UCCS - University Relations

Linda Kogan

What is UCCS' top sustainability priority?
This is difficult to answer as the prioritized importance of environmental, social and economic aspects of sustainability will vary depending on one’s position within the university. Ultimately, I believe the most crucial aspect of sustainability for the university is a commitment from the top leadership toward exploring and moving the campus and its community toward a sustainability ethic. We have seen some success in this area as evidenced by Chancellor Shockley-Zabalak’s creation of a Sustainability Taskforce to identify the most important goals for sustainability for the school. In 2005, this task force produced a final report that identified three main areas to target: Curriculum, Leadership, and Operations. Now our task is to put the recommendations from this report into action. I can forward this report to those interested.

What do you see as easy fixes for campus?
The low-hanging fruit initiatives for the campus are mainly operational changes. Part of my responsibilities includes the management of a $1.3 million Energy Performance Bond to identify and address conservation opportunities on campus. Lighting accounts for more than 25 percent of a building’s energy use and has the shortest pay back on investment. We are currently engaged in lighting retrofits in 5 buildings, changing from T-12 fluorescent lamps and magnetic ballasts to newer technology T-8 lamps with electronic ballasts for an expected 40 percent energy savings. We are also researching a second-tier lighting project in which areas of campus that benefit from day lighting are equipped with photocell sensors to reduce operating hours. We plan to upgrade and install new DDC (Delta Digital Control) controls in order to improve monitoring of heating and cooling of the campus. We may also pursue an automated irrigation system to significantly cut down on our water use. It is exciting to have funds dedicated to energy conservation projects. The challenge will be to prioritize our projects with a limited budget and to establish a funding mechanism for continuing conservation projects once this initial bond is depleted.

What are your short-range goals? Long-range goals?
Goals for this next year include developing a strategic plan for the Office of Sustainability to include: integration of sustainability goals with administration and leadership, development of guidelines for management of the Energy Performance Bond, creation of a sustainability Web site, support of the new sustainability minor, participation in national university sustainability conferences, collaboration with the Pikes Peak community on sustainability issues, facilitating the process of high performance integrated design for our two new buildings and the Dwire and Heller renovations and finally, the formation of task forces or committees on resource issues such as energy management, waste and recycling, and landscape. I will also help to integrate sustainability in the soon-to-be-updated Facilities Strategic Plan.

Long-range goals include increasing sustainability education on campus to have all graduates become ecologically literate, and achieving a greater integration of sustainability as a guiding principle in leadership, curriculum, and operations.

Are there any models or exemplary institutions when it comes to sustainability? If so, what makes them so?
While no institutions have achieved “true sustainability” to date, there are a growing number of universities that are leading the way. Some of these include; Harvard, Middlebury College, Penn State, Yale, Ball State University, CU-Boulder. There are many others. Exemplary institutions are characterized by a strong commitment from leadership, a specific vision and set of measurable goals, dedicated funding toward sustainability initiatives, and finally, an active student body and faculty that advocates for increased sustainability,

What are some of the biggest misconceptions about sustainability?
The difficulty with the term sustainability is that most people don’t know what it means. Many people think it is just about sustaining ourselves economically and don’t look at the environmental and social aspects that are crucial to sustainability. Additionally, there have been hundreds of different definitions for sustainability that vary in specificity. This makes it difficult to achieve a widespread, commonly accepted concept of sustainability. My personal favorite definition is “improving the quality and equity of human life while living within the carrying capacity of supporting ecosystems.” Finally, many people believe that sustainability pits the environment against business, when in fact business must play a critical role in creating sustainability.

What have you done so far? What would you consider your biggest success?
I consider my greatest accomplishment thus far, and really more importantly an accomplishment for the university, is the establishing of the Office of Sustainability. The commitment of the chancellor, vice chancellors, Facilities Services, as well as the efforts of the UCCS Sustainability Committee and Students for Environmental Awareness (SEAS), has culminated in a very exciting opportunity for the university. The establishment of this office provides support for sustainability efforts in operations, leadership and curriculum.

