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Project Updates

  1. Update: Green Cleaning Engagement on Campus

    Associated Project(s): 
    Green Cleaning Products and Practices

    As of October 16, 2021, F&S Building Services does not have a Green Cleaning Certificate. However, this is not preventing F&S from trying to implement sustainable practices. 

    Right now, F&S Building Services is performing green cleaning practices in the Campus Instructional Facility (CIF) and the new addition to the iHotel Conference Center. This is being done by aligning practices with green cleaning standards to the best ability possible.

    Moving forward, the university is transitioning towards having Housing implement its own green cleaning process. However, efforts are currently delayed due to COVID-19 and ongoing staffing concerns.

  3. Weekly Resilience Meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Build Resilience with Our Local Community
    Vision Zero
    Green Jobs
    Rainwater Management

    Resilience Meeting Notes 10/15/2021 for meeting between Stacy Gloss, Meredith Moore, and Morgan White

    1. We discussed ideas for the Design for America RSO project on Environmental Justice.  Stacy will set up a meeting with D for A RSO students to discuss potential project topics and request a 1/2 page - 1 page project idea back to us for approval/revisions. The project might cover an environmental justice topic and be worked on from now through May. We will request that the complete project be designed to be presented in the late Spring, and the results go beyond educational/informational and lead to an initiative of some kind.
    2. Stacy provided a progress update on Resilience iCAP objectives.
      1. Green Certifications Inventory. Stacy will present this for comment at the next resilience ICAP meeting
      2. NGICP exploration
        1. Stacy will submit SSC proposal to support a pilot program for F&S staff to receive NGICP training at Parkland. The project will evaluate the benefits and decide whether to adopt having more or all campus grounds workers take the training later.
        2. Stacy will request Heidi and Eliana present at a (future proposed) joint meeting of the land/water use and resilience committee about the NGICP program and benefits
      3. Coordinated rainwater planning
        1. Morgan said that she recently had a conversation with a director at Sanitary District who asked for campus to become more involved with watershed management through a watershed working group, which is different than MS4 compliance.  
        2. Morgan also requested that Stacy involve Eliana Brown more in coordinated rainwater planning for future meetings
        3. Stacy will attend the stormwater management organization’s conference on Oct. 20.
      4. Sustainability leadership topics – plan for Stacy to present these at next resilience ICAP meeting
      5. Vision Zero Discussion
        1. Stacy will submit a white paper on next steps for Vision Zero on Campus late next week.
        2. Stacy and Sarthak will meet with a professor who supports / advocates for Vision Zero next week. 
        3. We discussed who would need to be involved for approval and planning of a Traffic Garden, Stacy will report back to Sarthak on this subject.

  5. Red Oak Rain Garden Monthly Newsletter: October 2021

    Associated Project(s): 
    Red Oak Rain Garden

    Each month, the Red Oak Rain Garden (RORG) Team produces an e-newsletter to keep supporters updated on everything that is happening in the garden. In the October 2021 e-newsletter, the team highlighted RORG's seasonal plants to keep an eye out for, social media highlights, volunteer opportunities, and more!

    To read their October 2021 newsletter, please see the attached file below.

    Attached Files: 

  6. Solar Sites Open House

    Associated Project(s): 
    Solar Power on Campus
    Build a Culture of Sustainability

    UIUC SOLAR SITES OPEN HOUSE - October 15, 1:00-2:30 pm

    Ever wonder how far the university has come in solar energy use? Come out to the UIUC Solar Sites Open House hosted on Topia, an interactive online platform, to learn about different buildings and areas across campus that are producing solar energy! During the Open House, Morgan White will provide a guided tour to virtually visit ten locations on campus. Learn more about the amazing solar installations on campus!

    This event will take place online from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. on Friday, October 15, 2021, at https://topia.io/uiuc-solar-sites.*

    *Chrome browser on desktop or laptop required.

  7. Walkability Audit: Week 8 meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Walkability Study

    On Tuesday, October 12, 2021, Sarthak briefly presented the Walkability study in the general monthly SPO meeting of Dept. of Urban and Regional Planning (DURP). The presentation aimed at getting as many students to volunteer for the project as possible. Project description, timeline and expectations from the volunteers were made clear during the meeting. The 'Call for volunteers' prompt has been sent out to various departments in their newsletters, group chats, course announcements etc. So far 32 students have registered to be volunteers.

    Call for volunteers- sign-up sheet link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/14bxthUQCLzZp8Yc0eBJPrnrHpfuQYOyKMzzfIvC...

    On Thursday, October 14, 2021, Sutapa and Sarthak met to work on the Training Manual for the Walkability Audit. This manual is designed as a guide to help volunteers correctly perform the walkability audit. Training sessions for volunteers will be held at the end of the month of October after finalising the draft.

     

     

  8. FY22 Sustainability Sub-Council Charge Letter

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainability Council

    Interim Director for iSEE, Madhu Khanna, released the formal charge letter for the FY22 Sustainability Sub-Council. In this document, Khanna outlines the members' official campus sustainability duties for the academic year. 

    See the attached file to read the formal FY22 Sustainability Sub-Council Charge Letter!

    Attached Files: 

  9. vision zero check-in meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Build Resilience with Our Local Community
    Vision Zero

    iCAP 8.6 Vision Zero Meeting

    10/13/2021

    Stacy Gloss and Sarthak Prasad met to discuss the Vision Zero objective. Sarthak will email Vision Zero for a meeting to ask questions about a campus designation. Sarthak will also follow up with the Housing Director about a request to develop a Safety Village / Traffic Garden project in partnership with Cynthia Hoyle at MTD for children to learn about bike and pedestrian safety.  The project site is proposed for the abandoned streets on the corner of Florida and Race, adjacent to Orchard Downs campus property.

     

  11. Engagement iCAP Team Meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainability Engagement and Outreach
    Engagement iCAP Team
    Engagement iCAP Team Recommendations Summary

    The Engagement iCAP Team met on Tuesday, October 12 for an ideation session for recommendations for the upcoming semester. New members Kathy Adams, Sonali Kumar and Kavya Mula were introduced to the team along with Shibu Kar, the team's new co-chair! Meeting minutes are attached with a link to the recommendation ideation powerpoint.

    Attached Files: 

  12. iWG Meeting Minutes 9-22-21

    Associated Project(s): 
    iCAP Working Group (iWG)
    Campus Sustainability Month
    iCAP 2020: Illinois Climate Action Plan
    Sustainability Council
    Zero Waste Recommendations Summary
    Land and Water Recommendations Summary

    Attached are the meeting minutes from 9-22-21. The agenda focused on iWG iCAP 2020 priorities, Council/Sub-council updates, ZW004 and LW002 next steps, an overview of campus sustainability month, and updates from the student groups. 

    Attached Files: 

  13. Archive Description

    Associated Project(s): 
    Walkability Study

    Old description:

    The Wellness Center on campus is working to promote a Culture of Wellness for our University students, faculty, and staff.  This office has been collecting information on the Walkability of campus pathways.  By working with volunteers to perform walking audits, the Wellness Center is collecting detailed comments and notes about walking around campus.  This information will be shared with Facilities and Services and incorporated into project prioritization for sidewalk improvements.

    http://wellness.illinois.edu/iWalk/walkFeatured.html

     

    This description has been moved to the Background

  14. Weekly Update: Green Quad Day; Abandoned bicycles

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)

    All, Slower week, which was welcome. Sold a couple bikes and were able to get a handle on the influx of drop off repairs. The Green Quad Day event that was supposed to happen on Thursday was rescheduled to Tuesday, so we’ll staff for that event and hobnob with the larger sustainability community.

    I’ll make a run out to the abandoned bike emporium this week, too, and see if there’s anything worth our time. Was planning that for last week but it didn’t happen.

    We’ve got a couple bikes in the shop build queue, but I’ll grab a few from Urbana unless we get more donations this week.

    The numbers:


    Visitors: 35
    Sales: $850.50
    Bike (refurb): 3 for $490
    Memberships: 5 for $150
    Tires/tubes: 5 for $20

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  16. September 17, 2021 Illini Lights Out Results

    Associated Project(s): 
    Illini Lights Out

    Illini Lights Out was relaunched for Fall 2021 and the first event was September 17, 2021. This event had a great turnout and was very successful! Eighty-six student volunteers shut off 2,636 light bubs and saved 4547.1 kWh of energy, 3.144 metric tons of CO2, and $382. Thank you volunteers for the impact you have made!

