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Projects Updates for key objective: No name

  2. Research In Progress for Bike Ambassador, Bike Buddy, and Commuter Programs

    Associated Project(s): 
    Bicycle Ambassador Program
    Learn How to Ride a Bicycle and Bike Rodeo
    Commuter Program: Bus, Bike, and Hike

    Emily is working on researching Bicycle Ambassador, Bike Buddy, and Commuter Programs at Big 10 and other universities to eventually implement these programs at UIUC. While the Bicycle Ambassador program was last active around 2014, restarting this program is a priority under the Encouragement area of intervention in the 2024 Campus Bicycle Plan. Similarly, the Bike Buddy program, which would encourage more bicycle trips on campus, especially for newer and less experienced cyclists, is also a priority under the Encouragement area of intervention. Emily is also continuing research on the Commuter program, which is a part of the Evaluation & Planning area of intervention in the 2024 Campus Bicycle Plan.

  5. Certified STARS Gold!!

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System™ (STARS)
    Apply for Recognition

    I am excited to share the news that the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has now been recertified at the Gold ranking in the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS). This is the sixth time we have received a Gold STARS rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). This achievement represents our ongoing commitment to making sustainable change on campus. The updated 2025 report builds on previous reporting and helps hold us accountable for continuous improvement toward our sustainability goals.

    The reporting process required a huge amount of data collection from across different campus units, covering our academic programs, orientation and training programs, energy and emissions, landscape management, transportation systems, administrative policies, and much, much more. I would like to give special thanks to Codie Sterner at SSIB for helping to lead the data collection process, and to our student interns Jenna Schaefer and Lucy Zhou for their invaluable contributions.

    If you are receiving this email, it is because you helped provide key data and insights during this process. We sincerely appreciate your efforts and contributions to our campus sustainability efforts – completing this report and achieving this result would not have been possible without you!

    Best,

    Miriam

    Miriam Keep
    Sustainability Programs Coordinator

    Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE)

  7. Introductory meeting with Housing

    Associated Project(s): 
    Fleet Replacement Plans
    F&S Sustainable Fleet Plan
    Decrease Emissions from UI Fleet

    Following are the notes from our meeting with Housing about their potential Fleet Management Plan. The meeting took place on 6/13/2025 at 9 a.m.

    Attended by - Sarthak Prasad, Shawn Patterson, Matt Brown, Aaron Lewis, Jessica Hauserman

    • We did introduction
    • Jessica is the Office Manager
    • We are looking for a single point of contact
    • Not reinvent the wheel - not dictate
    • What are we trying to do?
    • 12 year replacement plan
    • What is the useful life of the vehicle
    • Fuel consumptions, idle time,
    • Conversations about what would be the correct path
    • Right-sizing the application
    • We need to purchase a vehicle - what type of vehicle can be purchased
    • Matt Brown -
      • They make some purchases of heavier duty trucks based on what the tasks are, the weight of those things
      • Some small transit vehicles
        • Ford transit
      • They are looking for a huge number of things
      • Availability, right sizing, - have some issues with that
      • They are retiring 20 year old vehicles or more
      • They are finally out of pre-2000s vehicles this FY
      • They are now updating
    • How we might interact with these goals= planned rotation vs force rotations
      • Deterioration of these vehicles
      • Shawn -
        • The prices have skyrocketed
        • Digging deep - if we have a process in place.
        • If this is the goal, we can do what we can
        • What is the most feasible thing. The university is not going give us so much money to buy whatever we want
        • Housing is the first department we are reaching out
        • Same or similar fleet as F&S
        • We can share our expertise
        • Build a group and plan as to what can be done to improve iCAP goals
    • Looking to identify a contact person
      • Start off with Matt Brown and then direct conversations to other departments
      • Various fleets (4)
        • Facilities and Maintenance
        • Building services
        • Student Affairs Technology for Housing
        • Dining - Dell
      • Jessica has helped with costs and ownership of vehicles
        • To maintain or to fuel
        • There is data
      • If the iCAP wants to put a number before we rotate
        • Put a high number, like 15 years.
        • Some vehicles are used less
        • Vehicle by vehicle basis
    • Aaron -
      • Has it ever been discussion - drive thru car was on campus to remove debris and gunk - to improve the life?
        • Shawn -
          • Frame - Rust or something
          • Parts are no longer available for that vehicles
          • Undercarriage -
            • $100k to get the equipment
        • Deterioration of the body
      • Rust and under carriage - vehicles deteriorate
    • Next Step
      • List and come up with an operation plan
      • For one of the fleet operation or all 4 fleet? Evolving plan
      • Create a Teams Channel
      • Give them a skeleton plan to give to Housing
        • They will fill in what they can do - Based on the F&S Green Fleet Plan
        • The objectives we came up with were through NAFA and based on F&S fleets
      • Maybe a follow up in the end of July 2025
    • Matt asked about Idle time sensor
      • GPS sensors that we operate with
      • Not every vehicle is the same
      • External GPS system
    • Idle Times are related to Fuel Consumption
    • Matt and his team will get a shot on the plan and get back to us
    • Housing fleet is at a certain level - swap one for one
      • Very occasional and sporadic that they add a vehicle
      • They can commit to not adding to the fleet

