SUSTAINABLEFSU

January 2015

January 2015

What is a Sustainable Campus? - p.1 Featured Program - p.2

Nole in Action: Mark Stri�er - p.4

IN THIS ISSUE:

1

What is aSustainable Campus?

Here at FSU, we’re known for our prestigious academics and degree programs, beautiful campus, elite athletics, and accomplished faculty and student body, but a just-as-crucial element of our school that’s not always in the limelight is the dedicated group of passionate students and faculty who work behind the scenes for a sustainable campus. But, what exactly is a sustainable campus, you may ask. Along with “eco-friendly,” and “green,” “sustainability” is a buzz-worthy word that’s made its way into our daily jargon, and for good reason, but it’s rare that we stop to ask what it actually means. Dictionary de�nitions call sustainability the degree to which a program can be sustained without depleting natural resources, but how does that really look on a campus as large and diverse as ours? �ere’s no one simple answer—sustainability at FSU looks like many di�erent things— it’s no one particular program, board member, or area of research, but it’s the sum of all these parts working to implement real, tangible practices that will help create a vibrant campus economy while respecting the need to sustain natural resources and protect the environment.

Whether you’re a freshman or a graduate student, if you devote hours to extracurricular activities or help tend to the campus garden, or simply want to educate yourself on the environmental scene here at FSU, we hope in upcoming issues to inform and entertain by highlighting noteworthy students, alumni, faculty, areas around campus, and featured programs all contributing to a sustainable campus. Let’s continue to Uphold the Garnet and Gold together as we foster eco-conscious practices, become a leader in sustainable campus e�orts, and keep our campus healthy and sustainable not just for the class of ’15 or ’18, but for many future generations of Noles to come.

January 2015

FEATURED PROGRAM

2

2014Football Season

10 yearAnniversary Totals

1189 volunteers

4510 servicehours

162.33 tons16.85 tons

173volunteers

693 servicehours

Garnet and Gold Goes Green

January 2015

It was a fall semester of down-to-the-last-second, heart-racing football games that had us on the edge of our student section seats all season long. But, for the dedicated volunteers in the gold shirts working behind the scenes, game days looked a little di�erent than the usual festivities of pre-gaming, chanting, and chopping. Garnet & Gold Goes Green volunteers chose to forego the typical student gameday rituals in favor of dedicating their time to collect recyclable materials from FSU’s Doak Campbell stadium, working long hours each home game weekend before kicko�. �e program was launched ten football seasons ago, and has since collected and recycled over 162.33 tons of trash that would have otherwise been dumped in the land�ll instead of being recycled. Volunteers come from various majors and, because of them, our iconic Doak Campbell stadium is not only a symbol of sportsmanship but also of sustainability. Now that the football season has drawn to a close for this year, we’ve compiled a by-the-numbers look at what volunteers accomplished this past football season and from the last ten seasons.

GARNET AND GOLDGOES GREEN

3

January 2015

Garnet and Gold Goes Green volunteers help clean up after ESPN Gameday.

Chair of the Sustainability Advisory Board

Mark StrifflerNole in Action:

Mark Stri�er knows �rst-hand just how critical a goal it is to strive for a sustainable campus here at FSU. As current Senior Associate Director of Oglesby Union, a task which has him overseeing and managing the many student services and programs at our bustling Oglesby Student Union, as well as the Student Life Cinema and Student Services Building, he sees on a daily basis the many “obvious bene�ts” of implementing sustainable policies and practices on campus. Lending his 30 years of experience as FSU faculty toward his new role as chair of the sustainability board, he and other faculty members are working with FSU leadership to create and adopt sustainable practices that help save our school not only money and resources, but also create a healthy environment for current and future students.

We talked to Mr. Stri�er about the role of the sustainability board plays, their collaborative approach with various campus o�ces and programs, and their vision for the future of the sustainability scene here at FSU.

4

January 2015

To start off with, what is the role and purpose of FSU'ssustainability board? �e Sustainability Advisory Board (SAB) is responsible for reviewing and assessing current sustainability practices, proposing new policies, and engaging with the FSU community in these e�orts. Additionally, the SAB is charged with producing a university Climate Action Plan and a Sustainability Strategic Plan that will recommend long-term goals for future development.

As a citizen in an engaged community, I think it is important to advocate for investing today in tomorrow’s environment. We have so many great scholars and scientists at this university who are researching climate change, alternative energy resources, and other sustainability related topics in their laboratories. �at passion and advocacy is really important for teaching future generations about the obvious connection between the consequences of our activity and our surrounding environment.

What’s your personal interest in sustainability?

How have you seen FSU’s sustainability approach change duringyour time here?FSU’s approach is much more intentional than it has been in the past. It wasn’t until about 10 years or so when it took formal root thanks to a volunteer committee of folks from all parts of campus who had a common interest in making a stronger commitment to sustainability issues. Our little group of sustainability advocates started to make a di�erence on all of these issues on campus, and it became apparent that our singular goal should be to create a formal O�ce of Sustainability at FSU, which was accomplished about �ve years ago.

We want all aspects of campus well represented, and we desire to have robust and meaningful conversations about all of the issues that relate to our purpose. We try to hear all sides of any issue as we contemplate the development of our Climate Action Plan and our Strategic Plan.

The members of the board are from very diverse fields. How does this affect your approach?

During the board’s �rst year, we listened to and learned from campus partners involved in sustainability on a daily basis. We reviewed climate action plans and strategic plans of other universities to glean best ideas and practices from other campuses. So, our goal for year two is simple: develop the climate action plan, and develop a sustainability strategic plan, as we have been charged to do. �e goal is simple, but the work involved to accomplish the goal is massive. Our board looks forward to that challenge.

What are some specific sustainability goals or projects for theupcoming new year?

5

January 2015

Content by: Emily Schneider-GreenDesign by: Sarah Jezierny

@fsusustainable

@fsusustainable

facebook.com/FSUsustainablecampus

www.sustainablecampus.fsu.edu

Produced by:

STAY CONNECTED