but there is much more work to be done. Dr. David Dean, associate professor of economics, chairs the University’s Environmental Awareness Group. One of his goals is to boost faculty awareness of sustainability efforts in recycling, transportation, and conservation. He is working to expand his group to include liaisons to all five of Richmond’s schools.
“I’m an economist,” he says. “I understand the scarcity of resources, and I believe it’s important to preserve them for future generations.”
Urban studies major Michael Rogers, ’11, believes students are becoming more environmentally aware and responsible. He recently led an effort to build a compost station on campus with a $2,000 grant from the Class of 1992 Environmental Awareness Endowment.
“We’re going to have to conserve and reuse, and it has to fit into our daily lives,” Rogers notes. President Ayers’ endorsement of the Presidents’ Climate Commitment was an important milestone, he adds. “More than anything, he made a serious commitment. … We are headed in the right direction.”
Gordon Hickey is a freelance writer in Richmond. For more information about Richmond’s sustainability initiatives, visit sustainability.richmond.edu.
Send comments about this story to krhodes@richmond.edu.