  8. iCAP Portal Admin Meeting - June 13, 2025

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainability iCAP Portal

    Agenda

    • Celebrations
    • Michael's updates
      • Recommendation pages: changed sort order for Recommendation Updates
        • Old sort order: Applicable Date (descending), Created Date (descending)
        • New sort order:Applicable Date (descending), Status (by its order in the dropdown listing, descending)
      • Project pages: column widths issue
        • When project update contains an element with a fixed width larger than the column, it was causing the left sidebar to expand to fill as much space as possible. Fixed by setting maximum column widths.
        • Follow-up question: should we strip formatting from project update teasers? Since they're often copy-and-pasted from elsewhere, they tend to bring in their own formatting, which can sometimes look strange.
    • National Research Programs analytics
    • Discussion about Recommendations - May 19, 2025
      • See notes for updates
    • Discussion about Metrics - May 19, 2025
      • See notes for updates
      • Discuss metric naming convention

    Discussion

    • Project Update teasers
      • Let's strip out HTML from project update teasers
      • How does it impact embedding project updates?
        • Won't impact them - their Project Update descriptions are defined separately
    • Recommendations on Project pages
      • Decided to make each Recommendation's title a link
      • Decided to remove the table of Recommendation Updates for now
      • Will consider whether to display the Recommendation titles & statuses in a table - current list is clean, but table would be good for quickly identifying the statuses of the various projects
    • Discuss metric naming convention [deferred to next meeting]

    TODOs

    • Strip out HTML from ALL project update teasers
    • Add expand/collapse to Recommendations listing on Project pages

  11. Discussion about Metrics - May 19, 2025

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainability iCAP Portal

    Sarthak Prasad, Michael McKelvey, Morgan White, Quinn Connolly, Miriam Keep, and Tiffany Jolley met to discuss iCAP Metrics improvements - specifically, displaying metrics with large numbers of tracking records and combining multiple metrics on a single graph.

    Discussion/Decisions

    TODOs:

    • Michael to investigate Highcharts as a replacement for Google Charts
      • Maintain tabs showing individual targets
      • Allow selection of graph type (bar, line)
    • Michael to investigate calculated/combined metrics:
      • Show multiple metrics on single chart
      • Stretch goal: automatically calculate percentage against a baseline metric (e.g. Solar Farm 1 and Solar Farm 2 as percentages of Total Energy Use)
    • Michael will add theme maps embed code to theme pages
    • Remove objective numbers from beginning of metric names (see Objectives Dashboard)
    • Discuss metric naming convention in next iCAP Portal group meeting

  12. Discussion about Recommendations - May 19, 2025

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainability iCAP Portal

    Morgan White, Miriam Keep, Elizabeth Murphy, Tiffany Jolley, Quinn Connolly, Sarthak Prasad, and Michael McKelvey met to discuss how best to cross reference iCAP Projects and Recommendations.

    Discussion/Decisions

    • Rec's link to
      • a Team,
      • Associated Project(s),
      • Objective(s), and
      • Future Updates project
    • What to include on the team pages?
      • example logged in and logged out
      • For now: decided to hide the sidebar listing of associated Recommendations and show the list of recommendations w/recommendation updates in main section
      • Discuss how to display the recommendations (and recommendation updates?) in next large group meeting
    • What to include on the iWG page? and the Sustainability Council page?
    • How to get to recommendations from the Home page?
      • Through link to iWG - decided not including a direct link to Recommendations page
    • Could these be based on theme instead of team? What to show on a theme page?
      • Decided not to show list of recommendations on Theme pages; get to recommendations through iCAP Team linked in description
    • Which projects should be associated? should it just be by objective and future updates..?
      • Associated Project(s): Don't include iWG and Team projects; just a minimal list of associated project(s)
      • Further Updates Will be Posted To...: 1 new project spawned by recommendation (if applicable)
    • How to remove the summary pages?

    TODOs:

    • Show associated recommendations on projects linked via "Further Updates Will be Posted To..." field
    • Add time-based filter on Recommendations listing page (e.g. last 5 years)

  13. EV Infrastructure Study at Peer Universities

    Associated Project(s): 
    Electric Vehicle (EV) Task Force
    Use Electric Vehicles (EV)
    Install Public Use Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Stations

    Check out our new report on EV infrastructure, based on a survey of peer universities. The study examines how institutions across the country are planning, funding, and implementing EV charging solutions to support campus sustainability and evolving transportation needs.

    The insights gathered will inform our campus’s approach to EV infrastructure development and long-term mobility planning.

    Attached Files: 

  15. School of Art and Design Re-Fashioned Fashion Show

    Associated Project(s): 
    Surplus Catalog
    Achieve Zero Waste

    School of Art and Design Re-Fashioned Fashion Show

     

    The annual School of Art and Design fashion show is back! Re-Fashioned will be presented at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, May 10, in the Siebel Center. Admission is free. Students from the Studio Arts Fashion Concentration will be presenting over 100 one-of-a-kind ensembles. Wearable works of art walk the runway, combining sustainability and creativity in a fun event for the whole family. 

     

  16. CTAC spring 2025: meeting recording and presentation

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Transportation Advisory Committee (CTAC)
    Bike at Illinois Website and Campaign
    Install Public Use Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Stations
    Support Mobility Innovation (Fliss)
    University Bicycle Ordinance
    2024 Campus Bike Plan
    Reduce Emissions from Business Travel
    Offset Emissions from Plane Trips
    Reduce Driving on Campus
    Bike Share with Veo

    The Campus Transportation Advisory Committee (CTAC) met on Tuesday, May 6, 2025 from 1 - 2:30 p.m.. Following was the agenda for the meeting:

    • Introduction – Morgan White (5 minutes)
    • Old Business
      • F&S TDM Status Update – Stacey DeLorenzo and Sarthak Prasad (25 minutes)
      • Lincoln Ave Corridor Study (North of Florida Ave) – CCRPC (15 minutes)
      • Bike Share Updates– Sarthak Prasad (5 minutes)
    • New Business
      • EV infrastructure research – Bhagyashree (10 minutes)
      • E-bike research – Bhagyashree (10 minutes)
      • Air Travel Emissions research – Karina Jang (10 minutes)
      • 2025 Transportation Survey – Sepideh Azizi (10 minutes)
    • Community Updates – (5 minutes) 

    Please see attached the slides from meeting. To view the recording, please go to https://uofi.box.com/s/f9vq8w52a4tjmu154ecuspfyfjqb9784.

    Attached Files: 

  18. protecting the low mow zone by Univ. Primary School

    Associated Project(s): 
    Low Mow Zones
    Bee Campus USA

    Hi Ali,

     

    Great to hear you are seeing milkweed emerging!  I walked the field a couple of weeks ago and at that time they were not coming up yet.  I was also looking to see if any of the milkweed seeds dispersed in January were coming up but again, I think I was too early.  I plan to get out there again soon to check those areas to see if any of the seeds are germinating.  Attached is the map, areas highlighted in red are where the milkweed seeds were added.

     

    My direction to the Grounds mowing crew is not to mow the low mow field until late Nov-December at the earliest or in late February, early March of 2026.  If we happen to have a breakthrough of noxious weeds between now and then we will strategically spot treat or spot mow the outbreak area.  Moving forward, I instructed that before any such action is taken, I must approve it.  If I agree action needs to be taken, I will reach out to you to discuss what we are seeing and what measures we feel need to be taken.

     

    I like the idea of registering the field as a Monarch Waystation but I will have to check to see if that is something we/you can pursue and let you know.

     

    Thanks,

    Ryan

     

     

     

    From: Lewis, Ali 
    Sent: Thursday, April 24, 2025 11:47 AM
    Subject: Low Mow Zone Field by CRC: Monarch Waystation

     

    Dear Ryan and Grounds Crew,

     

    There is milkweed emerging in the field south of the Children’s Research Field. Last summer, this low mow zone field was mowed twice, removing most of the milkweed for which the migrating Monarch Butterfly population relies. Of course, we study the monarch population and field each year and are eager to have the field grow over the summer and through the fall. We know you have noxious weeds/invasive species to contend with on your end.

     

    What can we do to help the field grow over the summer/fall? How can we best communicate about it being mowed after the fall  Monarch Migration comes through?

     

    Is it possible to pursue the field area as a registered Monarch Waystation? If so, we could take the lead on that, pending agreement from whomever we need to ask including Ryan? https://www.monarchwatch.org/waystations/

     

    Thanks for thinking with the children/teachers at Uni Primary about this special area adjacent to the school. The field is a true source of delight and freedom for our small school, and we appreciate being in communication with you all about its care.

