��ƷSM����ӰƬ

The Campus Sustainability Leadership Team convened Wednesday, Nov. 20, to discuss the following topics:

Leadership updates

Discussion: Chief Operating Officer Patrick O’Rourke shared that the search committee is working through the hiring process for the new vice chancellor for sustainability. The hiring committee will begin meeting candidates in December with the intention of hiring in early 2025.

O’Rourke will be leaving ��ƷSM����ӰƬ at the end of the year. Chancellor Schwartz will announce who will step into O’Rourke’s role leading the Sustainability Leadership Team in 2025.

Sustainability funding

Discussion: Associate Vice Chancellor for Public Policy Kirsten Schuchman and Senior Advisor for Sustainability and Climate Heidi Vangenderen gave an overview of the status of sustainability funding:

• A subgroup of the Sustainability Leadership Team has been reviewing funding ideas at the state, federal and donor levels while also exploring how other higher education institutions are paying for sustainability-related projects.
• A Masters of the Environment student and student-employee in the Office of Government and Community Engagement has identified state and federal funding opportunities that have come out of Senate Bill 230 with the recommendation that ��ƷSM����ӰƬ advocates for research funding and acts quickly on any programs or grants that may be at risk of discontinuation.
• ��ƷSM����ӰƬ is preparing for its first fundraising campaign which will feature sustainability as a major campus initiative.

Zero-waste proposal

Discussion: Josh Radoff, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Specialization Lead within the Masters of the Environment program, brought forth a zero-waste proposal from the campus Sustainability Council. 

The council proposes eliminating all single-use plastic from locations where ��ƷSM����ӰƬ serves food and beverages, expanding plastic film recycling and reinstating front-of-house composting through building-managed composting. 

The proposal, based on a 2013 waste audit, would include a site-by-site evaluation including cost and timeline of upgrading and renovating each facility to accommodate the goal of eliminating single-use plastics. 

The council would investigate the potential to eliminate or reduce single-use plastic cups and lids from cafes and encourage “bring-your-own-cup” outreach across campus. Radoff notes that we should be in the process of continual investigation to identify other ways to become a zero-waste campus.

Next steps: The Sustainability Council will vote to approve the proposal on Dec. 5, after which there will be a discussion with the Sustainability Executive Leadership Team to organize support and operationalize the strategies.