Upload
sean-gleason
View
219
Download
0
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
1/26
1
Team GreenBulls
Melodie Austin-LeadResearcher, Interviewer
Secondary Compiler,
Editor
Sean Gleason-Lead
Presenter, Secondary
Researcher, Compiler
Kesla Rene Lead Editor,
Compiler, Secondary
Researcher
So it is understandable that sustainability is a top priority
at the University of South Florida. This white paper focuses
on the going green and sustainability efforts of the Universi-
ty of South Florida, Tampa.
Although USF has made signif-icant progress in the areas of
recycling, energy efficiency,
campus and building design, is
this enough?
We will begin our paper by
providing various definitions of
sustainability, the basis for
USFs involvement in this go-ing green movement, the uni-
versitys achievements, and their on-going activities. This
will be followed by what USF can do in the future, both here
and globally.
Professional Wring
Dr. Francis Tobienne
University of South Florida
Department of Foreign Lan-
guages, Literature and
Wring
140 Seventh Ave South
What is Sustainability? 3
Campus Sustainability
Programs
4
University Commitment 7
Local and Global Sus-
tainability Programs
13
Interview Question 17
Global Current Events 18
New Ideas to Strength-
en Sustainability
21
Inside this issue:
USFs Involvement in the Going Green Movement
USFGoingGreenMovement:
SustainabilityJune 2011Team GreenBulls
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
2/26
2
Table of Contents3 What is Sustainability?
4 Campus Sustainability
Programs
American College & University
Presidents Climate Commitment
(ACUPCC)
Naonal Wildlife Federal Cam-
pus Ecology Program
Sustainability Tracking, Assess-
ment & Rang System (STARS)
I Have A Dream
USF earns GOLD rating 2011 Report Card
Sustainable Endowments Ins-
tute College Sustainability Re-
port Card
7 University Commitment
The University of South
Floridas implemented stra-
tegic goals
The creation of the Office of
Sustainability
Academics - Master the Global
World
Preparing Scientists to En-
hance Global Sustainability
Transportation
The Curriculum-33 semester
hours
Building Design
Campus Design
Energy
Recycling
13 Local and Global Sustaina-bility
The New Patel School of
Global Sustainability
Sustainability Champions
Program Sustainability Mentors
Program Sustainability Fellows
Program Sustainability Scholars
Program
Mentors (2011)15 Notable Faculty
EPA's Sustainable DesignCompetition Winner - Uni-
versity of South Florida17 INTERVIEW QUESTIONS18 Global Current Events
Engineers Without Borders
USF: UNSTOPPABLE
Problems in Paradise19 USFs Future Plans to
Strengthen Sustainability
FLEX HOUSE OTHER CONTINUING EF-
FORTS21 New Ideas to Strength-
en Sustainability
Home Sustainability As-
sessment Course OCEAN POWER
23 Conclusion
24 Sources25 Annotated Bibliography
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
3/26
3
Sustainability, as defined by
the EPA, is policies and strat-
egies that meet societys pre-
sent needs without compro-
mising the ability of future
generations to meet their own
needs. Wikipedia states that
sustainability is the capacity
to endure. The University of
South Florida declares:Our definition of sus-
tainability reflects what
the UN and the World
Wildlife Fund suggest
as the process of im-
proving the quality of
human life while living
within the carrying ca-
pacity of supporting eco-
systems. We use the def-inition where human,
societal, environmental,
material, and economic activi-
ties are fundamentally inte-
grated dimensions that are
mutually reinforcing." Most
proponents of sustainability
take it to mean the existence
of the ecological conditions
necessary to support human
life at a specified level of well-being through future genera-
tions. (Lele)
We care about sustainability
because we are scholars and
as scholars we are compelled
to better our lives, our world,
and our environment. We and
our earth are facing some of
the most challenging issues in
the history of our civilization
and yet we have no overall co-
ordinated global plan on how
to deal with them. We are
struggling to develop, agree
on a plan, or even one issue
such as climate change.
Are we humans working as
effectively as we should to ad-
dress the global challenges
that the world is facing? We
find that a plan needs to be
developed to achieve a sus-
tainable world. This plan ismerely a starting point, which
provides a basis for others to
use, grow, develop, and adapt
from. If we humans are to
succeed in building a sustain-
able world - not only for our
generation but also for all
generations to come immedi-
ate action is required.
(Chambers)
The challenges that the world
is facing include: unsustaina-
ble population growth, climate
change, energy supplies, wa-
ter and food supplies, planet
sustainability and biodiversi-
ty, extreme poverty,global health, universal
education, conflict and
peace and financing a
sustainable world.