    The next Illini Lights Out event will be Friday, October 22 at 5:30 pm. Students, sign up at the link below and meet at the Foreign Language Building Lobby!

    https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSehaxolPWKdnvOVe2T61XcjXHrL16oC...

  17. F&S Insider features Campus Tree inventory & State Champion Carolina Silverbell

    Associated Project(s): 
    Tree Campus Higher Education

    The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, according to the U of I Master Plan, measures more than a whopping 8,000 acres of land in the Master Plan Area. On that land grows too many trees to count… or so you thought.

    F&S helps count and maintain all 16,534 trees on U of I grounds. All are viewable through the U of I’s “TreeKeeper” database: https://illinoisedu.treekeepersoftware.com/index.cfm?deviceWidth=1280.

    That includes more than one “State Champion” tree – meaning it is the largest of its species in Illinois.

    “These trees, and all of them on campus, are valuable and a privilege to take care of,” said Brent Lewis, F&S landscape architect. “Having champions on campus shows the ability of our grounds professionals to carefully tend to their needs over many decades of time, ultimately allowing them to grow into the great specimens that we often take for granted.”

    The Carolina Silverbell in the backyard of the President’s House is the latest state champion tree on campus, joining the yellowwood found in the green space north of Lincoln Avenue Residence Hall, which attained champion status on Arbor Day 2019.

    In April, UIUC experts and students visited and measured the tree, confirming its status as the largest tree of its kind in the state.

    “The two multi-stemmed specimens behind the President’s House are the two largest specimens of this species I’ve personally seen. Granted, I don’t come across this species very often,” said Jay Hayek, extension forestry specialist with the department of natural sciences and environmental sciences. “Carolina Silverbell is considered a state-listed endangered species here in Illinois. Its natural range is limited to just two southern Illinois counties: Massac and Pulaski. It’s not that Carolina silverbell is necessarily so ‘rare,’ it’s just that this species is simply at the extreme edge of its natural range by extending ever so slightly into the southern tip of Illinois. Even in its more natural habitat, this species is relatively uncommon.”

    Since 2015, Illinois has been recognized as a Tree Campus USA, meaning the colleges and universities that most effectively manage their campus trees in an academic atmosphere. The F&S executive director charges the Campus Tree Advisory Committee, a multi-disciplinary and multi-agency outreach effort to plan forestry efforts. The Illinois Tree Campus plan is available at http://go.fs.illinois.edu/treecampus. All aid in the effort to promote healthy trees on campus and engagement with students, faculty, staff, and community members in the spirit of conservation.

    Three key measurements are taken: the trunk’s circumference 4.5 feet above the ground, total height, and the average “crown spread,” which is how far the branches grow out. The tree’s “total score” is equivalent to the circumference (in inches) + height (in feet) + the average crown spread (in feet) multiplied by 0.25.

    The new champion tree measurements:

    Circumference = 5.57 feet or 66.8 inches • Total Height = 60 feet • Crown Spread: 54.8 feet

    Total Score = 140.5 points

     

     

    Via F&S Insider,

    website: https://fs.web.illinois.edu/Insider/2021/07/06/what-it-takes-to-be-a-cha...

  19. ECEB Energy Kiosks

    Associated Project(s): 
    ECE Net-Zero Energy Building
    Campus Sustainability Month

    In the atrium of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Building (ECEB), there are two kiosks where people can sign various pledges related to decreasing energy use. Two solar-powered phone chargers will be raffled off to those who have signed the pledge during Campus Sustainability Month, October 2021.

    Nearly 20% of energy is unnecessarily wasted each day; very simple steps exist to reduce that number, such as turning off the lights when you leave a room or unplugging devices and cords when we aren’t using them. Other examples include replacing inefficient appliances (like lightbulbs!), which can also save money! Signing the pledge to be more conscious of your energy is a great step toward leading a more sustainable life. Here are a few other ways to learn more and get involved with sustainability on campus:

    If you have any questions about energy consumption or sustainability in general, feel free to reach out to campus sustainability staff at sustainability@illinois.edu. 

  20. Walkability Audit: Week 7 meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    Walkability Study

    On Friday, October 09, 2021, Sutapa and Sarthak met to work on the Training Manual for the Walkability Audit. 

    The training manual is designed for the volunteers which will include background information about the project, directions for executing the audit in an efficient way and details about each question with graphics for clarity.

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