I'm from the Student Sustainability Committee. This year, we are interested in funding a project that will utilize students to help to achieve the University goal of weatherizing campus buildings.  Suhail Barot pointed me to you as good people to talk with to start a conversation about what F & S would be looking for in regards to such a program and getting ideas going to submit in response to the Committee's RFP.I'm from the Student Sustainability Committee. This year, we are interested in funding a project that will utilize students to help to achieve the University goal of weatherizing campus buildings.  Suhail Barot pointed me to you as good people to talk with to start a conversation about what F & S would be looking for in regards to such a program and getting ideas going to submit in response to the Committee's RFP.

Jennifer Koys
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Business Process Management, 2011
Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE), Director
Student Sustainability Committee, Treasurer
 

SSC minutes from 10/8/10 include this update:

1. Compost-Kevin
   
   1. Met with Ryan Welch
   2. Completely on board
   3. Right now all they have is woodchips and leaves
      
      1. Used for mulch, and tons of excess
   4. Met with Joe Kunkel from vet med
      
      1. Director of facilities
      2. On board with anything
      3. Animal science is the hold up, but right now it is composting

2010 Sustainability Week

The highly attended Sustainability Week 2010 shed green light upon campus last week! The former president of Greenpeace USA, John Passacantando, and author Jeff Biggers inspired and informed students, faculty, and the community. Tours and workshops showcased some of the University’s most green spaces and initiatives, while local sustainable food events tickled our taste buds.

Green light Let's GO

From October 25 – 29, 2010, the inaugural Sustainability Week shed green light upon campus movements and activities.  Students, faculty and the community attended. Chancellor Robert A. Easter showed his support for the week with his opening speech on Monday before introducing Jeff Biggers, author of "Reckoning at Eagle Creek, the Secret Legacy of Coal in the Heartland" kicked off the week on Monday with impassioned testimony revealing the tale of the destructive uprooting of natural habitats and families in Illinois throughout history by the coal industry. His theatrical performance had the audience pinned to their seats, appealing to various emotions. After, farmers from various counties, a representative of the Champaign County Board and the Prairie Rivers Network publically brainstormed ways to combat the potential depletion of the Mahomet aquifer, our main source of drinking water, by an incoming coal company from Carlisle, Indiana.

Thursday, John Passacantando, the former president of GreenPeace USA, met and interacted with students at a Q&A Workshop at the YMCA. Students voiced their confusions and concerns regarding environmental issues and "greenwashing"; Passacantando clarified the political hurdles and shortcomings of our system, shared his expertise and experience, and provided authentic and honest answers. Later, he presented an inspiring keynote address providing attendees with purposeful facts and lively anecdotes regarding his time as an environmental activist and leader of the largest environmental organization in the world. View videos from Keynote: Part 1 and Part 2

In Good Green Graces

The week also showcased some of the University's most progressive green spaces; the Business Instructional Facility, the Student Sustainable Farm, Ikenberry Commons, the Art Annex, the Waste Transfer Station, theCampus Bike Plan, just to name a few.

The Common Ground Food Co-Op hosted a cooking class offering not only savory recipes, but also ones that cater to sustainability and budget constraints. The Sustainability Fair, held at the Union, boasted a mosaic of booths and tables explaining the latest news and accomplishments of organizations on campus and in the community. The Electric Vehicles Club showed off the newest cutting-edge models available, complete with friendly members providing information on safety, speed, and practicality. 

The Finale Celebration, held on Friday at the Art East Annex 2, showcased the new dance floor, designed and built by architecture and dance students from the former IMPE Gym 4 floor before the ARC renovation. Chef Benjamin prepared a delectable variety of seasonal fall dishes using local foods. Guests enjoyed hors d'œuvres such as Curtis Apple Orchard and goat cheese crostinis, filet de boeuf with caramelized onions and bleu cheese, a bruschetta bar with fresh spreads, a pumpkin cheese ball with apple slices, chocolate truffles and hot apple cider as they awaited the raffle drawing. Prizes were distributed to 39 lucky winners, the grand prize being a freshly finished bike from the Campus Bike Project.

Gear into Green

As the year continues, we all may find ourselves in a few traffic jams—juggling school, jobs, internships, activities and our general lives! Sustainability Week encouraged the community not to turn a blind eye to the environment in which we thrive. Keep in mind the processes behind being able to fuel up your car, take a shower, heat your room, and drink clean water. Keep track of the actions institutions like the University of Illinois take to preserve our environment. And most importantly, do your part. Get informed. Get involved. The light is green!