     

    Sincerely,

    Ali Lewis & Uni Primary School Community

     

    -- 

     

    Attached Files: 

  19. iCAP Portal Admin Meeting - May 9, 2025

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainability iCAP Portal

    Agenda

    • Michael's updates
      • Recommendation page: added a Files column which shows any files associated with each Recommendation Update (e.g. ECONS004 Green Labs Coordinator)
      • SSC Projects:
        • Added column click sorting to SSC Projects table
        • Added ability to add/edit description to SSC Projects listing page
      • Metrics fixes:
        • Metric: Bicycle Registration in Project 529 system: Karina Jang had tried to restore a past Metric revision, which didn't work well and clobbered a few records. We reviewed the data and restored the broken/missing records. I have disabled restoring revisions for now. iCAP Admins and Moderators can view revisions, but cannot restore them. While it may typically work for basic content like text fields, it doesn't seem to work well for connected content like tracking records.
        • Metric: Total Purchased Clean Power: Somehow 2 empty records were created when Zach Bromberg updated this metric. I have made the Value and Date fields required, which should help avoid that in the future.
      • Showing Recommendations & Recommendation Updates on Project pages:
        • Initial version of how this could work available on live site (only visible when logged in):
          • Added Associated Recommendation(s) section in main column
          • List each associated recommendation w/its current status
          • Under each recommendation, show table of its related recommendation updates
        • You can find Project pages with associated Recommendations by visiting a Recommendation (All Recommendations) and clicking on its associated Projects.
        • Example pages:
        • Thoughts? For projects with a lot of recommendation updates, it gets a bit busy...
    • Discussion of how to handle projects with large numbers of metrics (see notes from Sarthak & Michael's discussion)

    Discussion

    • Recommendations on project pages
      • Will have a side channel meeting to discuss how best to cross reference iCAP Projects and Recommendations
    • Discussion of how to handle projects with large numbers of metrics
      • Need better way to display metrics with large numbers of tracking records
        • Michael will return to investigating switching charting systems
      • Need to be able to combine multiple metrics on a single graph
        • Michael had previously started work on this; can resurrect and continue it
        • Will have a side channel meeting to discuss needs in more depth

    TODOs

    • Various follow-up side channel meetings between monthly meetings.

  20. iCAP Portal Admin Meeting - April 11, 2025

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainability iCAP Portal

    Agenda

    Discussion

    • Morgan went through full list of projects to find ones to archive
      • Need to have a larger conversation about what archiving does at some point
    • Morgan's intern Zach is doing a couple things:
      • Filling in recent years of campus water data
      • Looking for duplicate metrics
      • Will mark duplicate metrics as duplicate, then work with Michael on deleting them
    • Linking SSC Projects to iCAP Portal projects
      • Quinn and Helen working on making sure all connections between SSC Projects and iCAP Portal projects are included
      • What to do about SSC Projects without an existing iCAP Portal project?
      • Quinn: 70-80% of SSC Projects have a direct or indirect connection to an iCAP Portal project; a few are really hard to find a connection
      • Morgan: every SSC Project should be connected to an iCAP Portal project. Quinn will keep working on connections, then this summer we can figure out what to do about the outliers
      • Would be helpful to add column sorting to SSC Projects table
      • SSC Projects listing goes back to 2008; aren't there projects from earlier than 2008?
        • That's all Helen had access to in SSC's master spreadsheet
        • Didn't include cancelled projects
        • Morgan will look for info about projects before 2008
        • Sheri may also have info about those projects
        • Some info about older SSC projects may be available in Project Updates (e.g. Projects Updates for Wind Turbine Generator(s) on South Farms)
    • Recommendations:
      • Morgan will have a student work on adding Recommendations
      • Once they're complete, we should remove the manually maintained recommendation links in Projects
      • Next step: show Recommendations & Recommendation Updates on Project pages; Michael will work on a draft version to share
    • Going through project hierarchy: adding/updating information to descriptions for Header projects
    • Google Analytics numbers drop
    • Discussion of how to handle projects with large numbers of metrics

    TODOs

    • ✅ SSC Projects:
      • ✅ Add column click sorting to SSC Projects table
      • ✅ Add ability to add/edit description to SSC Projects listing page
    • ✅ Show Recommendations & Recommendation Updates on Project pages
    • Investigate Google Analytics for April 3 - large spike in visits/users
    • Investigate how to hide Project Status from certain projects which aren't actually projects - they're meant to act as parents for other projects (remaining from last meeting)
      • e.g. add a "Header" Project Status which hides the status

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