September 27, 2012

This past July, the US Department of Energy launched its Clean Energy in Our Community video series, which “features small communities throughout the country that are striving to become more sustainable, are investing in the green economy, and are bringing the benefits of clean energy to local residents and workers.”

All three institutions featured in the series so far (Luther CollegeUniversity of Minnesota-Morris, and Allegheny College) are signatories of the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment. Two (Luther and Allegheny) are recipients of 2012 Second Nature Climate Leadership Awards.

You can watch the inspiring videos below or by following the links above.

Nominations for the 2013 Second Nature Climate Leadership Awards, which recognize innovation and excellence in climate leadership at signatory institutions of the ACUPCC, are now being accepted.

Luther College:

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September 25, 2012
Posted in: ACUPCC

Sustainia Award NomineeFrom a pool of 100 nominees, the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment has been chosen as a top 10 finalist for the 2012 Sustainia Award. The ACUPCC was selected as the nominee in the Best Education Solution category.

The Sustainia Award recognizes already existing and scalable sustainable solutions worldwide for their ability to drive positive change and generate a sustainable society. It is founded by the communications platform Sustainia and will be presented by former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger at the award ceremony in Copenhagen on October 11th, 2012.

As a finalist, the ACUPCC is also eligible to win the Community Award — a “people’s choice” award that is voted on by the public. Please take a moment to vote for the ACUPCC and spread the word. Votes are cast once per person via facebook.

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September 5, 2012

By Sarah Brylinsky, Program Associate, Second Nature

(This article appears in the September, 2012 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

Scope 3, or indirect emissions not covered by Scope 2, are a challenging set of categories to gather data for in greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting, but are essential for campuses to fully account for their upstream and downstream climate footprint.  Greenhouse gas reporting for the ACUPCC requires signatories to submit two categories of Scope 3 emissions: regular daily commuting to and from campus by students, faculty, and staff and air travel paid for by or through the institution. The

ACUPCC encourages signatories to go beyond these requirements and submit additional indirect emissions categories. An analysis of ACUPCC GHG reports demonstrates that many signatories have chosen to report additional scope 3 emission categories.  Of the 93% of the signatories that have submitted at least one GHG report, 65% have included information on their solid waste emissions and 20.6% have elected to report custom scope 3 emissions.

Custom Scope 3 Sources for ACUPCC GHG Reporting

ACUPCC signatories had reported these custom Scope 3 sources in publicly submitted greenhouse gas inventories as of August 2012 (Data taken from rs.acupcc.org)

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September 5, 2012

By Christie-Joy Hartman, Executive Director, Office of Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability, James Madison University; Linda Petee, Sustainability & Risk Management Coordinator, Delta College; Jennifer Andrews, Director of Program Planning & Coordination and Tim Ryder, Undergraduate Climate Fellow, Clean Air-Cool Planet; Rita Alison, National Senior Manager Sustainability & Environmental Stewardship, ARAMARK

(This article appears in the September, 2012 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

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September 5, 2012

By Linda Petee, Sustainability & Risk Management Coordinator, Delta College

(This article appears in the September, 2012 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

Scope 3 emissions can escalate a carbon footprint significantly if not monitored and tracked diligently.  To provide a comprehensive analysis, Delta College chose to report additional Scope 3 categories, including solid waste, right from the start.

Recycling was introduced in 1991 and our program quickly earned recognition as a statewide best practice in 1995.  Early on, area waste haulers were not equipped to collect recyclables and sorting facilities were limited.  Our fledgling program partnered with a local rehabilitation center for sorting and bundling. Later, as residential programs took hold, we piggybacked on municipal collections. Eventually, local material recovery centers were established. Having an established program has allowed us to refine our processes and provide guidelines to aid collection.

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September 5, 2012

By Garrick Aden-Buie, Research Fellow; James Buckingham, Research Fellow; Kebreab Ghebremichael, Senior Research Fellow, and Kalanithy Vairavamoorthy, Executive Director of the Patel School of Global Sustainability

(This article appears in the September, 2012 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

As the eighth largest university in the United States and the third largest in the state of Florida, the University of South Florida (USF) Tampa serves approximately 40,000 students and 12,000 faculty and staff. Like many other university campuses, the USF Tampa campus is a veritable miniature city. Situated in an urban setting, the campus contains 250 buildings on 1,561 acres and generates 266 million gallons of wastewater and 1,190 tons of solid waste, while requiring approximately 183 million kWhs of electricity and 740 million gallons of water a year to support its educational, research and social endeavors.

Much like the arteries of an organism, everyday activities on campus are supported by a system of networks that transport goods, resources, and energy to or from their users. Twenty-eight miles of roads and 92 miles of sidewalks move students and faculty.

3D Visualization of the University of South Florida (USF) Tampa Campus Urban Metabolism Model

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August 31, 2012

This piece by Unity College President Stephen Mulkey originally appeared on Climate Access and is reposted with permission from that site.

Crisis and opportunity in the Environmental Century: Inspiring a generation to greatness
By: Unity College President, Stephen Mulkey

As an ecologist, I know that we have precious little time to prepare a generation to respond to the ecological crisis of our planet in peril. As the president of Unity College, I am alarmed by how little progress has been made in focusing higher learning on what is undoubtedly the most important challenge facing humankind. Given the overwhelming scientific evidence of imminent climate disruption, failure to make climate literacy a requisite part of any undergraduate curriculum is inexcusable.

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August 8, 2012

By Andrea Putman, Director of Corporate Partnerships, Second Nature
(This article appears in the August, 2012 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

The ACUPCC corporate sponsorship program has evolved from its initial inception in 2007 into a partnership of 27 sponsors that supports the ACUPCC in several ways.  The program provides the opportunity to bring corporate expertise to support schools in implementing the ACUPCC. It provides funding that is critical to securing additional philanthropic support and member dues from signatory schools, and it sends a strong signal to signatory institutions that the private sector believes that pursuing climate neutrality and sustainability in education and operations is important for all of society, including business.

Based on a meeting of the ACUPCC Steering Committee and sponsors at the June 2011 Climate Leadership Summit, Second Nature developed the “Corporate Council” and invited sponsors at the diamond, platinum, and gold levels to participate. Working with the ACUPCC Steering Committee and Second Nature, the corporate sponsors worked together to develop a “Corporate Council Statement in Support of Education for Sustainability,” which is included in the ACUPCC Five Year report. The statement follows:

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August 8, 2012

By Melissa McDonald, Business Development and Jonathan Lanciani, President & CEO, Sustainable Water

(This article appears in the August, 2012 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

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July 31, 2012

by Rima Mulla, Communications Manager, Second Nature

Found, in the Second Nature archives, evidence that our organizational website once reflected the critical and pivotal nature of our work:

Vice President Gore on the 1998 Second Nature Website

Vice President Al Gore loved it…in 1998.

Vote daily for Second Nature in the Carrots for a Cause contest.
Multiply your vote by recruiting colleagues and friends to support us.

We really need to bring our website up to 2012 standards. Thank you!

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