Director's Corner
 2013: Resilience vs. campus sustainability Has "sustainability" run its course? Is it time for the Next Big Thing? By Dave Newport The transition from an exploitive business plan for the planet to a sustainable one has gone through a few iterations-and we are definitely not there yet-but we keep trying. The 1948 Donora, PA air pollution incident and others like it aroused enough public health concerns to pass the first federal laws protective of air quality in the 1950s. The 1960s were marked by Rachel Carson-induced endangered species protections. The 1970s spawned "past sins" Superfund legislation to begin cleaning up and preventing the Love Canals of the world. In the 1980s we fixed the ozone hole. And in the 1990s, "sustainability" began creeping into our lexicon. Along the way we chased trends and words like Kyoto, Agenda 21, Corporate Social Responsibility, Triple Bottom Line, Eco Efficiency, Socially Responsible Investing, Biomimicry, Industrial Ecology, Renewable Portfolio Standards, Transition, Permaculture, Adaptation, etc... and lately: Resilience. The history lesson is meant to remind us that it is normal to morph our approaches as we get smarter... Click here to read more.
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Upcoming Events
Winter Bike to Work Day
January 23
Boulder is celebrating its fifth annual Winter Bike to Work Day (WBTWD) to reward those who ride their bike all or part of the way to work, school, or another destination around town. Ride your bike to work or school on January 23 and receive a free breakfast at participating locations from 7 to 9 a.m.
Ski Bus Tickets Available Now  The CU Ski Bus is a travel service for University of Colorado at Boulder students, faculty and staff. Tickets will only be available online on this website once tickets go on sale. There are a limited number of tickets available for each trip, and trips will often sell out far in advance. There will also be standby tickets available for purchase on the morning of each trip (even sold-out trips!)
Click here for more information. |
 CU Commute
New Website Offers Networking and Carpool Organizing for Campus Community
The University of Colorado Boulder community can now access commuter and carpool resources through the new CU Commute networking website. Created through a partnership between CU's Parking & Transportation Services and the Environmental Center, CU Commute offers resources and incentives for students, faculty and staff who are interested in sustainable transportation. James Hulett, a CU-Boulder student, uses the system to walk, bike or bus from his Boulder apartment to the campus. "Through CU Commute, when you pinpoint a destination, the site will show you where to walk, bus, walk and how far," said Hulett. "You can log your trips and it gives you a summary of how you helped saved the planet." Users can track mileage, distance and savings via the website, whether they commute alone or in a carpool. In addition, users can create profiles, access commuter event calendars, connect with "buddies" for easy coordination with fellow travelers, enter to win prizes and find bus routes and bike paths to get to campus. Users also can link their CU Commute profile to their Facebook profile. People who drive from Denver to Boulder generally travel about 30 miles each way. Based on vehicle maintenance data from the U.S. Department of Transportation, that adds up to about $300 each month per person for gas, tires and maintenance. If two people carpool together, both will slice that cost in half. If three people carpool, the cost is reduced to one-third of the original price. "CU Commute is a great way for CU-Boulder students and staff to see their environmental impact and make a change to reduce emissions from cars," said Brandon Smith, CU-Boulder's sustainable transportation program manager. "They can connect with other commuters and find people to carpool with, or they can just keep track of their mileage." CU Commute is part of the iCarpool online database from GO Boulder and the RideArrangers program at the Denver Regional Council of Governments. To explore CU Commute visit http://cucommute.com. For more information about the program visit http://ecenter.colorado.edu/transportation/carpool. |
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Green Greeks
Greek Sustainability Program helps chapters save energy and money Sustainability among CU's Greek community has seen "unprecedented growth" in the past year, says Graham Pittman, Greek Sustainability Coordinator for the E-Center's Greek Sustainability program. The goal of the Greek Sustainability program is to improve sustainability in Greek housing and raise environmental awareness in the Greek community. "What's good for the environment is good for your chapter," says Pittman. Revived in its current form in 2011 with funding from the City of Boulder, the program recruits Sustainability Chairs from each Greek house and provides education, technology and methods by which students who live in Greek houses can live more sustainably. Services provided to the houses include energy and water assessments, weatherization, and installation of CFLs, sink aerators and new shower heads. The program has also contributed to Greek events such as Greek Week in order to incorporate environmental awareness into the activities of the Greek community. Evaluations generally last about an hour, and Greek houses see significant reductions in utility bills after installations are complete. "It's simple," says Pittman. "When you reduce your energy and water consumption, you help the planet and you pay less in bills." Green Greeks is currently comprised of about 20 students from from five sororities and 11 fraternities. These students meet about once a month to discuss new initiatives and ideas for improving sustainable practices in Greek housing and raising awareness among others in the Greek community. The Greek Sustainability team is always looking for more ways to involve the Greek community. If you live in a Greek house and would like to find out more about how you can get involved or if you have ideas on what the Environmental Center can do to help you and your house, email GreenGreeks@colorado.edu. For more information, visit http://ecenter.colorado.edu/energy-climate/outreach-programs-and-events/greek-sustainability. |
The CU Environmental Center Congratulates Will Toor
After seven years on Boulder's City Council and two terms as a Boulder County Commissioner, Will Toor is stepping down from public service to join the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project.
