Stetson University 2008 Campus Sustainability Leadership Award Application

Category

Four-year and Graduate Institutions 1,000 - 7,500 Student FTE

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Stetson University's Native Plant Initiative mandates use of only Florida native trees, shrubs and flowers in new and replacement landscaping.
Photographer: Stetson University photo

Contact

H. Douglas Lee
President
Office of the President
Stetson University
DeLand, FL
(386) 822-7250
dlee@stetson.edu

Governance & Administration

Environmental responsibility is one of the core values of Stetson University. University President H. Douglas Lee formed an Environmental Task Force in the mid-1990s, solidified the University's core commitment with the forming of an Environmental Responsibility Council (ERC) in 1998, signed the Talloires Declaration in 2000, established a Native Plant Initiative governing campus landscaping in 2002, signed the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment in 2007 and formed the Stetson Presidents Climate Commitment Task Force in 2007. Taking effect on Aug. 1, 2008, is a new University Smoking/Tobacco Use Policy under which smoking and tobacco use, including smokeless tobacco, are banned in all university-owned or controlled facilities, as well as within 50 feet of any building entrance, on balconies and porches and any other space officially designated a No Smoking area. The ban also includes university-owned vehicles.

The long-range plan and recommendations developed by the ERC, whose membership is comprised of faculty, students and staff, began to be implemented as a strategic priority for Stetson's mission and long-range plan in 1999-2000.  The University's guiding principles for environmental responsibility were approved by the University's Board of Trustees in 2002.  Through enacting and implementing Guiding Environmental Principles and Values, the University committed to playing a role in the advancement of environmental stewardship by serving as a positive example in the Stetson community and beyond. 

The University's guiding environmental values are as follows:

  1. Commitment to environmental education
  2. Environmentally responsible purchasing
  3. Efficient use and conservation of energy, water and other resources
  4. The minimizing of solid waste production
  5. The minimizing of hazardous materials on campus
  6. Environmentally responsible campus design and planning principles

The University's institutional commitment to environmental responsibility is overseen by the Office of the President, coordinated through partnerships between the Division of Facilities Management and the ERC, with support and involvement from other administrative, curricular and co-curricular departments and initiatives, and implemented primarily through the Division of Facilities Management.

The university is a member of several organizations including the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, River of Lakes Heritage Corridor executive board, St. Johns River to Sea Loop Trail committee and the St. Johns River Alliance.

Operations

Stetson University's institutional practices reflect its commitment to environmental responsibility.

In 1999-2000, the University constructed a $4.2 million Chilled Water Production Plant and 6½ mile Campus Distribution Loop to air-condition buildings rather than operate inefficient and CFC/HCFC-based individual chillers at each building. The plant eliminated more than 60 compressors, 50 pumps, 80 condenser fans and two cooling towers, with electricity savings occurring from the magnitude of scale.  A photovoltaic array at the chilled water loop plant provides power for indoor lighting. More than 30 university buildings are connected to the system, including the Lynn Business Center (LBC).

In 2003, the LBC was the first building in Florida to be certified a green building by the U.S. Green Building Council under its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEEDTM) Green Building Rating System.  During the 2001-02 Lynn Business Center Project construction period, 90 percent (5,150 tons) of demolition and construction materials were recycled.

Stetson has adopted the LEEDTM system as design criteria for all new projects. The University is poised to construct, open and seek LEEDTM certification for its new Rinker Environmental Learning Center (ELC). The 2,000-square-foot ELC building will be constructed using principles of green design to provide practical examples of living in balance with the environment.

A solar hot water generation system pilot project to reduce energy consumption was established at three adjacent residence halls. The system supplements the heating of city-supplied water by operating at 110 degrees F without boiler support on hot days.

The University has installed Automated Logic HVAC direct digital controls (a computerized energy management system) throughout campus facilities.  Other energy efficiency measures include the controlling of lighting through use of photocell controllers on outdoor lights, motion sensors and timer devises on indoor and outdoor lights, and key-controlled operation on sports lighting fields. Energy-saving electronic ballast/T-8 bulb, LED technology and compact fluorescent lights are used. As part of an ongoing window replacement initiative, 317 energy-efficient windows were installed in Emily Hall. The University also is planning to perform light-fixture retrofitting in 44 campus buildings. Energy efficient air handling and water pump equipment is purchased when replacement of existing equipment is required. An old hot water storage tank in the Carlton Union Building kitchen was replaced with a new instantaneous hot water heater to eliminate consumption of energy used to maintain the temperature during storage.

