Sharing Stories on Behalf of the ACUPCC - Campus Sustainability Leaders Are Paying It Forward

By Ulli Klein, Director of Communications and Operations, Second Nature

(This article appears in the December, 2010 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

“I am a college president for one reason only: I have such passion for sustainability and environmental conservation,” says Mitch Thomashow, President of Unity College in a new video lesson seriesSecond Nature produced during the 2010 ACUPCC Climate Leadership Summit. He goes on to explain how he was inspired to do work on sustainability issues when he saw the cover of a book that featured a photograph of our planet in a bookstore in downtown New York City during the 60s.

Telling stories is one of the best ways to communicate and share best practices and ideas.  We had the fortunate opportunity to interview nine senior sustainability leaders from across the country during this year’s ACUPCC summit in Denver and ask them to share their lessons and experiences about sustainability and the ACUPCC on their campuses. The people interviewed represent a variety of school types, e.g., Arizona State University’s President, Michael Crow, and Delaware State University’s Associate Vice President for Development, Vita Pickrum.

Starting in 2010, these video lessons ranging from 2 to 5 minutes in length will be featured on the Second Nature and ACUPCC websites as well in our email communications. We continually try to improve our web presence and these short videos will make the website more visually interesting and interactive.  The video lessons will also be used during webinars and workshops to show the value of the network, the value of collaboration and to share some best practices.

Topics of the 20+ lessons we plan to produce will range from discussing the power of the ACUPCC network to how the ACUPCC can engage an entire campus and how the climate commitment is influencing the curriculum. There are also valuable lessons on why college and universities should sign the commitment, how schools treat sustainability as a core value, developing a comprehensive sustainability plan, and how the ACUPCC provides support and leverage to enhance action on sustainability in higher education and in the larger society.