As CU Environmental Center Director from 1992 to 2004, Will was honored by former co-workers, community groups and county staff at a celebration on January 9 at the new eTown Hall. Current County Commissioners Domenico, Gardner and Jones declared January 16 "Will Toor Day" in Boulder County and presented Will with a life-time membership to Community Cycles.
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Campus Sustainability Awards: Call for Nominations
Campus Sustainability Awards Nominations Deadline: March 1, 2013
The annual CU-Boulder Campus Sustainability Awards is now accepting nominations. The University of Colorado wishes to recognize outstanding individuals and departments who demonstrate a sincere commitment to reducing the burden that CU-Boulder places on the environment. Outstanding efforts make CU's successful and challenging approaches to attaining sustainability possible, and awardees exemplify CU's continuing efforts to become a sustainable institution. They set the example for environmental stewardship and responsibility.
Some of the awardees have made groundbreaking efforts that will change the overall way CU operates, and others make an impact on the community and campus environment with their everyday actions. All in all, the campus community is contributing toward a sustainable future, thanks to the dedication and collaboration of its members.
Candidates can be nominated from seven different categories, either as individuals or as departments and/or partnerships. Nominees must be faculty or staff members, students, alumni or a department at the University of Colorado at Boulder campus. The nomination deadline is Friday, March 1, 2011. The Awards ceremony will take place on Earth Day, April 22nd.
This event is sponsored by the Office of the Provost, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, Vice Chancellor for Administration, and CUSG Environmental Center.
For more information or to nominate someone, visit:
http://ecenter.colorado.edu/greening-cu/campus-sustainability-awards
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Sustainability Spotlight
Beth Osnes
Beth Osnes is a visionary in the fields of social justice and sustainability. Her passion for sustainability, population issues, women's rights and the role of mothers in advocating for children permeates her writing, her leadership, her advocacy and her work as an assistant professor in Theatre and Dance at CU Boulder. Osnes' work applies theatre and multimedia performing arts to the empowerment of women and population stabilization. Osnes is currently writing a book entitledTheatre for Women's Participation in Sustainable Development, which details her use of theatre as a tool for social change. She has worked with groups in Ethiopia and other area with low literacy rates, teaching people to participate in theatrical performances that raise awareness about sustainability. These performance art pieces take the form of plays and long-term radio dramas. "This method is not literacy-based," says Osnes, explaining that discussions of sustainability are often intended for an academic audience and exclude those who lack access to a formal education. The professor, performer and activist is one of the founding members of Mothers Acting Up, an organization that encourages mothers across the globe to advocate for the children of the world. The movement is dedicated to the education and empowerment of mothers to promote a sustainable future for the next generation. Osnes formed the central human thread of Mother, Caring for the 7 Billion, a film that follows the movement to stabilize struggling populations through the empowerment of women. Her film has won numerous awards including the Best Colorado Film at the Boulder International Film Festival in 2011, a Bronze Level Winner in Oregon Film Awards, and the Best Film of the Population Institute's 32nd Annual Media Awards. "We must be able to meet our needs without compromising the future," Osnes says. Osnes is the youngest of ten children who has two children of her own and adopted another. The film also features Zinet (pictured above, with Osnes), an Ethiopian woman who also belonged to a large family. Zinet refused to be forced into marriage as a young girl, then went on to educate herself and have two children in a relationship of her own choosing. In Ethiopia, where the land cannot support the size of the population, educating and empowering women enables them to make choices about marriage, children and the future. This form of population stabilization means that mothers like Zinet can care for their children and ensure a better future for generations to come. "Sustainability means holding a constant concern for you children's future," says Osnes. "You gain solidarity with all mothers, not able to meet their needs." The last line of the film, Osnes says, exemplifies the empowerment of women for sustainability: "We are one human family, connected in our challenges, connected in our solutions." In 2012, Osnes partnered with Max Boykoff, a media policy specialist in ENVS, on one of the two Gamm Interdisciplinary Courses this spring entitled "Inside the Greenhouse: Using Media to Communicate Positive Solutions for Climate Change." Students created multi-modal compositions and short videos that incorporated the arts into sustainability issues. "We wanted to help students be dynamic communicators on the issue of sustainability," says Osnes. "So we introduced theatre as an interactive tool or method for social change." Osnes and Boykoff will collaborate to create an educational television show that features topics such as the role of media in climate change and more. Beth Osnes is a CU Boulder professor and women's rights activist. She was the recipient of the 2012 "Green Faculty" Sustainability Award and continues to work for sustainability through the empowerment of women and the performance arts in Boulder and beyond. |
New RTD Bus Pass Pick-Up Required
January 7-25
Students Living On-Campus:
- New RTD CollegePass cards must be picked up in person and you must present a current Buff OneCard to be issued your new pass. Cards will be available for pick up at individual Hall Offices for all Residence Hall and Bear Creek apartment residents starting on Jan. 9. Please bring your current Buff OneCard when you go to pick up and sign for your card.