In my first few months, I have focused mainly on the operational aspect of sustainability, forming several committees including the Facilities Resource Conservation Group to identify conservation opportunities in operations and maintenance, the UCCS Landscape Committee to institute more sustainable landscapes and potentially a demonstration xeriscape garden that will serve as an outdoor horticultural classroom, and finally a Recycling/Waste Committee to develop a much-needed comprehensive recycling plan for the campus. I am managing a $1.3 million Energy Performance Bond that the university secured to identify and target resource conservation initiatives on campus.

We have already completed a lighting retrofit for the Science Building and will soon complete four more buildings. The savings generated from these projects will be used to pay back the bond. I am very excited about the University’s commitment to sustainable building and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for the new Recreation Center and Science Engineering Building.

There is a paradigm shift within Facilities Services that is emphasizing more transparent operational processes, buildings as living laboratories, and resource conservation. My work also includes networking with sustainability professionals outside the university including Fort Carson, CU-Boulder, Pikes Peak Sustainable Business Network, and sustainability directors from other campuses, to share best practices and identify areas in which to collaborate.

What's your vision of sustainability at UCCS?
My ultimate vision is for UCCS to become a recognized leader among universities in sustainability, a model of a triple bottom line approach emphasizing economic, environmental and social criteria to inform all university decisions. This means that we would ensure ecological literacy in all of our graduates, commit to becoming as carbon neutral as possible, build sustainable facilities, and contribute to advanced research in increasing the sustainability of our communities; ultimately reducing our ecological footprint on the planet. As an institute of higher education we have an opportunity and an imperative to communicate the reality of our currently unsustainable world situation as presented by our leading researchers and scientists. Our scientists are like our accountants and they are indicating that we are living beyond our means, beyond what is sustainable. We have a responsibility to contribute to the solutions needed to achieve sustainability.

What are the biggest obstacles to obtaining your vision? Or making changes right now?
My greatest challenge has been to learn the organizational history and current practices with regard to operational procedures including building, energy management, waste management, etc. Many of these activities take place in separate areas of campus and thus, under different supervision. This adds some complexity to information gathering and collaboration. This being a new position for the university and in a fairly nascent field, it is a significant challenge to define realistic expectations and goals for the position. It is a broad role that is ultimately involved in leadership, curriculum, and operations. Sustainability requires a paradigm shift for the entire university, which takes time, commitment and resources.

I am currently an office of one, which limits my ability to address all of the necessary sustainability issues. I look forward to growing this office with a focus on creating rewarding opportunities for students to get involved. The main areas that I need support from faculty and students are website development, research on sustainability initiatives to include engineering solutions, and the creation of a network of “sustainability trainers” to help incorporate these principles into a broad cross section of our curriculum.

What are easy changes people can make on a personal level?
People who would like to make changes should start by looking at their ecological footprints. There is a short quiz that can be accessed on the Internet at http://www.myfootprint.org. The ecological footprint measures the consumption and subsequent waste production of individuals, organizations, or even nations to determine how much biologically productive land and water is required to support our lifestyles. The ecological footprint operates under the recognition of finite biophysical resources available on earth and highlights global inequities in consumption and waste production. Currently, if all people on earth aspired to an American standard of living, we would need at least four more earths to accomplish this. It is an illuminating tool and can help individuals to identify specific ways to reduce their impacts. The largest impacts for the individual are home energy use, transportation (both driving and flying), meat consumption (particularly beef), and waste production that is not recycled. A focus on reducing our consumption in these areas is a great start toward greater sustainability.

Are there any resources on the Internet?
There are thousands of resources on the net. Here are a few of my favorites.
http://www.newdream.org/cnad/user/turn_the_tide.php. --Turn the Tide is an innovative program that Americans are using to make a difference for our environment. This site provides specific recommendations to reduce our environmental impact.
http://www.climatetrust.org/index.php - The sole mission of The Climate Trust is to promote climate change solutions by providing high quality greenhouse gas offset projects and advancing sound offset policy. There are climate offset programs that allow an individual to purchase credits in the form of renewable energy credits to offset their yearly emissions.
http://www.rprogress.org/ - Redefining Progress works with a broad array of partners to shift the economy and public policy towards sustainability.

Additionally, many universities have sustainability program Web sites that offer ideas and best practices that may be implemented here on our campus.

Favorite sustainability books
Natural Capitalism by Paul Hawken, Amory Lovins, and L. Hunter Lovins
Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough