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  2. iSEE Newsletter: Plantings Complete Solar Farm 2.0!

    Associated Project(s): 
    Solar Farm 2.0
    Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE)
    Energy iCAP Team

    The final stage of the Solar Farm 2.0 project is wrapping up this month with the planting of a native pollinator habitat. The farm will serve as a major demonstration and research site for pollinator-friendly solar arrays, with more than 6.5 million flowering plants and native grasses around the 54 acres of panels creating a natural habitat for birds and beneficial insects. With this second solar farm, the campus has achieved clean energy goals outlined in the Illinois Climate Action Plan (iCAP) nearly four years ahead of schedule. Clean energy production will now support roughly 12 percent of annual campus electricity demand. Congratulations to Facilities & Services for all of the hard work on this important project; iSEE and its SWATeam members were proud to provide key support for Solar Farm 2.0 by pushing for an increased renewable portfolio in the iCAP. Students in iSEE's sustainability minor also helped assess the new array's carbon footprint!

  3. Congratulations to our 2020-2021 Greener Campus Awardees!

    Associated Project(s): 
    Certified Greener Campus Programs
    Certified Green Chapter Program
    Certified Green Office Program (CGOP)
    Certified Green Event Program

    This year, we awarded 38 green certifications on our campus! Congratulations to all! This includes 28 events (including iSEE Congress and the “TED Talk: Eco Edition” series) seven Greek chapters (including gold-level awards for Delta Delta Delta, Pi Beta Phi, Delta Gamma, Kappa Delta, and Zeta Beta Tau), and three offices: International Student & Scholar Services, Department of Communication, and Department of Chemistry Administrative Office. Learn more about all of iSEE’s Certified Greener Campus programs.

    Greek Chapter Gold Certifications:

    • Pi Beta Phi — March 2021
    • Delta Delta Delta — March 2021
    • Delta Gamma — March 2021
    • Kappa Delta — February 2021
    • Zeta Beta Tau — November 2020

    Greek Chapter Silver Certifications:

    • Triangle Fraternity — November 2020 (Read more!)

    Greek Chapter Bronze Certifications:

    Event Certifications:

    • SECS iCAP Teach-In — Certified April 2021
    • SECS Trivia and Happy Hour — Certified April 2021
    • SECS Plant Parenthood Fundraiser — Certified April 2021
    • SECS Roundtable with La Colectiva — Certified April 2021
    • SECS Earth Day Climate Strike — Certified April 2021
    • SECS Stargazing — Certified April 2021
    • SECS Teach-In — Certified April 2021
    • SECS Ecosociology Lecture & Discussion — Certified April 2021
    • SECS Virtual Sustainable Cooking — Certified April 2021
    • SECS Volunteering with Red Bison — Certified April 2021
    • SECS “Plogging” 5k Fun Run — Certified April 2021
    • SECS Painting Climate Strike Signs — Certified April 2021
    • Illinois Solar Decathlon ADAPTHAUS Inauguration Event — Certified April 2021
    • Campus Recreation Food Assistance & Well-Being Program Digital Food Drive — Certified April 2021
    • iSEE Congress 2021: The Future of Water — Certified March 2021
    • Champaign Park District/UIUC Bunny Brunch — Certified March 2021
    • iSEE TED Talk: Eco-Edition Series — Certified March 2021
    • Environmental Leadership Program (ELP) Environmental Policy Workshop — Certified March 2021
    • ELP Corporate Sustainability Workshop — Certified March 2021
    • SSC Coffee Hours — Certified March 2021
    • RST/Don Moyer Boys and Girls Club Young Olympians Program — Certified March 2021
    • One Winter Night Anniversary Plaza Donation Drive — Certified March 2021
    • One Winter Night — Certified February 2021
    • Parkland College Trivia Night, 3/24/2021 — Certified February 2021
    • Illinois Extension Everyday Environment Webinar Series — Certified February 2021
    • American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) general meeting series — Certified February 2021
    • Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) Sustainability Seminar Series — Certified December 2020
    • ECEC21 (Emerging Contaminants in the Environment Conference 2021) — Certified December 2020

  5. Nexamp Offers Information Sessions on Community Solar

    Associated Project(s): 
    Resilience Commitment
    Environmental Justice Plan
    Contribute to Regional Climate Action Plans

    The City of Urbana is now partnering with Nexamp to bring solar savings opportunities to the community. This program is available to low and moderate income residents, including renters who do not own local property. The program provides solar power, through the existing electrical distribution network using solar panels that are being installed at the closed Urbana landfill.

