This article was originally published in the Deseret News. You can check it out by clicking
here.By Wendy Leonard
Deseret News
Increasing efforts by the University of Utah to become a more green campus seem to be paying off, according to nationwide survey of environmental practices on campuses.
Despite rising energy costs, 15 schools nationwide earned A grades, while 75 percent of the 100 surveyed by the Sustainable Endowments Institute earned B's. The U. was among those, receiving a full grade increase from last year, as more eco-friendly practices are being put into place.
"We're not doing what we do for the ratings," said Craig Forster, director of the U.'s Office of Sustainability. "We are helping students prepare for the future, lead more simpler lives and, in so doing, perhaps allow them to leave a smaller footprint."
The coming decades promise issues dealing with environmental stewardship, economic stability and social equity, and Forster said trusting in people who "have the broader view" will assist in conquering the nation's problems.
The U.'s B grade includes assessment of its efforts toward climate change and energy conservation with installation of a new cogeneration plant, which produces 11 percent of the university's electricity, as well as renovation of current HVAC systems and lighting to improve efficiency. A recent addition of a farmers market on campus, along with a commitment from dining services to purchase from local providers, earned the U. points in the food and recycling category.
Top scores were given for the school's ownership of nine hybrid vehicles and the fact that all students are given free universal transit passes.
A student involvement category, which earned a C for a lack in awareness efforts on campus, was unfairly graded, Forster said, detailing student-run initiatives across campus. Overall, however, the comprehensive look at the university's progress — in its second year of participation in the survey — was pleasing, he said.
Brigham Young University was the only other Utah institution to be surveyed. However, the privately owned school chose not to return solicitations for information and subsequent research of sustainability practices on the Provo campus yielded a failing grade.
Brian Evans, administrative vice president at BYU, said the F grade is not surprising given the university did not take part in the survey. BYU does participate in a number of programs, including recycling and energy and water conservation, believing "it is part of our stewardship."
"We focus our attention on initiatives that protect the environment and make economic sense," Evans said.
The Green Report Card surveyed 100 schools in the country and top grades fell among some of the most wealthy including Columbia, Harvard and Brown universities, as well as Dartmouth College, University of Washington and Oberlin College. Results can be found online
here."The survey raises awareness of the importance of sustainability, not only for its economic importance, but because the practices are good for business," said Lisa Chase, executive director of the Sustainable Endowments Institute. She said implementation of green practices not only saves schools money but has shown to contribute to growth as students are becoming more concerned with the environment.
"What they do impacts the community around the school. They are an example of what can be done," she said.
2009 Green Report Card of Sustainability practices at the University of Utah
A — Administration: budget and staff
B — Climate change & energy: usage and conservation
B — Food & recycling: local resources, reduce waste
B — Green building: LEED-certification
C — Student Involvement: awareness efforts
A — Transportation: gas and emission conservation
B — Endowment transparency: holdings made public
B — Investment priorities: optimized return
B — TOTAL GRADE
Polshek Partnership has designed a new, 161,000-square-foot facility for the Utah Museum of Natural History in Salt Lake City. The $98 million project will enable the 45-year-old institution to better showcase its collection of fossils, rocks, minerals, and other artifacts. Presently, only 1 percent of the museum’s 1.2-million-piece collection is on display in its current location, the George Thomas Building on the University of Utah campus.
The concrete and glass building has an angled massing that follows the site topography. Clad in horizontal bands of local copper alloy, its façade mimics geological strata. “The building is conceived as an abstraction, extension and transformation of the land,” says Polshek design partner Todd H. Schliemann, FAIA.
Several GSBS associates attended a presentation by the University of Utah's Arthur C. Nelson yesterday on Wasatch Front development patterns and trends. During his speech, Nelson stated that the Wasatch Front will see a population of 4.2 million by 2040 — almost doubling the 2005 count. That's incredible! For the full story in the Deseret News, click here.
Posts
