The following email was sent to the iCAP Teams:

Hello iCAP Teams,

Thank you again for serving on these important campus sustainability committees, and for your commitment to helping the university achieve the objectives in the Illinois Climate Action Plan.  As promised in the charge letters you received, we are attaching the Key Priorities Document here.  The attached document includes a section for each iCAP Team, with two parts in each section: Priority areas and in progress iCAP Portal projects.

1. Priority Areas

In order to help our campus move from STARS Gold to STARS Platinum, we have identified priority areas where our university can potentially improve. iSEE’s summer intern Tyler evaluated the latest UIUC STARS report and identified example case studies from STARS Platinum schools.  Tyler’s report is online at “Report on Improving UIUC STARS Score.” The priority areas also include topics for potential recommendations that have been brought up in previous discussions with the campus sustainability teams.  One example of this is the current efforts to reduce plastic waste on campus.

Many prior iCAP team members have expressed a desire for guidance on appropriate topics for recommendations, so we are providing this guidance to assist your team with focus areas for development of recommendations.  We encourage you to investigate these ideas with gusto; reach out to people at other schools to learn more about the ideas and contact people on our campus who would have a stake in the project (“stakeholders”) to understand how it could fit into our campus. You should also review the recommendation template to see the information that needs to be completed when you submit a recommendation to the iCAP Working Group. 

1. In progress iCAP Portal projects

The iCAP Portal has over 900 projects and contains information about our campus sustainability efforts, going back as far as 2003. The information is primarily entered by members of the iCAP Teams, the Student Sustainability Committee (SSC), and a few volunteers.  We are requesting your assistance to get updates on some of the projects that are listed as “In Progress.”  For each of the projects listed in the attached file, please answer the following questions:

• Who is the current contact person? The project records on the iCAP Portal may provide past contacts, and your team members may have relevant information.
• Is the project completed? If not, what is the current status of the effort?
• What changes are needed on the iCAP Portal project page content? Pictures would be particularly nice to be able to share on the Portal.

We are very excited about this coming year, and we want to support you in any way necessary.  Please reach out to any of us at any time.

Thank you,

Morgan, Jen, and Meredith

iSEE Director, Madhu Khanna, sent out the seven iCAP Team charge letters for the 2022-2023 academic year (attached). 

"Thank you once again for your service in helping to make the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign a more sustainable campus. Attached is your charge letter for the 2022-2023 academic year with an outline of your campus sustainability duties as part of the iCAP Team. We look forward to your positive and impactful contributions."

The Energy iCAP Team met on April 27th at 9:00 A.M. for an update on an ongoing student-run study of CO2 district heating and cooling feasibility as well as to discuss two recommendations pertaining to ensuring compliance of new campus buildings with existing state energy codes and F&S energy use standards. One draft recommendation that would use students in architecture or energy related disciplines as a means of ensuring compliance was tabled, while a second recommendation requiring new buildings to more carefully comply with existing standards will undergo further conversation for potential submission as a recommendation over the summer or in the early fall.

The iWG met on 3-29-22 and discussed the following agenda. The meeting minutes are attached. 

1. Review from last meeting
   1. Energy008 – will be returned pending completion of planning doc
   2. Energy009 – update from Qu?
2. New recommendations
   1. ZW005 Water Bottle Survey
   2. ZW006 Water Filter System Tracking
3. Overview of Sub-Council Agenda
4. Round the table - updates

The Energy iCAP team met on Wednesday, 2./24/2022 at 9:00 A.M. on Zoom to discuss the following topics:

• CO2 District Heating and Cooling Research Update
• Requisitioning data on current energy and square footage
• Upcoming energy webinars.

More details in the attached file.

The Energy iCAP Team made the following recommendation on 2/8/21. The Energy008 Charging Responsibility for Meeting iCAP Energy Goals is attached, and a summary of the recommendation is as follows. 

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We recommend the following actions:

• The Office of the Provost provide a clear charge to F&S to meet and/or accelerate energy requirements of the iCAP goal.
• F&S accept this charge and begin internal planning to meet this goal.
  • This will include ensuring the capability to provide the necessary work on utilities and buildings.
  • It will also include making a budget request for necessary funding.

The Energy iCAP team combined its November and December meetings for the fall of 2021 into a single "Winter Meeting" This meeting was used to discuss 12 different recommendation ideas, a select amount of which will be developed into recommendations in the near future. 

Additionally, the team discussed a short note to the iCAP Working Group asking that the Comprehensive Energy Plan not have its name changed to '"lean Energy Plan"

Notes from the meeting are attached.

The Sustainability Council is in support of the formation of a Green Labs Committee, as discussed at the meeting on November 29, 2021. Jan Novakofski, Associate Vice Chancellor for Research, also expressed support. A training component and Certified Greener Campus Program opportunities will be two items to include in committee discussions. For future updates, see the Green Labs Committee project page. 

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See transmittal and iWG assessment of Energy006 Integrate iCAP Goals into Research/Learning Labs here. 
See submittal of Energy006 Integrate iCAP Goals into Research/Learning Labs here.

The Sustainability Council is in support of the development of a Clean Energy Plan, as discussed at the meeting on November 29, 2021. Madhu Khanna and Ehab Kamarah agreed to work together on behalf of iSEE and F&S to move this forward and go through the RFP process.

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See transmittal and iWG assessment of Energy007 Implementation of Comprehensive Energy Plan here.
See submittal of Energy007 Implementation of Comprehensive Energy Plan here.

For future updates, see the Energy Planning Document project page.