    Nexamp is holding two information sessions for Illinois residents to learn how they can enroll in a community solar program. These events will be held on:

    The flyer for these events can be found in the attached files below.

    Attached Files: 

  6. Article: An Earth Month to Remember

    Associated Project(s): 
    Tree Campus Higher Education
    Champaign County Sustainability Network (CCNet) [ARCHIVED]
    TED Talk: Eco Edition Series [ARCHIVED]
    Certified Greener Campus Programs
    Earth Month
    Illinois Solar Decathlon
    Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)
    Solar Farm 2.0

    The Spring 2021 iSEE Quarterly Update (iQ) highlighted a diverse array of campus initiatives that made this year's Earth Month one to remember. Ranging from hosted events to sustainable energy, the article discusses the launch of the "TED Talk: Eco Edition" series, Solar Farm 2.0, community trash pickup, and more!

    Read the article in the attached files below. 

    Attached Files: 

  7. Spring 2021: iSEE Quarterly Update (iQ)

    Associated Project(s): 
    Certificate in Environmental Writing (CEW) [ARCHIVED]
    Environmental Leadership Program (ELP)
    iSEE Congress
    iSEE Scholars
    Earth Month
    Certified Greener Campus Programs
    Illinois Solar Decathlon
    Solar Farm 1.0

    The Spring 2021 iSEE Quarterly Update (iQ) was released with the following message from Madhu Khanna, the Interim Director of iSEE:

     

    Dear Colleagues,

    Attached, please find the Spring 2021 “iQ” – the quarterly update from the Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE).

    It has remained a busy time here on our campus, as we bolstered our outstanding Congress and Critical Conversation events with the addition of two experts — activist Catherine Coleman Flowers and nuclear expert Denia Djokić — who are serving as Levenick iSEE virtual resident scholars.

    Thanks to the support of experts Eban Goodstein, Tami Craig Schilling, and Harriet Hentges, our new Environmental Leadership Program workshops for undergraduates were a rousing success.

    And we were so pleased to have a mix of virtual and in-person Earth Month events to engage students, faculty, and staff from across our campus!

    Please take a quick look at those updates and more in this six-page “iQ.” For more regular news, please sign up for our E-newsletter at https://illinois.edu/fb/sec/5031776.

    Best wishes for the summer,

    Madhu

    Attached Files: 

  8. Voluntary Carbon Market

    Associated Project(s): 
    Develop Local Carbon Offset Program [ARCHIVED]
    Utilize Carbon Credits

    First launched in 2005 by non-profit Forest Trends, Ecosystem Marketplace (EM) has continuously run the world’s first and only independent international carbon offsets market tracking, reporting, and knowledge-sharing mechanism. In April, EM launched its new Global Carbon Survey online platform, aimed at taking carbon market transparency to the next level.

  9. Halie Collins is the Next President of Illinois Solar Decathlon

    Associated Project(s): 
    Illinois Solar Decathlon

    Halie Collins is the officially the next President of the Illinois Solar Decathlon (ISD) team! In her new position, she will be leading the efforts to form the next Build Team and Design Team. 

    The outgoing president, Shashikiran Duraisamy, shared this note of thanks with Morgan White at F&S: "The Illinois Solar Decathlon team is extremely grateful for all the support that you have provided in the last two years. Your support was extremely valuable for our success and to support and contribute towards University’s sustainability initiatives. We are so much grateful for the Facilities and Services’ decision to allow ISD to store our construction materials in the Physical Plant Services Building and the constant support that the Receiving team (Dave Boehm & Jim McGuire) provided us to access the materials with ease. This was a lifesaver for our project. I look forward to the continued relationship between Illinois Solar Decathlon and Facilities & Services."

  10. Brainstormed Ideas for the ECE Lobby Display and Kiosks

    Associated Project(s): 
    ECE Net-Zero Energy Building
    Engagement iCAP Team
    Build a Culture of Sustainability

    A document of ideas brainstormed for the displays and kiosks in the ECE lobby was sent to Joyce Mast by F&S contacts. These ideas were created with the goal of having students actively engage with the display through physical interaction, as well as passive engagement while students look at the stations in passing.

    Attached Files: 

  11. UIUC Becomes an Official Member of Green Sports Alliance

    Associated Project(s): 
    Green Sports Alliance (GSA)

    The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Facilities & Services (F&S) department officially became a Green Sports Alliance (GSA) member! In doing so, F&S strives to further promote sustainable projects and environmental stewardship.  

    This announcement was officially released as a part of GSA’s “Member Spotlight” in its May 2021 Newsletter. 

  13. Resources for Engagement and Displays

    Associated Project(s): 
    ECE Net-Zero Energy Building
    Energy Dashboard Project
    Engagement iCAP Team

    During a conversation between U of I staff across multiple departments, the following resources were compiled to brainstorm content for the display and kiosks in the ECE lobby:

    1. Illinois Scholar Schools & Wind Schools: Urbana Middle School
    2. Online Database of Solar Farm 2.0 Statistics
    3. GreenLite: Information Visualization System to Encourage Behaviors that Conserve Resources
    4. Smart Grid for Schools: Virtual Grid Construction
    5. CREDC: Tesla Town, Smart Circuits - Lights On!, etc.
    6. Creating Animations for GreenLite Dartmouth

     

  14. Case Study - Carbon Offsetting at UIUC

    Associated Project(s): 
    Utilize Carbon Credits

    AlliedOffset, a database of voluntary carbon offset programs in the world, helped curate a case study regarding carbon offsetting at UIUC. This document offers a variety of information including, but not limited to, Credits Retired per Year per Student, Ranking of Universities by Total Credits Retired, and details regarding major solar installation projects on campus. 

    See the attached file to read the case study.

    Attached Files: 

  15. Environmental Vulnerability Assessment Presentation

    Associated Project(s): 
    Environmental Justice Plan
    Resilience iCAP Team

    Irene Lira-Andsager, Jason Webb, and Daniel Xu spent the spring 2021 semester researching local environmental vulnerability factors and conducted vulnerability assessments to be included in the Environmental Justice Plan. The recording of their presentation of findings is found here (download to view). 

    Attached Files: 

  16. ECE energy dashboard

    Associated Project(s): 
    Energy Dashboard Project
    ECE Net-Zero Energy Building

    Objectively, everyone knows you should conserve energy resources, but it is easy to lose track of that goal in the hundreds of other things our brains need to think about each day. One way to encourage people to be more cognizant is to give them a tangible reminder. The local electric company, for example, sometimes send a reminder notice that tells you how well you’re doing with energy consumption compared to other homes the size of yours in the area. In a similar idea, F&S has developed an improved energy dashboard that will be used in campus facilities. Beginning with the Electrical & Computer Engineering (ECE) Building, Energy Dashboards will be deployed to show the utility use for a specific building. It will also show if that use is above or below average for the last 30 days or one year. The dashboard appears in the rotation of the ECE digital signage in the lobby of the building. The plan is to expand it to other buildings to help promote energy awareness and conservation on campus.

    http://ecebenergykiosk.web.illinois.edu/

    Attached Files: 

  17. IHR Telecommuting survey Executive Summary and questionairre response

    Associated Project(s): 
    Encourage Telecommuting
    Transportation iCAP Team

    Robb Craddock, Senior Director - Labor & Employee Relations, provided a very informative and detailed response to the Telecommuting questionairre and Executive Summary of the IHR Telecommuting survey. Please see attached to learn more.

    Attached Files: 

  18. WorkNet in MarketPlace

    Associated Project(s): 
    Green Jobs

    East Central Illinois workNet now has a big presence at Market Place Shopping Center, with hall standees and table tent displays in the Food Court promoting the program. You will also be seeing information about our services on MTD buses in the coming weeks.

     

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  20. Farm to Food Bank survey by ISTC

    Associated Project(s): 
    Food Purchases from Local Sources

    Help ISTC, Feeding Illinois, the Illinois Specialty Growers Association, and the Illinois Farm Bureau by completing the Farm to Food Bank producer survey today.

    The project team is also recruiting participants for a series of virtual focus groups. They seek food producers and distributors, as well as representatives from hunger relief agencies. If you are interested in participating, please contact TAP.

    Farm to Food Bank survey deadline extended, focus groups planned 

    By Joy Scrogum

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