The University's recycling program started almost 20 years ago. In 2006-2007 alone, Stetson recycled more than 74 tons of paper, 6 tons of plastic and 200 pounds of aluminum. The University also recycles fluorescent light bulbs, PCB-containing ballasts, batteries, vehicle byproducts, metal when possible and concrete and construction materials. Reclaimed water is used for landscape irrigation.

Earth-friendly cleaning supplies are used. And, in July 2008, a campus roadway re-alignment eliminated flow-through vehicular traffic in the campus core.

Curriculum & Research

 

In 1998-99, the Division of Natural Sciences in the College of Arts & Sciences began exploring ways to integrate environmental responsibility as a central curricular component of the division. In the ensuing decade, new curriculums in Environmental Science and in Aquatic and Marine Biology, with special focus on fresh water such as the St. Johns River and Blue Spring, were developed and the Gillespie Museum, an earth science museum, and its programs were positioned as a curricular and co-curricular component of environmental responsibility commitments.

Faculty members integrated environmentally themed courses into the curriculum in a variety of disciplines and programs. The College of Arts & Sciences offers an average of 10.8 environmentally related courses each semester. A sampling includes Environmental Politics (Political Science); Field Experience in Costa Rica (Biology); Nature and the American Marketplace (American Studies); and Nature Writing (English). Study and exploration of the region's abundant natural resources are integrated into courses.

Florida contains a wealth of biodiversity and ecosystems, many of which are under threat. The Stetson University College of Law's Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy was formed in 2005 as an interdisciplinary focal point for education, research and service activities related to global, regional and local biodiversity issues. The institute attracted the International Wildlife Law Conference and the peer-reviewed Journal of International Wildlife Law and Policy to the College of Law

In spring 2008, a College of Arts & Sciences' Environmental Science course integrated academic learning and University efforts to increase energy efficiency. Selected students followed the Clean Air-Cool Planet Model to conduct an audit of Stetson's carbon footprint. Findings indicated the University releases 14,200 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually. The figure reflects a 3,000-metric-ton offset due to trees planted in Central America by Alliance for International Reforestation (AIR), which is headquartered at Stetson. AIR helps Central American communities establish tree nurseries, plant trees, dig wells, build fuel-efficient ovens and educate others about sustainable farming. Since 1993, AIR has established tree nurseries and trained farmers in more than 75 villages, and has planted over 3 million trees. Through AIR, Stetson students do three-week internships in Guatemala.

In other academic initiatives, the School of Business Administration and College of Law offer a J.D./M.B.A. program in Eco-Asset Management.  The College of Arts & Sciences' Aquatic and Marine Biology program partners with the Duke University Marine Laboratory. A Forestry and Environmental Studies program allows students to complete work for a Master of Forestry or Environmental Management degree in five years: three at Stetson and two at Duke University.

Faculty conduct environmental research side-by-side with undergraduate students and encourage senior research projects related to the environment.  Topics have included the ecological ethics of surfing, the effects of habitat fragmentation on gopher tortoises, and the effect of litter on seed germination and regeneration following a burn in the Florida scrub ecosystem.

Stetson's Department of Teacher Education partners with local public elementary schools in a pilot program to educate K-5 pupils about ecology and Florida native flora.

 

Campus Culture

 

Many of Stetson University's green initiatives have been rooted in grassroots movements. In 1980, faculty and students developed a semester-long Earth Day celebration that included a self-imposed, universitywide campus blackout for 5½ hours to demonstrate each individual's dependence on electrical energy. Power in all administrative and classroom buildings was turned off by the school, and 90 percent of student participated by unplugging refrigerators, TVs and other appliances (PCs weren't yet in use).

In 1990, a student led Stetson's recycling initiative by launching, with university support, a recycling program in residence halls; today the university has a strong recycling program.

In the mid-1990s, faculty, staff and students who were inspired to make Stetson a better place formed a group named Green Stetson. The university's later establishment of its Values Council (1998) incorporated Green Stetson as an Environmental Task Force (ETF). That group evolved into the ERC.

