Campus Sustainability Awards

Campus Sustainability Awards

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. The annual awards ceremony takes place each April.

The campus sustainability awards program started in 1997 as a means to recognize commitment to reducing the burden that the CU campus places on the environment.  Outstanding efforts make CU's successful and challenging approaches to attaining sustainability possible.  The 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.

• Award Selections, 1997-2011

• Award Nomination Form

 

2012 Campus Sustainability Awards:

 

Boulder Food Rescue, Partnership for Sustainability 

Boulder Food Rescue was started by a team of current CU students and alumni with the purpose of redirecting food 'waste' from grocery stores and restaurants into the hands of people who can still use it. To date, the group has rescued over 31,000 pounds of food from Boulder businesses and has been able to support 23 different community organizations.  The group has developed partnerships with stores throughout the city and currently rescues over 390 pounds of food every day.  Boulder Food Rescue supports the environment by keeping methane-producing food waste out of the landfill and by using bikes to deliver over 78% of the total food rescued.  Their efforts benefit the community by providing healthy food to low-income residents.

 

Fair Food Task Force, Partnership for Sustainability

In May of 2011, student leaders discussed sustainability and social justice related to the production of food with campus administrators.  They agreed that the University's food purchasing agreements should reflect, as much as possible, the University of Colorado Boulder's values, goals and campus culture.   A task force was convened to conduct a review of the university's food purchasing agreements for Housing and Dining Services (HDS) and the University Memorial Center.  The task force developed a "Fair Food Statement of Values" (see below).  This statement has received the official support of students at CU Student Government, Environmental Board and Residence Hall Association (RHA), as well as the support of major food purchasers on campus including HDS, UMC and the Department of Athletics. The Procurement Service Center (PSC) was engaged in developing the language and worked with the team to devise strategies for insertion of this language in future University food purchasing agreements with our food suppliers.  This was the first time the three largest food “groups” on campus had convened with a common cause. The task force has now gone on to form the Sustainable Foods Sustainability Action Team.

Fair Food Statement of Values:

The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder) seeks to enhance the sustainability experience of our students, faculty, staff and visitors by providing food that is healthy for people and our planet.

We encourage social and environmental justice in purchasing through the humane treatment of all living things, safe and fair working conditions and agricultural practices, and stewardship of ecosystems while operating in an economically sound manner.

CU Boulder endeavors to support practices and vendors that actively seek strategies to reduce the overall amount of pesticides and carbon footprint, support Colorado economies, and stand alongside our peer institutions and private organizations in promoting a healthier, more sustainable agricultural system without significant financial impact on the University.

CU Boulder encourages its suppliers to support these practices and to share CU Boulder's values with others in order to have a global effect on sustainability.

 

National Snow and Ice Data Center, Departmental Achievement

The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) supports research into Earth's frozen regions, currently archiving and serving more than 91 terabytes of Earth science data to researchers around the world. Established in 1982 as part of the University of Colorado's Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, researchers there also investigate the loss of sea ice in West Antarctica and produce the maps that report the Arctic sea ice extent.

In order to deliver the cryospheric data to researchers worldwide, the full-time data center runs around the clock, which requires a constant energy demand. Just cooling NSIDC's computer room used to require over 300,000 kilowatt-hours of energy per year, enough to power 34 homes. “There was a certain irony that here we are working on climate research and our data center was consuming an awful lot of power,” said David Gallaher, Technical Services Manager for NSIDC. So when the aging cooling system needed to be replaced, NSIDC decided to go green, and the NSIDC Green Data Center went online in the summer of 2011.

Now, thanks to the vision of Gallaher and a lot of hard work by numerous NSIDC colleagues, the new computing center cooling system is close to completing its goal of becoming one of the most energy-efficent data centers in the United States. A combination of novel technologies aims to drastically reduce cooling system power demand. The new indirect evaporative cooling system will replace energy-intensive traditional air conditioning. The project also includes a rooftop solar array and a more efficient physical layout. Together, these changes will cut power needs for the center by about 95 percent.