Students Living Off-Campus:
- New RTD CollegePass cards must be picked up in person and you must present a current Buff OneCard to be issued your new pass. Cards will be available for pick up at the large tent in the East Courtyard of C4C near the Buff OneCard office. Tent hours are Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Jan. 7-25. Additional pick up hours will be on Saturday, Jan.12 and Saturday, Jan. 19, from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. There will be NO pick up hours on Sundays or on the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday, on Monday, Jan. 21.
The expiration date of 2012 College Passes has been extended to Jan. 31, 2013.
Students planning to use RTD services are strongly advised to pick up their new RTD CollegePass cards prior to Jan. 25 to ensure there is no disruption of service or transit access. After Jan. 25, all RTD CollegePass cards must be picked up in person at the Buff OneCard office, located in N180 C4C.
Once a card has been issued, lost or damaged cards can be replaced at the Buff OneCard Office for $10, which is an RTD mandated fee.
In 1991, CU-Boulder students were among the first in the nation to negotiate prepaid bus passes. They have also been key in other sustainable transportation initiatives for the campus including Late Night Transit, the Bike Program and the CU Ski Bus.
For more information about College Pass smart cards for students including FAQs, visit http://ecenter.colorado.edu/transportation/bus/collegepass. For RTD services and schedule information visit www.rtd-denver.com or call RTD at 303-299-6000.
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$CORE Offers Free Energy Assessments to CU Students
While temperatures drop, CU Environmental Center's Student and Community Outreach on Renter Efficiency program is working hard to help students save energy and money this winter. $CORE provides free energy assessments to student renters living in Boulder. Assessments take around an hour and are scheduled at students' convenience. In this hour, trained technicians will install energy saving devices such as energy efficient CFL light bulbs, weather-stripping, sink aerators, window film, pipe insulation and low-flow showerheads completely free of charge. While one technician is busy doing quick installs, the other will sit down and discuss targeted ways renters can modify their behaviors to minimize their water and energy usage each month. After the program is complete, renters can save an average of $100 every year on light energy alone. The $CORE program is coordinated through the CU Environmental Center and is funded fully by Xcel Energy, allowing the program to be completely free for CU students. The main goal of the program is to help student renters save money on their energy bills by providing them with the tools and information they need to do so. If saving energy and money on your utility bills isn't incentive enough, the $CORE Program also orders every house a free Cosmo's pizza if half of the tenants are present. Students who wish to receive free energy assessments, installations and pizza can sign up at: http://ecenter.colorado.edu/energy-climate/outreach-programs-and-events/score Contact scorecu@colorado.edu with questions. |
CU Green Labs Program
The CU Green Labs Program uses a team approach to minimize the use of energy, water, and material goods in CU-Boulder's 400 laboratories without compromising research integrity or safety.
The program, which is equally funded and supported by the Office of Sustainability and Environmental Center, also works closely with CU-Boulder's Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S) Department. The program is staffed by one part-time manager (at 60% time) and seven student assistants.
In 2010-2011, the CU-Boulder Facilities Management Dept on our campus did a study that determined that labs occupied 20% of the sq. ft. of campus but consumed 43% of the energy.
Green Labs addresses this energy consumption by inviting scientists to join the conversation, building community in lab departments, and raising awareness campus-wide about conservation and the impact of scientific equipment and decision-making in labs.
Representatives from labs across campus volunteer to be Eco-Leaders for the Green Labs program. A Lab Eco-Leader is a lab member who cares about resource consumption in laboratories and would like to volunteer to encourage the efficient use of energy, water, and material goods in his or her lab. These representatives act as the eyes and ears of Green Labs within their own departments, raising awareness, promoting discussion, and formulating ideas for more sustainable lab practices.
Green Labs improves sustainability in campus labs by offering resources such as low flow aerator attachments on lab sinks to save water, timers for lab equipment that can be shut off, a maintenance program for refrigerators and freezers, and lab assessments that help faculty and staff make eco-friendly decisions every day.
If you are interested in becoming a Green Labs Eco-Leader, contact Kathy Ramirez at kramirez@colorado.edu. For more information about Green Labs, visit http://ecenter.colorado.edu/greening-cu/cu-green-labs-program.
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This year's festivities are presented by the City of Boulder/