Stetson faculty and students were the catalyst for adoption of the Stetson Native Plant Initiative. Efforts began in the late 1990s, when faculty and students established a Florida native plant landscape on the grounds of Gillespie Museum. The University adopted a Native Plant Initiative in 2002-2003. It mandates that only Florida native trees, shrubs and plants are used in campus landscaping. In a related initiative, faculty and students together plant native Florida trees on campus as a learning experience. The project is funded by a Faculty Tree Fund.

A student-led Roots & Shoots organization was formed on campus after scientist Jane Goodall visited Stetson in 2000. Members work in partnership with the ERC, take part in coastal cleanups, volunteer at a local bird-rescue group and advocate environmental issues such as recycling and proper use of water.

More recently, Stetson University launched a Green Bikes program developed by the Student Government Association, Bonner Scholars Program and Department of American Studies. Donated bikes are repaired and painted Stetson green, and then are made available free-of-charge to students on a weekly loan basis.  The program began in January 2008, and is being used as a model for other campuses upon request.

Another recent initiative on campus is Stetson Recycles, a student-created organization through which students work with Facilities Management to help recycle plastic, aluminum cans, glass and paper on campus. In the 2008-2009 academic year, the University expects to have 12 to 16 student recycling coordinators so the program can be fully operational. Stetson Recycles students also work with the ERC to pursue additional ways to reduce, reuse and recycle.

Stetson's Student Government Association, after intensive debate in the 2007-2008 academic year, voted to support efforts to regulate areas where smoking is allowed on campus.

Stetson staff members in Facilities Management volunteered their time to develop a biofuel from used cooking oil and diesel. They built the fuel-filtering system for $200, using primarily recycled materials.

 

Community Service and Outreach

The University's Gillespie Museum, which is open to the public, presents an annual Earth Day celebration featuring children's activities and interactive educational stations. The museum's native Florida landscape is an educational tool for the public. The ERC regularly sponsors environmentally oriented movies, lectures and other programs free and open to the public. It led the University's participation in Focus the Nation on Jan. 31, 2008; the event included the launch of Stetson's Green Bikes program; "Tour de Land" bike tour; and a lecture about global warming by representatives of The Climate Project.

Special environmentally oriented public events take place at the Vera Lea Rinker Native Plant Garden, a two-acre Florida native plant garden designed to serve environmental, educational and aesthetic roles at Stetson University while also functioning as the University President's House private garden. The garden, opened in August 2007, will complement the programs of the Rinker Environmental Learning Center (ELC), adjacent to Gillespie Museum, and serve Stetson faculty, students, local K-12 education programs and local civic and community groups. The garden provides learning opportunities for students in science and environmentally related classes, and enhances the University's commitment to helping educate the wider community about environmental responsibility. More than 30 native plant species are featured, and plants are labeled with common and botanical names. The University distributes native seed packets and native plant material as outreach materials.

Guest speakers at free, public programs have helped enrich environmental education for the campus community and visitors. Guests have included world-renowned primatologist Jane Goodall; David Orr, leading authority on campus "greening" and environmentally friendly university buildings; environmental ethicist, naturalist and writer Holmes Rolston III; "green" evangelist Richard Cizik; and environmental journalist and author Jon Maslow.

The University and its members engage in numerous partnerships with agencies and organizations. The Alliance for International Reforestation (AIR) is one of only three organizations selected as partners in Eco-Libris, a global initiative dedicated to sustainable reading. The University works closely with public entities including the city of DeLand, Volusia County schools, the St. Johns River Water Management District, Volusia County Environmental Management and Florida Department of Education. Several local agencies helped Stetson shape the concept for the ELC in the two years prior to the University's successful application for grant funding.  Faculty outreach has included appearances on a National Geographic Society program focusing on the snakes of Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Preserve; the awarding of a National Geographic Society grant to educate schoolteachers about Stetson's environmental studies initiatives and the St. Johns River system; and the Education Alliance for Sustainable Florida and the Department of Environmental Protection's statewide distribution of a faculty case study about marketing and sustainability. A Stetson law professor has chaired the U.S. Ramsar Convention, an international organization focused on wetland conservation.

The University has been recognized with a Sustainable Florida Award in 2003 and a Distinguished Achievement Award in July 2000, both from the Council for Sustainable Florida; and a Design with Natives award from the Florida Native Plant Society in 2000.