As humans, we are able
to adapt and
acknowledge that
change is urgently re-
quired. Over the lastdecade there has been
an increasing recogni-
tion and understanding of the
global challenges faced at eve-
ry level. There has also been
improved coordinated action
to address them. The World
Economic Forum, the Organi-
zation for Economic Coopera-
tion and Development
(OECD), The World Bank,The Green Economics Insti-
tute and many more are in-
volved in addressing the Glob-
al issues faced, resulting in
exciting new initiatives and
increasingly coordinated glob-
al action. (Chambers)
What is Sustainability?
Photo courtesy of Google
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
4/26
4
As centers of change, innova-
tion and progress, universitiesand colleges are well-poised to
take the lead on sustainabil-
ity. By adopting good envi-
ronmental practices, not only
can campuses reduce their
own environmental impact
but also serve as role models
for larger communities. Incor-
porating sustainability princi-
ples in their policies and prac-
tices also enable institutions
of higher learning to buildstudent capacity for critical
thinking and problem solving.
The recognition of these bene-
fits has led to the creation of
numerous campus sustaina-
bility initiatives in recent
years. Universities and col-
leges are choosing to partici-
pate in state and nationwide
sustainability networks. They
look for those that emphasize
knowledge sharing and collab-oration within and among in-
stitutions. . A few of the nota-
ble campus sustainability pro-
grams in the US are described
below.
its inception in 1990, more
than 3000 specific ecological
conservation projects have
been completed on college
campuses around the U. S. As
part of this initiative, the Na-
tional Wildlife Federation pro-
vide practical training and in-
The Campus Ecology Program
developed and run by Nation-
al Wildfire Federation, is a
conservation program that
aims to promote practical con-
servation projects on campus
and train a new generation of
environmental leaders. Since
centives to college and univer-
sity communities, organize
student competitions, and
supports a publicly shared
knowledge base of effective
conservation practices.
Campus Sustainability Programs
bound commitments that in-
clude a campus-wide emis-
sions inventory, setting up
short-term and long-term
emissions reduction actions
and integrating sustainability
into curriculum. All submitteddocuments, including action
plans inventories and pro-
gress reports are made public-
ly available.
Developers of ACUPCC believe the
commitment will not only de-
crease institutional carbon
footprints, but will also help
them generate strategic in-
vestment opportunities and
cost savings, open up new
funding opportunities and im-
prove their competitive posi-tioning. The commitment was
conceived in 2006, and is sup-
ported by three non-profit Or-
ganizations: AASHE, ecoAm-
erica and Second Nature.
The ACUPCC is a collective
effort undertaken by a net-
work of colleges and universi-
ties to minimize their institu-
tional greenhouse gas emis-
sions and promote sustaina-
bility research and education.The commitment provides
participating institutions a
framework to implement com-
prehensive plans in pursuit of
climate neutrality. Signato-
ries agree to five broad time-
American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC)
Page 4 USF Going Green Movement: Sustainability
National Wildlife FederalCampus Ecology Program
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
5/26
5
STARS, developed by the As-
sociation for the Advancement
of Sustainability in Higher
Education (AASHE), is a self-
reporting framework for col-
leges and universities to
gauge relative progress to-
wards sustainability. The pro-
gram aims to enable meaning-
ful comparisons over time and
across institutions by estab-
lishing a common standard ofmeasurement for sustainabil-
ity in higher education.
Institutions earn points in
three main categories: Educa-
tion & Research; Operations;
and Planning, Administration
and Student Engagement.
There is also an innovation
category to recognize pioneer-
ing practices that are not cov-
ered by other STARS credits
Parcipang colleges and univer-
sities are awarded one of fivelevels of ratings depending on
the extent to which they fulfill
the criteria. Ratings are
based on an absolute scale of
progress toward sustainabil-
ity and are not relative to the
performance of other institu-
tions. AASHE launched the
pilot version of the reporting
system in February 2008.
STARS is available to any col-
lege or university in the U. S.
or Canada.
Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS)
the University pristine
acknowledgement that it is
heading in the right direction.
In 2010 USF joined the rating
program and submitted their
first assessment for which the
university received its very
first gold stars. An accom-
plishment that helps the uni-
versity recognize its strengths
and weaknesses, The STARS
system helps us track our sus-
tainability efforts and allows
us to find our weak spotsE.
Christian Wells
(Madduexpress.com).
The University of South Flori-
da earned a GOLD rating
from the Association for the
Advancement of Sustainabil-
ity in Higher Education.
USFs efforts to build and eco-
friendly campus and to help
advance research in sustaina-
bility has earned them an out-
standing award, which gives
I Have A Dream
USF earnsGOLDrating
Continued from p. 4 Page 5
AASHE is an association of colleges and universities that are
working to create a sustainable future. Our mission is to empow-
er higher education to lead the sustainability transformation.We do this by providing resources, professional development,
and a network of support to enable institutions of higher educa-
tion to model and advance sustainability in everything they do,
from governance and operations to education and research
(AASHE.org).
