Blueprint for a Green Campus (2000 Edition) 

Table of Contents | Introduction | Goals | Institutional Issues | Climate-Friendly Campus | Growing Without Increasing Traffic | Safe/Healthy Campus | Consumption and Disposal Habits  

Introduction

In the last decade, many institutions have made crucial changes in their approach to environmental management. These changes are motivated by the realization that it is not enough to comply with environmental regulations, but that a forward-looking commitment to dramatically reducing environmental impacts in a range of areas will payoff in the long-run, both for the individual institution and for society as a whole.

This is increasingly the domain not just of environmental visionaries, but of some of the largest companies and most respected universities in the world. The Dupont Corporation has set a goal of reducing its emissions of greenhouse gases by 45% below 1990 levels by 2010, and has set a long-term goal of moving towards zero waste and zero emissions. British Petroleum has committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 10% below 1990 levels by 2010. Stanford University and the University of Washington have both adopted policies to sustainably grow by not increasing the number of automobile trips generated by the campus.

It is worth considering the words of a senior Dupont executive, "A sustainable growth company builds value for shareholders and society while decreasing its environmental footprint. It sees the marketplace and civil society as integral to business decisions, not as external entities that we simply interact with. And it fulfills the needs of a growing world population using the best and most advanced forms of modern technology while minimizing risk and environmental impact."

We believe that these words apply just as much to an institution like the University of Colorado as to a corporation like Dupont. That is why we have developed the Blueprint for a Green Campus. Building on the environmental successes at CU over the last two decades, we propose a vision of a growing, dynamic campus which steps lightly upon the earth and satisfies additional demands for energy, transportation, and resources through increased efficiency rather than increased consumption.

In addition, the federal government is increasingly focusing on campus environmental performance. The American Council on Education recently sent a letter to 258 college and university presidents stating that the US Environmental Protection Agency will be monitoring institutional compliance with environmental regulations, and stating that "it is especially important that institutions of higher education set an example for their students."

CU-Boulder needs a clear vision and strategy for addressing the environmental challenges and opportunities ahead. The "Blueprint for a Green Campus" is intended to help us identify where we can improve our existing policies and practices in order to set an example of environmental responsibility as an institution. The Blueprint for a Green Campus is an environmental action plan which proposes solutions for a wide variety of issues that CU faces. The Blueprint sets forth the following goals:

• Creating a climate-friendly campus by reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 7 percent below 1990 levels by 2010
• Growing without increasing traffic by capping traffic at today’s levels
• Creating a safe and healthy campus by reducing hazardous waste and by minimizing exposure to toxic chemicals and pesticides
• Greening campus consumption and disposal habits by purchasing environmentally-responsible products and by capping solid waste going to the landfill at today’s volumes.

The Environmental Center has developed the Blueprint's recommendations from:

Recommendations of the past six Campus Earth Summits

Since 1994, the annual Campus Earth Summit has provided a forum for students, faculty, staff, and administrators to review the campus' environmental performance and to examine the potential for reducing campus environmental impacts. The past six Campus Earth Summits have resulted in many recommendations of which many have been enacted. The Blueprint for a Green Campus builds upon these accomplishments, reiterates those recommendations still requiring progress, and lays out new recommendations not addressed in previous Campus Earth Summits.

The Campus Master Plan

The Board of Regents approved a new master plan for CU Boulder in February 2000. It will guide the development and management of the campus over the next ten years. The Environmental Management Plan of the Master Plan identifies broad goals and more specific guidelines for providing a safe, efficient, and environmentally friendly campus. The Blueprint proposes action steps to meet the goals and guidelines as set forth in the master plan and also builds upon these goals.

Case studies of successful environmental programs and policies at fellow universities

While CU Boulder is a leader in many environmental programs, such as recycling, transportation demand management, and reducing pesticide use, it is helpful to learn how other institutions are approaching similar environmental challenges. Some institutions, such as the University of Oregon, have approved a campus environmental policy and have established advisory or oversight committees. Others are pushing the envelope on particular issues. For example, Tufts University's Climate Initiative commits to meeting or beating the emissions reductions proposed as part of the Kyoto Protocol.

The Talloires Declaration

In January 1997, Chancellor Roderic Park endorsed the Talloires Declaration. Created by a group of university leaders, the Talloires Declaration contains ten recommendations and actions for universities in global environmental management, environmental literacy, and sustainable development. More than 230 institutions representing 43 countries have endorsed the declaration. Specifically, the Blueprint seeks to enact the Talloires challenge to "set an example of environmental responsibility by establishing institutional ecology policies and practices of resource conservation, recycling, waste reduction, and environmentally sound operations."

Results of the Fall 1999 Student Environmental Survey

To gauge the current level of environmental concern at CU Boulder, the CU Environmental Center contracted a professional firm to survey a statistically significant random sample of full-time CU students. The results revealed that the majority of students surveyed are in favor of campus environmental action and would like to see more steps taken for CU to become a national leader in campus environmental policy. Specifically, students believe that the university should begin using wind-generated power and expand the current recycling program, even if it costs additional money. Students would also like to see the university make an effort to use recycled or tree-free paper, emphasize energy efficiency over new power generation, ban of chemical pesticides used on campus lawns, and improve recycling in the residence halls. Of the students surveyed, 92 percent believed that it is either very important or somewhat important that CU is a leader in campus environmental management. The Blueprint represents this overwhelming student support.

National environmental priorities

The EPA conducted a national risk assessment to rank the risks to human health and to ecological health. These broad national issues certainly apply to our local environment. If CU were to address the high-ranked and medium-ranked risks, we should focus on alternative and less-polluting transportation, reducing indoor and outdoor pesticide use, improving indoor air quality, increasing lab safety, organic and natural food options, clean energy, energy conservation and efficiency, and reducing hazardous waste.

What the Blueprint Does Not Cover

The core purpose of the university is, of course, teaching and the discovery of new knowledge. This blueprint does not address these areas, focusing instead on the physical operations of the campus. However, there is an educational connection. Because of CU’s visibility, other institutions will learn from CU’s leadership in this area. In addition, much education occurs outside the classroom -- and students certainly will learn from the way their school treats the environment.

That said, there are clearly volumes that could be written about the contributions of CU researchers to understanding environmental science and policy. There are also ongoing debates on teaching students about the environment. These include discussions about what students should learn in programs like environmental studies, as well as the broader question of how to ensure that all students graduating from CU are environmentally literate. Are we turning out K-12 teachers who can teach their students about the environment? Do our business graduates understand the importance of sustainability in business decisions? This document does not specifically address these curricular issues.

In addition, we do not address the effects of CU’s investments, or the indirect effects of CU’s purchasing decisions. The blueprint does address the direct effects of purchasing and recommends purchasing environmentally sound products, but does not recommend policies such as boycotts of companies engaged in environmentally destructive practices, or the adoption of environmentally responsible investment criteria. This is not because the authors believe these are unimportant topics--they are just out of the scope of this blueprint.

We hope that The Blueprint for a Green Campus inspires discussion on how to put many ambitious goals into action. During Earth Week (April 17-21), we invite you to join in a collaborative process to examine these issues and the recommendations. Together, we can further craft CU's commitment to environmental stewardship and work toward an environmentally sustainable future.

References

Ikenberry, S., American Council on Education, letter to university presidents, January 2000

International Institute for Sustainable Development, Campus Environmental Policy Database, iisd1.iisd.ca/educate

Pew Center for Climate Change, www.pewclimate.org

Tebo, P., Vice president for Environment, Dupont Corporation, personal communication to Will Toor, February 2000

United States Environmental Protection Agency, Unfinished Business, Volume 1, 1987

University of Colorado Masterplan, www.colorado.edu/masterplan, February 2000

University of Colorado Student Environmental Survey, www.colorado.edu/cuenvironmentalcenter, November 1999

University Leaders for a Sustainable Future, Talloires Declaration, www.ulsf.org/about/tallo.html