Category

Four-year and graduate institutions, 1,001 - 10,000 student FTE

Contact

Wendy Larson
Coordinating Editor, Records Office
Co-Chair, Environmental Advisory Committee
Bemidji State University
Bemidji, MN
(218) 755-3948
wlarson@bemidjistate.edu

Governance & Administration

In 2005, Bemidji State University's president, Jon Quistgaard, signed the Talloires Declaration, a ten-point action plan for incorporating sustainability and environmental literacy in teaching, research, operations, and outreach at colleges and universities (see the website of the Association of University Leaders for a Sustainable Future, www.ulsf.org). The ceremony was a formal pledge to continue to pursue an environmental agenda and provided an opportunity for all members of the University to become involved.

BSU had previously demonstrated its commitment to sustainability through its environmentally conscious curriculum (see Curriculum & Research below), the creation in 1992 of the campus Environmental Advisory Committee (made up of students, faculty, and staff) and subsequent adoption of the BSU Environmental Policy Statement, and inclusion in The University Plan: Strategies for 2002-07 a commitment to "explore means and methods to model responsibility toward the land and other natural resources, including continuation of waterfront protection." The updated Work Plan for 2005-07 includes the intention to create a clearinghouse for recommendations regarding methods of conserving energy; to pilot the use of wind energy in the student union (see Operations below); to include criteria of environmental responsibility in the Master Facilities Plan and in construction, repair, and renovation decisions; and to encourage student organizations to identify opportunities to model environmentally responsible behaviors, beyond what is currently being accomplished by Students for the Environment.

More recently, BSU has articulated its educational goal of "transform[ing] lives through intentional learning and responsible living" through three core values: Global/Multicultural Citizenship, Civic Engagement, and Environmental Stewardship (Signature Themes of the University). These values are reflected in the current Bemidji State Mission Statement.

BSU's Sustainable Campus Endowment is also well on its way (two-thirds) toward full endowment. This fund will be used for student scholarships and project support directly related to environmental sustainability at BSU and will enable BSU to utilize renewable and sustainable energy technologies, which would bring BSU closer to compliance with the Kyoto Protocol.

BSU holds memberships in the following organizations that are involved with sustainability issues: Upper Midwest Association for Campus Sustainability (UMACS), National Wildlife Federation's Campus Ecology Program, Association of Higher Education Facilities Officers (APPA), Society for College and University Planning (SCUP), National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), and National Association of College Auxiliary Services. (A membership application for AASHE is in the works.)

Operations

BSU has instituted the following sustainable practices:

• Replaced standard fluorescent bulbs (20 percent energy efficiency) with compact fluorescent bulbs (75-80 percent energy efficiency) across the campus.
• Purchased a hybrid vehicle to replace an old truck used by security.
• Installed water-conserving shower heads in the dorms.
• Installed energy-saving devices such as motion sensors in most rooms across campus.
• Reduced waste and conserved energy through better training of residential assistants.
• Purchased more supplies with recycled content.
• Proposing sustainable design for the renovation of and addition to the science building.
• Advising that the new food service contract include language detailing ways to lessen environmental impacts and promote environmental sustainability in food service operations. The current cafeteria contractor is targeting environmentally preferable purchasing, source reduction, and effective waste disposal.

BSU is also particularly proud of becoming our electric utility's (Otter Tail Power Co.) largest wind energy customer by powering the student union through their TailWinds Program.

On the campus grounds, BSU has completed multiple restoration projects using native plants, including a large restoration of the Lake Bemidji lakeshore and creation of rain and butterfly gardens.

Curriculum & Research

BSU's Center for Environmental, Earth, and Space Studies (CEESS) is responsible for coordinating the campus-wide, interdisciplinary course "People and the Environment," which provides an integrative study of the natural, social, values-based, and citizen-action contexts for environmental awareness. The disciplinary components survey various approaches to and institutional settings for environmental decision making, including our behaviors as consumers and producers. Six major themes are explored in a multi-cultural context: interconnections of ecological and human systems, transgenerational impacts and issues, value-based foundations for actions and solutions, uncertainty and risk in environmental decision-making, constraints on solutions (perceived and/or real), and a topical focus on student-identified concerns. More than 400 students enroll in these P&E classes each semester, and the enrollment is increasing.

BSU offers a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) and a Master of Science (M.S.) in Environmental Studies, with the following fields of emphasis (for the B.S.) or specializations (for the M.S.):

• Ecosystem Studies (B.S.)
• Environmental Chemistry (B.S. and M.S.)
• Environmental Ecology (M.S.)
• Environmental Engineering Science (B.S.)
• Environmental Management (B.S. and M.S.)
• Environmental Policy and Planning (B.S. and M.S.)
• Environmental Toxicology (B.S. and M.S.)
• Geohydrology (B.S. and M.S.), and
• Outdoor Education (B.S.)

An undergraduate minor in Environmental Studies is also offered.

For research initiatives, see Community Service and Outreach below.

Community Service and Outreach

A community service component is in the process of being added to the "People and the Environment" cluster of courses described under Curriculum & Research above.

The faculties of the CEESS (Center for Environmental, Earth, and Space Studies) are working on many projects to enhance the quality of the regional environment through improvement of agricultural and environmental sustainability. These projects include:

• Lakeshore property value studies, including in relation to water clarity.
• Bioconversion of potato waste to biodegradable polymers.
• Bioconversion of agricultural waste to ethanol/biofuel.
• Monitoring water quality for Beauty Lake (in neighboring county), which is experiencing development for the first time.
• Indian Lake restoration (in agricultural county near Minneapolis).
• Shallow lakes inventory.
• Studies in sustainable agriculture.
• Studies in environmental literacy.

A number of BSU's Environmental Advisory Committee members are also active in the Bemidji Area Climate Change Coalition, an organization led by members of the international Indigenous Environmental Network (headquartered in Bemidji) and of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. One of the organization's goals is to have Bemidji sign on to the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement.