The Urbana-Champaign Energy Star Challenge invites commercial building owners and managers to benchmark their 2013 energy use, then track and improve energy use throughout 2014, all with US EPA’s free online tool, Energy Star Portfolio Manager. Participants can access free in-person assistance using the Energy Star Portfolio Manager program to manage their building’s energy use.  Additionally, participants will be connected with financial incentives to move their projects forward and technical support to help pinpoint building energy savings. Energy savings are cost savings!

Professors Warren Lavey and Jodi Endress are developing a course to teach students how to evaluate the holistic impacts of various sustainability projects.  They are considering projects that have been done on campus, in town, or even globally.  There are often multiple dimensions of returns from these projects, which are not always captured in a financial Return on Investment analysis. 

Ever wonder what happens to your electronic waste?

Electronic waste, or "e-waste," including computers, TVs, cameras, printers, and cell phones, etc., is a growing global issue. Through the International Sustainable Electronics Competition, participants are asked to explore solutions to remediate the existing e-waste problem, prevent e-waste generation in the future, and foster a more sustainable system for electronic device development, use, and management.

The Campus Administrative Manual includes the requirement to follow the University Bicycle Ordinance, which enforces safe cycling behavior on all off-road university property, including sidewalks, shared use paths, and bicycle paths.

There are three Kill A Watt monitors that the Student Sustainability Committee (SSC) bought for the Student Weatherization Program.  After the SSC project was done, the Kill A Watt monitors were given to the University Library so that other students can use them. To check out a Kill A Watt device, request one through the Library Catalog at https://vufind.carli.illinois.edu/vf-uiu/Record/uiu_6491875. 

In this course, students will explore fundamental concepts of sustainability and resilience in urban systems through case studies, videos, panel discussions, and a hands-on team consulting project in Chicago or Champaign-Urbana. Projects have been solicited from governmental and non-governmental organizations; planned topics are:

Departments and colleges across campus have designated energy liaisons to promote energy conservation practices. The liaisons receive guidance and training from our facilities professionsals, as well as peer liaisons. The facilities department has dedicated staff to assist the Energy Liaisons, as well as provided several materials for the motivation of behavior change.

F&S has requested a proposal from the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) to get waste stream audits for select buildings across campus.  The program will repeat the efforts completed by ISTC at their building, on a larger scale.  This project could eventually extend to cover all campus facilities, or it could be done at select locations on a recurring basis to measure progress.

A green roof was constructed on the Business Instructional Facility as part of the overall green initiatives used in the construction of that building. Rooftop over the auditorium and a 1200-square foot section on the fourth roof were constructed to be green roof. Unlike conventional flat roofs, green roofs have a layer of substrate in which native plants are grown. This roof type has several benefits. Firstly, less water is discharged since the substrate detains water instead of merely draining it. The water that is discharged is also cleaner, since the plants work as a filtration system.

Implementation of the Solar Research Test Bed is an important part of the research scope of the Illinois Center for a Smarter Electric Grid (ICSEG).  ICSEG’s research mission is to support the continuing development of the Smart Grid through research that tests and validates the trustworthiness (secure, reliable, private, resilient) of new components and systems that will be required to realize the full potential of the Smart Grid, and renewable energy systems such as wind and solar are critical to realizing this vision.