The Green Data Center also has created a prototype for other data centers to extend these benefits nationally and internationally—potentially saving billions in energy costs and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

The NSIDC Green data center project proved that air economizer, indirect evaporative cooling, reuse of working for humidity, and single fan operation for both intake and exhaust could cut cooling cost by as much as 95 percent. Wherever possible, this project sought to utilize Colorado-based technologies. NSIDC used Abound Solar and their new low-cost Cd/Te panels; Coolerado chillers; and SMA inverters and charge controllers.

Beth Osnes, Green Faculty

Beth Osnes has a long been a leader in the area of social justice, a key component of any vision for a sustainable future. She co-founded Mothers Acting Up, a movement to mobilize mothers around the world to advocate on behalf of children, who are our future and an ultimate reason for sustainability. This past year, Beth added two new pieces to her already impressive resume. Via her active organization with a handful of other sustainability leaders on campus, she helped bring together a highly interdisciplinary group of sustainability experts from around campus to discuss common goals and ideas. Out of the cauldron of ideas generated by this group came Beth’s partnership 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”. Their collaboration and class will yield an educational television show that will showcase topics such as the role of media in climate change. Beth’s other recent tour-de-force was her key contribution to the film “Mother, Caring for the 7 Billion”, a film about population and role of the empowerment of women in addressing this highly charged topic, long the third rail of sustainability plans.  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. Beth is a campus leader in sustainability as well as an international leader.

Beth Osnes is an assistant professor in Theatre and Dance. She could easily focus solely on her career and getting tenure, but she has a social conscience that just won’t be kept down. Her passion for sustainability and population issues, for women’s rights, and for the role of mothers in advocating for children is palpable.

 

David Payne, Green Faculty

Dave Payne is an instructor in the Center for Education on Social Responsibility (CESR), teaching MBA courses.  Since becoming the faculty advisor to the CU Net Impact club, he has made some phenomenal improvements. He propelled the club to Gold status, which places it in the top 15% of chapters worldwide. This not only boosts CU's reputation in the business world, but opens the door for more opportunities for students to engage with sustainability.

Most recently he helped found the Leeds Sustainability Council, which will become the hub of sustainable business networking at Leeds. The Leeds Sustainability Council serves as a conduit for students, faculty and Boulder-area professionals engaging in an ongoing pursuit of values-driven business. They do this by providing access to resources, professional development opportunities, impactful events and a network of support that creates dynamic connections amongst participants.

Last year he led the charge on boosting the MBA programs rating on the Aspen Institute's annual "Beyond Grey and Pinstripes" ranking. This was a time intensive project that went beyond his normal commitment. The University of Colorado Leeds School of Business climbed from 38 to 21, putting the school in the top 25 with schools like Yale, Stanford, and Northwestern.

Dave Payne is a mentor and resource to many students. He is only a part-time faculty, but he is more available to students than most full-time faculty.  Due to his passion for sustainability, he routinely goes above and beyond for students.

 

Program for Writing and Rhetoric, Partnership for Sustainability

Under the leadership of director John Ackerman, the Program for Writing and Rhetoric established a Sustainability Committee in 2009.  The committee’s main charge is to encourage and facilitate the teaching of sustainability-based assignments and courses for our writing and rhetoric classes. The committee now has seven members and many devotees in PWR.  In March 2011, the Sustainability Committee put on a sustainability seminar where PWR faculty could learn more about sustainability concerns and how to incorporate them into writing and rhetoric courses. More than 30 PWR faculty attended. As a result, a whole spectrum of sustainability-based assignments and courses are now available to students taking writing and rhetoric classes at CU. At least 20 of PWR’s teachers now shape all or part of their courses around sustainability issues. Teachers of these classes and assignments have received very positive feedback on this work from students. PWR teaches some 8000 students per year, so this is a significant achievement.

This year, the Sustainability Committee is organizing two presentations on sustainability and rhetoric, compiled more readings, is organizing a faculty reading group around sustainability, and is reaching out to community partners to develop service learning projects for students that involve sustainability issues.

 

Samantha Weintraub, Student Leadership

Samantha has been a true leader in bringing sustainability to the EBIO Department in two locations: Ramaley and INSTAAR. She joined Green Labs in her second year as a grad student in EBIO. Among her many contributions are: bringing block foam recycling to Ramaley and INSTAAR; convincing labs in both locations to retire old refrigerators and freezers, and to lower the temperatures of ultra low freezers; promoting access to green lab supplies such as recycled kimwipes and pipet tips; serving as a member of the committee to reduce Ramaley's energy use through which she has worked tirelessly to convince labs to perform energy audits; hanging up signs in Ramaley to make building inhabitants aware of ways they can reduce energy use; and maintaining a display in Ramaley that shows monthly building energy use. She remains in close contact with Kathy Ramirez in order to be aware of the latest and greatest innovations in sustainability.  Samantha works tirelessly to bring awareness to the inhabitants of Ramaley about ways they can use less energy and fewer resources. She hopes that this awareness will inspire students, staff and faculty to reduce their footprints on the earth inside and outside of Ramaley.

 

Special Recognition Certificates:

Jonathan Akins, Individual Achievement
Jon has been directly involved in two campus water conservation projects.  The first project was the modification of a majority of restrooms on campus.  He worked with the plumbing shop to install over 1,700 aerators, 260 dual flush modifications, 26 urinal and urinal flushometer replacements.  This project saved 20.5 million gallons of water and $164,000 in annual water expenses.  Projects from this point forward will be remodeled and built using these water conservation standards.
The second project was conversion of the Williams Village irrigation system from treated domestic water to EPA-permitted ditch water. This conversion project eliminated use of 14 million gallons of potable water and saved the university more than $100,000 annually.  Campus civil engineering focuses on utilities, structural integrity and roadways.  The work Jon has affected for the campus goes significantly beyond these straight-forward matters.  By prioritizing water projects with conservation in mind, he created opportunities to significantly reduce campus water use.  He has taken the standard responsibilities of an engineer and successfully overlaid them with the goal of conserving water and energy.

Carrot Mob Initiative by Gretchen Christoph, Swithin Lui, Wren Suess, Nathan Zick-Smith and Half Fast Subs, Partnership for Sustainability
“In a boycott, everybody loses.  In a Carrotmob the business profits, society unifies for a common cause, and the environment gets a little more healthy.”
Carrotmob is a grass roots global citizen’s campaign based on the idea that, as consumers, we have the potential to influence positive change and make a difference with our wallets.  A group of four dedicated freshmen and sophomores from Baker Hall created a Carrotmob event in partnership with Half Fast Subs on the Hill, in which 100% of the sales from Half Fast Subs purchased on Earth Day would be used to upgrade electrical fixtures in the Sub Shop, starting with LED lighting.  Through this event, students and the larger community can have their environmental values and eat them too.  A Special Recognition for their efforts goes to CU students Swithin Lui, Gretchen Christoph, Wren Seuss, Nathan Zick-Smith, and their Half Fast partners Stephen Schein and Tony Merino.

Kristin Creamer, Individual Achievement
Kristin Creamer has been a substantial force in reducing waste by turning her critical eye to how we communicate with incoming families in the Office of Orientation and the effect of small practices on overall waste. When Kristin began in the Orientation office in 2008, they immediately began a program of eliminating wasteful publications and moving our communications to an all-electronic format. This dramatically cut down on wasted materials and helped the department receive the 2009 Sustainability Award. Since then, Kristin has received an "editorial license to kill," meaning that she is charged with reducing the page count of even the electronic publications to minimize the amount of printing when people choose to print.  Kristin has been so effective at doing this work that she is now in charge of departmental communications as the Assistant Director for Communications and Campus Relations. Every year, Kristin has been able to implement a new sustainability initiative, from seeking funding for compostable catering to redesigning our reusable bags to improve their re-usability.