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
6/26
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
7/26
7
The University of South Florida has made sustainability a priority, and
has implemented strategic goals to address this issue:
University Commitment
1. Expanding world-class interdisciplinary research, creative, and scholarly
endeavors.
2. Promoting globally competitive undergraduate, graduate and professional
programs that support interdisciplinary inquiry, intellectual development,
knowledge and skill acquisition, and student success through a diverse, fully-
engaged, learner-centered campus environment.
3. Expanding local and global engagement initiatives to strengthen and sustain
healthy communities and to improve the quality of life.
4. Enhancing all sources of revenue, and maximizing effectiveness in business
practices and financial management to establish a strong and sustainable
economic base in support of USFs growth.
The creation of the Office of Sustainability by USF is as a supplementto Strategic Plan resulting in:
Strengthening and supporting integrated and synergistic interdisciplinary
research across disciplinary, departmental, college and campus boundaries (Goal
1)
Building a sustainable campus environment at USF (Goal 2)
Constructing an up-to-date clearinghouse of information about all the
sustainability engagement activities currently occurring at USF and encouraging
and rewarding faculty, staff, and student engagement in sustainability initiatives(Goal 3)
Creating a sustainable environment that supports an expanded and improved
teaching and research mission, a more engaged residential community, and a
university-based global village (Goal 4)
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
8/26
8
The University of South Florida created the Office of Sustainability to up-
hold the Universitys strategic goals, contributing to the Universitys green
movement in a number of ways.
Some of the initiatives of Office of Sustainability include Academics, Trans-portation, Water, Energy, Recycling and Green Building
Continued from p. 7
A new School of Global Sustainability was begun in January 2010. It
is made up of faculty from natural and social sciences, engineering
business, the humanities, arts and health. The initial program focuses
on water. The School of Global Sustainability shows USFs
commitment to transforming educations practices.
Academics - Master the Global World
The Master of Arts in Global Sustainability is offered by the
University of South Florida where students learn skills that
they can utilize in the advancement of sustainability both in
the United States and abroad. The program prepare students
with a total of thirty-three credits, most of those credits can
be done online. The program also includes domestic and
internal internship opportunities.
Preparing Sciensts to Enhance Global Sustainability
Photo courtesy of USF website
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
9/26
9
Continued from p. 8
The program begins in Fall and concludes the
following Fall semester.
Core Courses
Interdisciplinary Sustainability Seminar
Public Health Topics in Global Sustainability
Special Topics in Management and
Sustainability
Focus Area Courses:
These courses focus on water and
sustainability issues
Internship (Core) and Sustainability Project (9
semester hours)
There are four core courses for the degree
program.
These courses provide students an overall
understanding of global sustainability
including environmental, historical,
humanities, culture, engineering, health and
other overarching components along with
practical experience (internship).
The Curriculum-33 semester hours
13 Transit Style
9 Bluebird with Cummins
engine
4 Thomas with Cummins
engine
17 Cutaway style
11 Ford, 7.3 Power stroke
6 Chevrolet, 6.5 Dura Max
BiodieselBull Runner
Biodiesel is a form of diesel fuel manufactured from vegetable oils, animal
fats, or recycled restaurant greases. It is safe, biodegradable, and produces less
air pollutants than petroleum-based diesel (fueleconomy.gov)
Transportation
Photo courtesy of USF website
Photo courtesy of Google
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
10/26
10
Current Efforts
USF looks forward to having several buildings be LEED
(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified,
these buildings include Dr. Kiran C. Patel Center for GlobalSolutions, Tampa Campus, Interdisciplinary Science, Tampa
Campus, Science and Technology Building, St. Petersburg
Campus, USF Polytechnic Phase I, Lakeland Campus ,and
Wellness and Nutrition Center, Tampa Campus.
Building Materials-The University has achievedapproval from LEED for all its building projects. Concrete
and locally produced brick and stucco has been used as
structural material on campus, the use of renewablematerials has become a major part of the USFs building
construction.
Material Conservation & Recycling- Stained
concrete floors have been used throughout the
campus. Unpainted materials such as brick, concrete blocks,metal, and concrete have also been used on the campus. The
campus is also incorporating the use of recycled materials in
the construction of new buildings and the renovation of the
old ones.
Green Roofs- Roof replacements are in order throughoutthe campus. Roofs with very high insulation values and high
reflectivity SRI (Solar Reflective Index) of 94 are being
used. Over the last three years a total of fifteen roofs have
been replaced.Rainwater Harvesting & Dual Plumbing Theuse of cisterns to collect rainwater is part of the new Patel
Center for Global Solutions Building. The rainwater
collected by the cisterns is used for toilet and urinal flushing;this reduces the need to withdraw water from the aquifer for
that purpose.
Building Design
Campus DesignOpen Space Network is the implementation of
landscape improvements,to preserve open space and
retention ponds through
the Greenway preserva-tion.
Integrated Land-
scape- Over 2,000 treeshave been planted on cam-pus in the last 15 years.
The trees have been strate-
gically planted alongLeroy Collins Boulevard
and other pedestrian paths
on campus, including Ses-sums Pedestrian Mall from
the College of Engineering
to the new residence Hallat Magnolia.
Conservation The
construction of new build-
ings with many levels have
reduced building foot-
prints. Conversion of sur-
face parking has reduced
the increase of impervious
areas and the heat island
effect.
Photo courtesy of USF website
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
11/26
11
Energy
Monitoring - The University of South Florida
has applied many standards, such as build-
ing insulation for walls, roofs, windows, mo-
tor and equipment efficiencies, mechanical
systems insulation and controls for both
HVAC and lighting. This requires Life cycle
cost analysis and FLACOM (Florida Com-
mercial Building Energy Computational Pro-
gram) Building Construction Document pro-
cess.
Recovery - Energy recovery is being appliedto design when appropriate. The Green
lights Program replaces inefficient light fix-
tures across the campus. High efficiency
chillers have been installed and heat pipes
have received additional insulation. The lost
energy is being recovered through the chilled
water distribution system. The campus is
also installing a heat recovery system in air
handling units with a hundred percent out-
door air.
Renewables-
In 1995 the College of Engineering atUSF established The Solar Energy
Charging Station, which became the first
20,000 watt solar charging station in the
United States.
The retrofitting of gas powered golf carts
to solar power is under evaluation.
In the last ten years the University of
South Floridas Clean Energy Research
Center has received $15 million of fund-
ing for renewable energy projects such as
electric vehicles, photovoltaics, micro-
turbine landfill gas, battery developmentand management, and hydrogen produc-
tion/storage and conversion to fuel cells.
$15 million has be secured by The Power
Center for Utility Explorations at USF
as a prestigious Smart Grid project to
work with local utilities to create, test,
and develop smart grids.
Continued from p. 10
Dining Services- USF Aramark currently receives localproducts from Flowers Baking Company, Dressler Foods, TG
Lee Dairy, R.G.E. Distributing, and Beege Distributing. TheUniversity is also looking into receiving fresh produce from a
company called Fresh Point that supports local growers. All
of the dining halls offer USDA Organic Certified, Vegan &Vegetarian options at every day at all of its locations. Tray
less dining to save water and energy (32,992 gallons of water
saved per academic year), have been implemented in everydining hall. The campus also provides reusable, recyclable
cups for discounted fountain beverage purchases and
reusable, recyclable bags to transport food purchases. Dining
Services throughout the University recycles cardboard and tinmaterials through Frito-Lay and Republic Waste Services. 1,689 kilowatt hours per academic year is being saved
through the use of Low-watt light bulbs and the recycling
of bulbs through Frontier lighting. Grease from the restaurants is taken by Darling
Restaurant Services or Filtafry, which recycles it for
biodiesel to power automobiles. Some restaurants are now using paper napkins made from
100 percent unbleached, recycled content and are
switching to green-ware that uses a renewable corn-based
resin. Patrons are able to recycle materials in three recycling
containers outside of each dining hall. Aramark also
partners with the university to recycle at other retaillocations.
Waste - Since 1990 the Physical Plant has operated anextensive recycling program. The Plant collects garbage
solids and burns it to generate electricity. Scrap metal is
also recycled and some food waste is being composted withby the USF Grounds department. The University of South
Florida also participates regularly Recyclemania, in the
Waste Minimization category.
Recycling - USF completed its first waste audit, which
included volumes and revenue for paper and aluminum
compiled from 1996 through 2007 has been audited by the
University of South Florida for the first time recently. Over
9,700 tons of mixed paper has been recycled by USFS
physical plant, becoming an important step in developing a
plan to increase recycling efforts. There has been an
Recycling
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
12/26
12
expansion of the Physical Plants recycling of plastics and glass in addition to the Sycamore Drive Community
Recycling Center, which includes an additional three hundred and fifty blue recycling containers, dispersed to
academic and administrative Tampa campus buildings. The USF Student Environmental Association is
working on establishing aluminum can recycling in residence halls, by securing a private sector partner Tampa
Bay Recycling to donate the bins. The Housing and Residential Education Recycling Committee has directed a
project in the 1,000 bed residence in the Juniper-Poplar with bins donated from Coca-Cola Recycles.
Continued from p. 11
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
13/26
13
Local and Global Sustainability
Programs
Innovative - global satellite and campus-based
programs
Distinctive - enduring global partnerships
Visionary - emphasizing global citizenship for
sustainability
No-Walls - not a "brick and mortar" school
Faculty tenured in home departments
The reduction of intellectual "silos" created by
disciplines and departments
The integration of engineering, the humanities,
the arts, with the social and natural sciences,
business, education, and medicine
Faculty- and student-driven initiative
A response to global urgency for research andpractice to create sustainable futures
Comprised of a global network of SGS-affiliated
Scholars
The New Patel School of Global Sustainability is:This program highlights outstanding
faculty and staff who display a strong
commitment to making the USF cam-
pus and community a cleaner, greener
place to live and work. SustainabilityChampions are selected based on their
commitment to conserving resources,
reducing waste, recycling and reusing
materials, increasing energy efficiency,
and other behaviors that will help
make USF a more sustainable cam-
pus.
Sustainability
Champions Program
Sustainability
Mentors Program
This program highlights outstanding
faculty and staff who mentor under-
graduate or graduate students in sus-
tainability activities on campus, with
the dual goals of celebrating faculty/staff mentoring excellence and encouraging others to serve
as mentors. Sustainability Mentors are selected based on their commitment to working with
USF students on sustainability issues as well as the social, economic, and environmental im-
pact of these efforts.
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
14/26
14
This service-learning program pro-
vides talented USF graduate students
with the opportunity to work closelywith the Office of Sustainability staff
to make USF a Green University. Sus-
tainability Fellows will serve as 0.25
FTE Graduate Research Assistants,
working 10 hours per week to help co-
ordinate sustainability activities on
campus, educational and community-
based initiatives on sustainability, and
other tasks integral to the mission of
the Office of Sustainability.
Continued from p. 13
Sustainability
Fellows Program
Sustainability
Scholars ProgramThis service-learning program pro-
vides talented USF undergraduate stu-
dents with the opportunity to work
closely with the Office of Sustainability
staff to make USF a Green University.
Sustainability Scholars will work col-
laboratively with stakeholder groups
on a range of sustainability projects on
campus, examining and assessing cou-
pled social, economic, and environmen-
tal practices that promote or impede
sustainability. The greater goal of the
research effort is to help the USF com-
munity become a cleaner, greener
place to live and work. Throughout the
experience, Scholars will learn how toconstruct and implement a formal re-
search design, receive training in re-
search ethics and relevant methods for
data collection and analysis, and use
their results to help create and evalu-
ate policies and programs for sustaina-
bility initiatives at USF.- Courtesy of http://usfweb2.usf.edu/
Sustainability/about_programs.aspx
Mentors (2011)Assistant Professor in the Department of
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Daniel Yeh is the Faculty Advisor for Emerging
Green Builders (EGB) and for Engineers without
Borders (EWB). He has worked closely with the Pa-
tel Center for Global Solutions and Columbia Uni-
versity to create a solution for clean water in a
neighborhood in the Dominican Republic.
Assistant Director of University Scholar-
ships & Financial Aid Services
Dameion Lovett is an advisor to Students in Free
Enterprise (SIFE) since its founding in 2005. He has
worked with the Refill-A-Bull program, a program
designed to reduce the use and waste of plastic bev-
erage bottles on campus. Lovett also helped the or-
ganization partner with Sam's Club to provide envi-
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
15/26
15
Notable FacultyEPA's Sustainable Design Competition Winner - University
of South Florida
(Below is a copy of the audio Transcript from the interview with Dr. Trotz)
MUSIC: Science Works theme music
LACAPRA: Welcome to EPAs Science Works, a podcast about how the EPA uses science to meet its
mission to protect your health and environment. From Science Works at EPA, Im Vronique LaCapra.
In this podcast, well meet one of the winning teams from this years P3 student design competition. P3
stands for people, prosperity and the planet, and students from any U.S. college or university can partic-
ipate. EPA sponsors the competition to challenge students to work together in interdisciplinary teams, to
design and build sustainable technologies that improve quality of life, promote economic development,and protect the environment.
This team from the University of South Florida in Tampa is creating an educational collaboration involv-
ing the university, a middle school in East Tampa, and the broader East Tampa community. The goal of
the project is to increase awareness of local water quality, focusing on storm water ponds.
East Tampa is an economically disadvantaged area that is currently undergoing a number of revitaliza-
tion projects. Faculty advisor Maya Trotz describes the neighborhood:
TROTZ: So East Tampa is a 94% African American community that is 7.5 square miles in area. They
have 31 storm water ponds and 16 schools. The community itself has invested in beautifying three of the
ponds, because theyre trying to redevelop the area.
LACAPRA: One of the storm water ponds is located across the street from the Young Middle Magnet
School for math and science. Graduate student Erlande Omisca says the P3 team developed an environ-mental curriculum for the middle school students, focusing on pollution problems in the pond:
OMISCA: The students got involved because they would go every week across the street to the storm
water pond, and test the water, monitor the water quality there, and get hands-on experience through
that.
TROTZ: We go every Friday and work with them.
LACAPRA: Again, faculty advisor Maya Trotz.
TROTZ: Some of them got to come to university to visit the lab, so that we at least start planting the
seed that you know, that science and engineering could be something thats interesting and accessible
and fun.
LACAPRA: I caught up with the University of South Florida team again at the P3 awards ceremony,
where EPA Acting Science Advisor Kevin Teichman announced the winning projects:
TEICHMAN: Were half way home, we have three more P3 awards to give out. The next one goes to the
University of South Florida, for Water Awareness Research and Education in East Tampa: a pilot collab-
oration involving University of South Florida, Young Magnet Middle School and the East Tampa Com-
munity. [APPLAUSE]
LACAPRA: The teams reaction to winning?
OMISCA: WOOHOO! [LAUGHTER]
TROTZ: Erlande is like, were excited. [LAUGHTER]
OMISCA: We are excited! [LAUGHTER]
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
16/26
16
LACAPRA: Erlande Omisca.
OMISCA: Were just excited about it, were just thinking about the students that we worked with in the
community, and the other faculty members, and the other students at university, theyll be so happy
about it.
LACAPRA: I asked Maya Trotz about the teams plans for the next phase of their project.TROTZ: The next phase is to expand the project to other schools in the neighborhood, including an ele-
mentary school which is right next to the middle school that we worked with, and also to the high school,
and hopefully do events that bring other teachers and other [] schools in the neighborhood, so that
they can learn and build from it. And then also to build educational kiosks at the storm water ponds,
that help to build environmental awareness, and show the work that, you know, all the students in-
volved have been doing, in terms of monitoring water quality and stuff like that, associated with the
ponds.
LACAPRA: You can learn more about the University of South Floridas project on our website, at
epa.gov/P3.
MUSIC: Science Works theme music
LACAPRA: Thanks for listening to Science Works, a podcast series produced by EPAs Office of Re-search and Development. Please check back again soon for our next program, at epa.gov/ncer.
Continued from p. 15
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
17/26
17
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
In regards to Sustainability, what do you think the university should do going forward?There are many programs in place. There is an Oce of Sustainability, a Masters in Sustainability
Program, and the Patel School of Global Sustainability. What is missing, if anything? Is the University on
the right track? Can we improve?
The below question was posed to several faculty members with five responses received, there are shown below. Although
the answers were different, all agree that there are areas that could be improved. Additionally, the lack of funding is a
concern.
Have a sustainable, accountable, and transparent mechanism for engaging multiple
stakeholders interested in making USF and the local communities more sustainable.
Maya Trotz, PhD
Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering Department Kiran C. Patel
Center for Global Solutions University of South Florida
"I would like to see USF work with the city of Tampa to develop some initiatives in the water,
energy and transportation areas that would build on research expertise at USF and create amore sustainable campus and city. Transportation issues can include mixed use
development, public transportation, promoting biking and walking, telecommuting,
carpooling, etc. Water issues include water reuse, low impact development technologies for
storm water, nutrient recovery from wastewater, aquaculture, biofuel production.
Sarina Ergas, Professor and Graduate Program Coordinator
Dept. Civil & Environmental Engineering
I think the university is missing a huge amount of environmental benefit (and economic savings) by
going after what I consider to be low hanging fruit, these are easy things you can contro, versus
working on larger big picture items. A few examples, sprinklers that go on while it is rainingoutside, building lighting systems not engineered with motion detectors, lack of "safe" transit
infrastructure for cyclists on campus, promotion of easy parking for students on campus that
encourages them to drive single use vehicles to campus and arrive at classes at last minute,
landscaping with flowers that require water, .. recycling all the paper and plastic generated in the
food court area of marshal center (they promote they are "trayless" and that saves water, but seems it
produced more solid waste), ..[more] use of lots of roof space to generate renewable energy, Jim
(Mihelcic)
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
18/26
18
Global Current Events
Engineers Without BordersUSF is currently working in other countries to help other cultures receive eve-
ryday items. USF has entered into the country of Dominican Republic to help
out with their water crisis. A team of USFs engineers has made it their goal to
help out the Dominican Republic by providing clean water for the residents. The
goal of the project is titled Water for Miches. In this project the engineers are
providing 20 liters of clean water per day to each of the 500 residents of Miramar
USF: UNSTOPPABLE
USF has made it their goal to help others in need. USF Unstoppable is a campaign
that is dedicated to helping others whether they are at the university or in an-
other country. USF reaches others by using their public broadcasng staon
WUSF. The radio staon is a tool that USF uses to make a tremendous impact on
the quality of life, business climate, and educaonal opportunies around the
Tampa Bay area. USF has made a made a dierence in 120 dierent countries by
using their public broadcasng system to reach out to the Alumni that are mak-ing an unstoppable dierence in the world.
Problems in ParadiseUSF has just marked a decade in Costa Rica for their health research on a changing popula-
on. The program allows students at USF to go into the country of Costa Rica to help the res-
idents who are struggling with unique modern ailments. The purpose of this program is to
give students the opportunity to research and see how the unintended consequences of
global integraon literally unfold. The program also lets the students help make Costa Ricas
food more sustainable while being nutrious. The country of Costa Ricas food has causedtremendous health problems for the people that live in the country. More junk food is being
imported into Costa Rica, because the country is trying to cater to the American tourists.
USF students have gone into the country to help out the local people to demonstrate
healthy eang habits, and also show the local farmers more or new sustainable ways to
grow new produce. The problems that have been raised with local farmers growing crops on
the land are the rising cost of land in Costa Rica.
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
19/26
19
USFs Future Plans to Strengthen Sustainability
USF plans to strengthen their sustainability by
adding many new resources. USF students have
helped add to the future strength by designing a solar
FleX House
house. The solar house was built for a competition
and was named the FleX House. The FleX House won
USF a spot in the Department of Energys Solar
Decathlon competition for the worlds best solar-
powered house. Many colleges were involved in the
project as well as USF, but USF used their college of
Arts school of Architecture + Community Design,
Engineering, Arts and Sciences, and Business. Thiswas a great project for USF to involve several on
campus colleges to collaborate on one project. The
team designed the house to make it more affordable
while also making the house use zero-energy. The
team also worked with the Beck Group Company. The
Beck Group was founded in 1912 and has a strong
emphasis on sustainable practices. The students were
encouraged to help as much as
they liked, but the Beck
Group took the lead on the
actual construction of the
FleX House. The Beck
Company also is LEED
certified which stands for
Leadership in Energy andEnvironmental Design. More
than a third of Becks
employees are LEED
accredited or are Green
Advantage professionals. USF
hopes to learn a lot from this
company and hopes that their
involvement in the project will
give them the strong edge in
the competition that is needed
to win.
Photo courtesy of USF website
Photo courtesy of USF website
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
20/26
20
Continued from p. 19
USF also hopes to continue strengthening their sustainability by continuing the Office of
Sustainability, the Masters of Arts in Global Sustainability program, and adding a solar
power plant to a USF campus. The Office of Sustainability informs the students at USF of
different programs and different sustainable issues that USF is accomplishing or has
accomplished. The Office of Sustainability has made it their mission to coordinate and build
partnerships for university-wide initiatives that advance the University of South Florida's
strategic goal of creating a sustainable campus environment. USF is accomplishing this goal
with the FleX House, new Masters degree of Arts in Global Sustainability, and their new
solar plant. The solar plant was just announced on the Office of Sustainabilitys website.
There is a ten minute video that explains the reasons why USF is deciding to build a solar
power plant. USFs sustainability efforts are strong especially since they earned a GOLD star
rating and a B+ on the 2011 report card, but they will need to continue and improve on their
efforts if they want to obtain an A+ on the report card.
OTHER CONTINUING EFFORTS
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
21/26
21
New Ideas to Strengthen Sustainability
Adding an online general course about home sustainability would be one way
to strengthen USFs future sustainability. A home sustainability assessment
course would give all graduates the basic knowledge of making informed
decisions when it comes to their energy and water consumption. Victoria
University is one of the first Universities to introduce a course of this kind;
where there are no prerequisites for the course. The course would be very
beneficial for electricians, plumbers, residential heating and air conditioning
installers, carpenters, landscapers, auditors, energy and water companies
and small-business people working in a green industry. A course of this
degree will require the professors who teach the class go to a professional
development course. By taking a professional development course in
sustainability; professors will have the ability to understand the principles of
sustainability, and will understand how to incorporate sustainability into
their daily lectures. Skills that will be taught in a home sustainability
assessment course will be the following:
Home Sustainability Assessment Course
Conduct home sustainability assessments.
Evaluate options for waste management.
Evaluate water usage for gardens.
Determine appropriate mulching and composting options. Use basic energy and water rating technology and tools.
Conduct domestic energy, water and waste assessments.
Measure energy and water efficiency and provide
recommendations to reduce consumptions. Provide advice to customers on sustainable practice
appropriate to their situation.
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
22/26
22
Continued from p. 19
The University of South Florida should pursue a course in home sustainability for
many reasons. One reason would be to increase profit which is USFs strategic goal
number 4. Another great reason to pursue the course would be the chance of receiv-
ing funding for the course from the government. This will help USF since the
school has had to make tremendous cut backs from the budget. A third reasonwould be to just improve students knowledge and quality of life another strategic
goal from the University. USF has everything to gain and nothing to lose if they
pursue the idea of adding a course in home sustainability assessment.
Ocean power is an innovave way to
produce electricity; thus reducing the
need or dependence on foreign fuels.Ocean power is a new idea that has
OCEAN POWER
been made popular in Japan, Europe,
and Australia. The United States of
America has proposed small scale
ocean energy projects for the
following cies: New York and San
Francisco and o the coast of
Massachuses, Washington, Oregon,
and Hawaii. Ocean power is currently
being supported by the Energy Policy
Act of 2005, but was not originally
included unl October 2008. Ocean
energy is expensive, but cost will
reduce with future technological
improvement. There are currently
three sources of ocean energy that
can be pursued by the University of
South Florida. The possible choices of
wave energy include wave power,
dal power, and ocean thermal
power.
One of USFs strategic goals is to be expanding local and global
engagement iniaves to strengthen and sustain healthy
communies and to improve the quality of life. This goal ts
nicely when pursuing ocean power since ocean power will
improve the quality of life by reducing emissions that are
caused by fossil fuels which destroy the ozone layer. As a
research university, USF could possibly be the number one
research University of the State of Florida with a project like
ocean power. This would be a big improvement from being one
of the top three research universies.
The issues that will arise with this project are the following:
cost to pursue the project, locaon of ocean power facility, the
governments approval, and compeng against other
companies/Universies. Ocean power is a costly project to
pursue. The capital cost of installaon is the highest out of all
other sources of renewable energy. Geng approved for the
project will be the hardest part of the project, because in one
instance it took about ve years for Verdant Power to obtain a
license so that they could start the project.
The results that USF could obtain from the project are
phenomenal. One result from obtaining the project that was
stated previously is becoming Floridas number one university.
This would be a big accomplishment for the University to
achieve. Another result of pursuing the project would be the
addional funding that would be provided to the university
from the state. A third result would be the addional programs
that students could learn from this project. The school of
sustainability could pick this program as an internship or use it
as a curriculum to demonstrate how ocean power is a
sustainable source for energy.
Photo courtesy of Climateprogress.org
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
23/26
23
ConclusionThe University of South Florida has made numerous contributions and advance-
ments toward ecological sustainability.
We have some serious work to do. Far too many people lead miserable lives be-
cause they lack the most basic necessities to deal with hunger, thirst, shelter, dis-
ease or disability. In addition, the prosperity currently enjoyed by many of us may
not be taken for granted in the future. There will be some hard choices and some
lines of research will probably need to be pursued at the expense of others. Indus-
try should change and adopt new strategies. And we as a society should accept and
foster that change. The evolution of technology, industry, and society is a complex
process full of feedback mechanisms and surprises. Its vital that we understand
the most promising ways to facilitate the necessary changes of direction. (Van San-
ten)
In closing, we would like to quote Dr. Yogi Goswami, Co-Director of the Clean En-
ergy Research Center,
Having all of these offices in them selves will not lead to improving Sustainability at USF. There needs
to be an active plan for the following:
1. Improving the energy efficiency of the campus buildings
2. Increasing solar and renewable energy generation oncampus (covering parking lots etc, which will also provide
shade to the cars)
3. Reducing waste and increasing waste recycling
4. Introducing sustainable transportation options (there are anumber of ideas on that)
5. Looking at the energy efficiency of the physical plant andimproving it as necessary.
Some of these would require investment, which may not be available to the university.
However, private capital may be available as long as we allow the investors to take a part
of the savings to provide them a return on investment.
With committed faculty, staff and students, we believe that USF is on
its way in leading Universities in sustainability.
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
24/26
24
SourcesChachere, Vickie. "Problems in Paradise." 10 June 2011. University of South Florida NEWS. 15 June 2011 .
. "Sustainability Gold." 7 February 2011. University of South Florida News. 8 June 2011 .
Chambers, Ian, and John Humble.Developing a plan for the planet: a business plan for sustainableliving. Surrey, UK:
MPG Books Group: 2011. 6-7. Print.
The University of South Florida. The Office of Sustainability. n.d. 8 June 2011
.
. USF: UNSTOPPABLE. n.d. 8 June 2011 .
Van Santen, Rutger, Djan Khoe, and Bran Vermeer. 2030: Technology that will change the world. New York: Oxford
University Press, 2010. 259-260. Print.
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
25/26
8/6/2019 USF Going Green Movement Sustainability
26/26
logical sustainability and the concept of sustainable development. This was used to compare
USF with what experts say to be important in our objectives of sustainability.
Stirling, Julia. "University's sustainability assessment course adds a green string to trades people's
bow." The Australian 19 March 2011: 4.
This source was used to add an additional course to USF's general education requirements. The
source demonstrates how a college has already successfully implemented a course of this sort.
We used this source in the paper to have USF implement a general requirement class that would
teach everyone sustainability in their own homes. The source also demonstrated what USF
would gain if they were to pursue the idea of adding an online course in home sustainability.
University of South Florida Office of Sustainability. 2011. 4 June 2011.
This website is the main website for Global Sustainability for the University of South Florida.
The website gives detailed information on the universitys goals towards Sustainability in the
USF area and in the nation. The reader is provided with information which includes, people as-sociated with the green movement on campus, what can be done towards achieving the campus
sustainability goals, and ways to become a part of the green movement. The website has a lot of
useful information about the universitys efforts, which makes it a valuable source.