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Projects Updates for theme: all

  2. Information on Electric Vehicles from Gabriel Lewis

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

    The following is an email sent from Gabriel Lewis to Morgan White regarding EV research.

    Hi Morgan,

     

    I’m doing research for the local municipalities on Electric Vehicles (EVs), to start out with a literature review.

     

    Katie Simpson in Savoy mentioned that you/UIUC were starting discussions last fall about researching EVs as well.  I know it’s a broad topic, but are they any updates or information I should be aware of from the University side?


    I found a couple of relevant search results online:

     

    I think we’re most interested right now in how to provide sufficient charging infrastructure in buildings (via retrofits and requirements for new buildings) and in public places (streets, parking lots, municipal facilities, recreational facilities, etc.).

     

    Thanks,


    Gabe

  4. Eco-Counter set installed and activated at Green and Goodwin

    Associated Project(s): 
    Pedestrian and Bicycle Counts
    Multimodal Corridor Enhancement Project (MCORE)
    Bicycle Counts
    Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)

    A set of Eco-Counters were installed at the intersection of Green St and Goodwin Ave by Loomis Laboratory on Monday, May 9, 2022. This was a new set of counters with no groundbox, purchased in October 2021. This set of Eco-Counter was purchased using the SSC funding. These counters were activated on May 10, 2022, and they are now collecting and transmitting data. See attached the pictures of these counters.

    Attached Files: 

  7. All are invited to attend EPA National Environmental Justice Community Engagement Call 5/17/22

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

    National Environmental Justice Community Engagement Call: May 17, 2022

    EPA invites Environmental Justice (EJ) advocates to participate in the next National Environmental Justice Community Engagement Call taking place on May 17, 2022 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. (Eastern Time). These calls are free and open to the public.

    Registration Link:  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/epa-natl-environmental-justice-community-engagement-call-may-17-2022-registration-325114615567

    Agenda:

    The purpose of these calls is to inform the community and other stakeholders about EPA's EJ work and enhance opportunities to maintain an open dialogue with EJ advocates.

    Please email Motilall.Christina@epa.gov by May 13, 2022 to request reasonable accommodation for a disability or interpreter services in a language other than English, so that you can participate in the call and/or to request a translation of any of the event documents into a language other than English.

    For more information about the National Environmental Justice Community Engagement Calls, please email Robinson.Victoria@epa.gov or Motilall.Christina@epa.gov.

    Recordings and meeting materials for all calls are posted here: https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/national-environmental-justice-community-engagement-calls.

  8. iWG Meeting Minutes 4-19-22

    Associated Project(s): 
    iCAP Working Group (iWG)
    Zero Waste iCAP Team
    Resilience iCAP Team
    Earth Month

    The iCAP Working Group met on 4-19-22 and discussed the following agenda: 

    1. ZW007 Composting Committee (Alexa Smith and Sydney Trimble)
    2. ZW008 Adopt a Highway/Drain (Alexa Smith and Sydney Trimble)
    3. Res003 Collecting Info about Environmental Justice Needs (Stacy Gloss)
    4. Updates
      1. Earth Month – Meredith
      2. SSC
      3. SSLC
      4. ISG

    The meeting minutes are attached. 

    Attached Files: 

  9. Weekly Update: Summer is coming

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Had some rainy weather last week that kept our visitor numbers low. We also had a few staff bow out for the summer.

    This week will be summer-like and judging by the first half hour of open shop time today, we’ll be nice and busy all week. From there it’s on to the summer sessions. We’ll likely reduce hours as demand and staffing availability dictate.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 24
    Sales: $605.60
    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $180
    Memberships: 2 for $60

    Wheels (used/alloy): 5 for $75
    Tire/tubes: 7 for $47

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  11. archived info - previous project description

    Associated Project(s): 
    Anaerobic Digester at Beef and Sheep Study

    This project will provide a study to investigate the feasibility of installing an Anaerobic Methane Digester in the area of the University’s South Farms to capture renewable energy from beef, sheep and/or dairy cow waste. The study will assess the possibility of an on-site digester at one site, with one digester system of animal waste. The study will identify useful “Waste/Organics to Energy Efforts” using available technology paths and options that match the goals and expectations of the UIUC stakeholders and project team, to deliver to UIUC a “Renewable Energy Waste/Organics to Fuel Study.” We will also include a section to address the goal to pursue carbon offsets in the project. We will use “The Illinois Climate Action Plan (iCAP)” to address greenhouse gas reduction strategies compliance.

  12. Draft Report - Local Carbon Offset Program

    Associated Project(s): 
    Build Resilience with Our Local Community
    Develop Local Carbon Offset Program [ARCHIVED]

    DRAFT White Paper: "Recommendations for Initiating a Local Carbon Offsets Pilot Program for the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign"

    Submitted by Stacy Gloss on May 9, 2022

    Conclusions & Recommendations reported below:

    The University of Illinois iCAP calls for reducing emissions from unavoidable travel by purchasing carbon offsets and creating a local carbon offset program.  Program planning and oversight can be achieved with the formation of a committee on carbon offsets and local offsets. Concurrently, the chancellors office should delegate where a carbon-off-set account would be housed – the account needs to be set up to receive and administer funds for competitive projects.