Environmental Health and Safety, Departmental Achievement
EHS established an alkaline battery recycling program in 2010 in response to our community's commitment to increase sustainability.  Rather than have these items go into dumpsters, they are sorted from other batteries collected and recycled.  They have been able to keep the program cost neutral by offsetting the costs with the recycling of lead acid batteries.  Alkaline batteries are not regulated and can be trash disposed. This program is outside of EHS’ regular responsibilities and has grown from 760 pounds in the first year to more than 1900 pounds in the second year.

Facilities Management CAD Department, Departmental Achievement
The Facilities Management CAD team has converted to a paperless operation.  The days of printing gigantic map books, construction documents, or large print requests is over.  They successfully scanned, organized and archived thousands of paper construction documents. These documents include construction drawings, Specification books, and Operation & Maintenance books for every building on campus. They revised the CAD standards and processes to reflect a paperless submittal work flow.  The GIS team worked tirelessly to update underground utilities in Munsys Flexmaps.
By going paperless, the CAD department saves about 55,000 pounds of paper every fiscal year.  It is very common practice in the construction industry to print, print, print as much as possible because personnel are accustomed to viewing and editing on paper. The CAD department has taken a leading role in rewriting rules and standards. They have created new processes and status quo for the University of Colorado staff and consultants and have shared our ideas with other universities to follow.

Facilities Management Turf and Irrigation Teams, Departmental Achievement
In February 2011, the turf management and irrigation teams introduced a compost tea program to apply large amounts of beneficial micro-organisms to campus soil.  The compost tea brewing process places a "tea bag" into a tank of water, brews for 36 hours, and supplements nutrients for the micro-organisms, and then the compost tea is applied to the entire campus landscape by injecting it through the “fertigation” system.  No one else in the country has been injecting compost tea on the scale the campus has undertaken.  The turf and irrigation groups are charged with making the landscape, and particularly the turf, look its best.  While the use of compost tea, takes more time, energy, planning and guidance than other options, it is the more sustainable option and reduces synthetic fertilizer applications.  The campus community will benefit from this low-tech method to improve soil, turf, plant and tree health across the campus landscape.
A Special Recognition for this initiative goes to Turf Team Members Ryan Heiland and Zac Cameron and Irrigation Team Members Tom Coppens, Russ Smith and Matt Mason.

Pieter van der Mersch, Individual Achievement
As the Campus Mechanical Engineer, Pieter has been a strong advocate of energy conservation, designing solutions with a strong balance between sound mechanical engineering and a good focus on energy conservation.  He has been a strong advocate for evaporative cooling as one of the best energy efficient cooling solutions in our climate.  His role in the National Snow and Ice Data Center design process was to introduce the concept of evaporative cooling as a realistic solution for mid-size data centers – a forward-thinking, energy-efficient approach given Boulder’s climate.  He introduced Coolerado Corporation to the Data Center owner and the design team.  Previous to this project, evaporative cooling has not been used for large data centers.  Instead, mechanical cooling has been the solution.  The Data Center cooling costs are 95% less than a traditional system.

Don Seeley, Individual Achievement
Don is a Housing Maintenance Supervisor who has been a conservation and sustainability champion within Housing and Dining Services Facilities Operations.
He was the first to use LED lighting in the corridors of residence halls, the first to use LED external building lighting on HDS facilities, and the first to install a water bottle filling station.  He has changed halogen light bulbs to LED bulbs, added lighting timers and sensors, supervised the adjustment and replacement of steam main valves, adjusted temperature settings, and installed external monitors.  All of these projects have made significant impacts on campus energy conservation.
Don is always willing to try new conservation and sustainability items and leads many of the field trials to determine broader implementation.  He has demonstrated to his work team the value of sustainable choices and has modeled the most effective methods.  Don uses a solar-powered GUV to his many active job sites.  Don is a leader and a role model deserving of this recognition.