Lauren Turk
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
MA European Union Studies 2012
BA French Commercial Studies, Communication 2010
University of Illinois Office of Sustainability, Graduate Assistant
Student Sustainability Committee Intern, Solar Energy
Sustainability Week 2010 Communication Coordinator 
__________________________________________________________________________________________

Photos from Sustainability Week 2010
 

Videos from Sustainability Week 2010:
- Chancellor Robert A. Easter - Sustainability Week Kickoff
- John Passacantando - Part 1
- John Passacantando - Part 2
- Jeff Biggers
- Ikenberry Dining Hall Sustainable Practices

For the complete list of events, please click here.

Student Sustainability Committee (SSC) includes composting on list for proposed funding.  Kevin Wolz assigned as SSC Intern “working at feasibility of composting.”

In September 2010, the University of Illinois received acceptance from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

Cty of Urbana declares that the wind turbine location does not follow the Urbana Wind Ordinance by situating the turbines too close residential neighborhoods.

In last week of August 2010, The Daily Illini published an article focusing on the return from sustainability investment -- "Sustainability investment guarantees returns" -- https://web.archive.org/web/20101206070431/http://www.dailyillini.com/op...

In August 2010, Student Sustainability Committee (SSC) committed $500,000 to fund the wind turbine project.

CCNet has created Google Groups for following discussion topics:

1. CCNet renewable energy
2. CCNet Social Justice
3. CCNet Local Foods
4. CCNet Energy Efficiency
5. CCNet Water
6. CCNet Transportation

In July 2010, Morgan Johnston provided a status update on the wind turbine project.

Morgan created a simple FileMaker Pro database for tracking progress towards the 2010 iCAP commitments. The attached file is a pdf of the info in the original system. This was a precursor to the iCAP Portal.

Morgan worked with Jack Dempsey, the Executive Director of F&S, to identify people who would be responsible for each 2010 iCAP commitment. See attached file.

Tim Hoss: Our First Green Hero

The year was 1987. In just a few hours on the Quad, members of Students for Environmental Concerns (SECS) got over 2,000 signatures on a petition to encourage campus leaders to start a recycling program at the University of Illinois. Campus leaders agreed it was a good idea, and an advisory task force of students, faculty and staff was given the charge to study what it would take to set up a campus-wide recycling program. After reviewing the task force's 170-page report, campus leaders approved approximately $650,000 to start a recycling program, which was to be set up over a 5-year period. Grants from various state agencies contributed the other resources needed to cover the final $1 million price tag.

Tim Hoss, with a lot of help from students, was able to get a recycling program that serviced over 200 buildings on campus operational in about two years. And since 1989, Tim Hoss, Coordinator of Campus Waste Management, operated a comprehensive recycling program at the University. In 1995, $1.3 million was spent on a material processing addition to the Waste Transfer Station (WTS). When it opened in November 1997, the University's Material Recovery Facility was one of the first state-of-the-art recycling-sorting facilities on a university campus in the nation.

Fast forward to 2010. Everyday two trucks from the WTS collect waste paper, and another truck collects cardboard twice daily from around campus. Recovering recyclable material from the University's waste stream is no small job. The WTS collects waste from thousands of recycling bins and 250 dumpsters. Except for the waste from University Housing (which runs its own program), all waste on campus comes to the WTS. Once back at the recovery facility, all of the material gets sorted: equipment, construction waste, and non-recyclable materials are removed. Recyclable materials such as cardboard, paper, aluminum, and plastics are all sorted out and placed into storage bunkers. Tim is quick to point out that it takes a team of people to get the job done including: 5 drivers, 2 operating engineers, 4 laborers, and 6 workers from the Developmental Services Center in Champaign who help with the sorting.

Once sorted, the materials are compressed into large bales and sold. The WTS generated about $500,000 in revenue during fiscal year 2008, and saved the University over $200,000 in landfill costs. In 2008, the WTS recycled: 838 tons of cardboard, 1,236 tons of paper, 21 tons of plastic, 41 tons of aluminum, 625 tons of scrap metal, and 325 tons of pallets. Through these efforts, the University diverted 48.8% of our waste stream from landfills.

Tim retired from the University in January 2010. But he still has great ideas for how the University can continue to lessen its impact on the environment. When asked what he'd like to see happen in future recycling efforts on campus he had two ideas:
1) Start a comprehensive organic waste management program, and
2) Restructure the way that surplus equipment is disposed.

Tim Hoss made a tremendous positive impact while he was here at the University, and so we are happy to recognize him as our first Green Hero. Tim certainly did his part to make our campus a Greener place. And you can too. Consume less. Recycle more.