    The most that the iCAP Resilience Committee could do is submit a recommendation to the iWG to convene a campus working group for a local offset program directed by the Chancellor’s office and/or central Sustainability Council; and direct the set-up of an account to receive and administer funds.  Sustainability professionals hired at the University of Illinois could administer the program with oversight from the carbon offsets working group/committee.

    Edits or comments to this paper should be submitted to sgloss@illinois.edu for review by the iCAP Resilience committee.

    The document can be viewed here: https://uofi.box.com/s/w007s43qyhtdcbjbmzb4asjt70weueyq

     

  13. Carbon Offset Technology Review Project

    Associated Project(s): 
    Build Resilience with Our Local Community
    Develop Local Carbon Offset Program [ARCHIVED]

    iSEE Carbon Offset Program: Technology Research and Options
    Authors: Jane Williams, Rachel Pu, Fina Healy, Natalia Ptaszek, and Angela Andrada

    Students from the ABE469 Capstone Course taught by professor Ann Witmer met over the course of the Spring 2022 semester to research renewable energy technologies and carbon sink projects appropriate for campus and communtiy in our surrounding county-vicinity. The purpose is to provide technology options for the Local Carbon Offset Program described in the iCAP objectives.  A local carbon offset program would be designed to offset staff & faculty travel, and the offset funds generated can be used in local projects that reduce or sequester carbon on campus and in the community. The technologies reviewed by the student engineering team include:

    • solar photovoltaics
    • biodigestor
    • planting trees
    • prairie restoration
    • geothermal heating and cooling

    The final deliverables report and presentation are attached.

    Attached Files: 

  14. SSC Massmail 5/6/22

    Associated Project(s): 
    Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)

    The following email was sent to: Academic Professionals, Civil Service, Faculty, Extra Help, Graduate Students, Undergraduate Students, Incoming Graduate Students & Incoming Undergraduate Students

    MASSMAIL - Student Sustainability Committee (SSC) - Spring 2022 Update
    May 6, 2022 3:02 PM

    Hello from the Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)! 

    If you have original project ideas to improve campus sustainability – or you want to help others make their sustainability projects a reality – then the SSC is for you. Please read on to learn about our history, funding, recent accomplishments, and how you can get involved!

    What is the SSC?

    We are a student-led organization that provides financial support to projects led by campus community members that promote environmental stewardship and student engagement on campus. These funds come from the Illinois Green Fund, which is composed of two student-initiated fees: the Sustainable Campus Environment Fee ($12.06/student per semester) and the Cleaner Energy Technologies Fee ($2/student per semester). 

    The committee was formed in 2002 by a group of passionate students fighting for the use of clean energy on campus. Today, we have expanded our scope from ongoing decarbonization efforts to include all facets of sustainability. SSC now consists of 18 enthusiastic student-voting members as well as many staff and faculty members who provide their expertise; together, we are an interdisciplinary team that is well equipped to determine which projects will best serve our campus community. Past projects have helped fund Eco-Illini, Solar Decathlon, Red Oak Rain Garden, Bevier Cafe's herb garden, the Illini Union’s recycling bins, CIF’s geothermal system, and many more! Each of these projects falls under one of the SSC’s Working Groups: Energy, Transportation & Infrastructure, Education & Justice, Food & Waste, Energy, and Land, Water, & Air.

    Over the past 20 years, the SSC has proudly dedicated $15.55 million to 316 individual projects, which have significantly improved campus sustainability and engagement.

    Recent Accomplishments

    Because the SSC receives funding from students to be used for students, it’s important to share our achievements with those who make the SSC possible: you! 

    Over the last two years, the SSC brought to life its longstanding goal of having a greater focus on student interaction and engagement. We added six new voting positions and restructured the committee to include entirely new branches dedicated to outreach in the form of our communications and social initiatives teams. We also officially began recruiting general members to encourage more students to have a voice in evaluating sustainability project applications.

    Through our increased outreach efforts, we have reached more campus environmental groups than ever. In October 2021, we co-hosted a month-long Student Sustainability Summit that included Green Quad Day, the Tuesday Talks at Bevier Cafe seminar series, a movie night, tours of university facilities, teach-ins, and a climate strike. We also programmed many Earth Month activities throughout April, hosting another Green Quad Day, more Tuesday Talks, and a showing of The Lorax at the Illini Union.

    Some other initiatives that we had the privilege of working with and funding this year include: 

    • The first-ever Sustainability Grammys to recognize all the amazing work that environmental RSOs do on campus, co-hosted by iSEE’s Greener Campus Office
    • The development of a single-use plastic reuse and elimination protocol at the Brinkworth Lab
    • The Sustainable Lab Network, which will compile a database of sustainability education resources
    • Fume hood upgrades in Morrill Hall to decrease energy demand
    • The Sustainability Mural Project to highlight the university's sustainability initiatives

    A collection of proposed, completed, and ongoing SSC projects can be found on the iCAP Portal.

    The SSC is also excited to announce our role as an organizer of the Reimagine Our Future Undergraduate Sustainability Competition that will take place in fall 2022. This competition challenges students to work independently or in interdisciplinary teams to research and solve a problem related to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. For the first time, the competition will have an international scope. Students will have the exciting opportunity to form teams with students from other participating universities around the world, and, for the time commitment of a 1-credit hour course, your team could win up to $2,000. The competition application will open this summer; visit the competition website often and subscribe to the SSC mailing list to stay updated! 

    How to Get Involved

    • Have a project idea that will improve campus sustainability and/or student engagement? Submit an application for funding! Even if you just have an idea but aren’t sure how to make it into a project yet, our working group chairs can help you develop your idea. Student-led projects under $10K are accepted on a rolling basis, while all other projects are accepted on a semesterly schedule. 
    • Interested in reviewing project applications and voting on how to allocate grant funding? Apply to be a board member – the deadline is Wednesday, May 11! The time commitment to be a board member is approximately three hours a week.
    • Want to join the SSC community in a lower commitment level role? Become a general member! You can attend social events and biweekly working group meetings (where we meet with applicants and discuss proposed projects), all of which can be found on our calendar. General members are welcome to attend any number of meetings – just one or all! 
    • Subscribe to our mailing list or follow us on Instagram @ssc_uiuc to stay up-to-date on everything that’s going on with the SSC!
    • Join our Discord server, accessible from U of I’s student hub to participate in the sustainability community!

    Have a great weekend and remember to take some time to relax between finals!

    Julia Marsaglia
    Communications Coordinator, Student Sustainability Committee

  16. explanation of 2010 iCAP and commitments

    Associated Project(s): 
    Illinois: A Climate Action Plan (2010 iCAP) [ARCHIVED]

    On February 22, 2008, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign signed the American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). This action committed the campus to carbon neutrality by the year 2050 (see the University's official commitment pledge here). This Illinois Climate Action Plan (iCAP) describes a path toward the fulfillment of this commitment.

    As concern grows about climate change and the effects on health, social, economic, and ecological well-being of our world, the University of Illinois is in a prime position to be at the forefront of battling the negative impacts associated with climate change. The University of Illinois hosts high-caliber researchers and experts in diverse fields across campus and seeks to become a leader in sustainability efforts locally, nationally, and globally.

    Goals

    The ultimate goal of the ACUPCC Climate Commitment is for campuses to be "climate neutral" with no unmitigated greenhouse gas emissions.  The Illinois Climate Action Plan (iCAP) was first submitted in May 2010, and it set aggressive goals for reaching carbon neutrality. 

    As the flagship public university in the state of Illinois, the campus has a moral and ethical responsibility to lead, to set aggressive goals, to work to meet them, and to serve as a model for the community, state, and nation.  The iCAP represents a roadmap to a new, prosperous, and sustainable future for the University. It outlines strategies, initiatives, and targets toward meeting the stated goal of carbon neutrality by 2050.

    Please click here to download a PDF of the 2010 Climate Action Plan. (https://icap.sustainability.illinois.edu/files/project/36/iCAP_FINAL.pdf)

  17. older explanation of the RLF

    Associated Project(s): 
    Revolving Loan Fund (RLF)

    The Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) was set up as a funding source for utility conservation projects with less than ten-year payback periods.  These can include steam, electricity, chilled water, or water reduction projects, and the savings from utility costs are paid back annually to replenish the fund. 

    This fund was originally called for in the 2010 iCAP, as the “clean energy fund.”  It was established in 2012, with funding from the SSC and the Provost.  Within the first year, the President’s Office committed additional funds.  According to the RLF Agreement, any grant funds received for RLF projects in campus-funded utility buildings will be allocated entirely to the RLF.  Thus, the fund can grow over time.  Additionally, the campus agreed to match any additional commitments from the SSC, in the future.

  20. CLMP Public Forum recording + Online survey

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Landscape Master Plan (CLMP)

    CLMP Public Forum meeting recording has been embedded on the F&S website and the iCAP Portal.

    The Public Forum for CLMP was held on Wednesday, April 27, 2022. View the presentation from the CLMP Public Forum session: Campus Landscape Master Plan Public Forum presentation

    If you were unable to attend the CLMP Public Forum or did not take part in the live polling at the meeting, please take the online survey: go.fs.illinois.edu/CLMPPublicForumOnlineSurvey. This survey is available until Friday, May 13, 2022. Your feedback is important and will be be applied to strategies to guide the campus landscape into the future. Please reference the presentation recording and/or presentation slides from the Public Forum as you proceed through the survey.

    Watch the video on the iCAP Portal here: Campus Landscape Master Plan (CLMP) Public Forum meeting recording

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