HEASC

1. HEASC Higher Education Associations Sustainability Consortium Brian K. Yeoman

2. What is it?Higher Education Associations Sustainability Consortium(HEASC) An informal network of higher education associations with a commitment to advancing sustainability within their constituencies and within the system of higher education itself. www.heasc.net

3. Brief History • Formed in December of 2005 • NAEP is a founding member • Facilitated by Second Nature and • US Partnership for the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development • Thirteen members

4. HEASC members American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) ACPA-College Student Educators International (ACPA) American Association of State Colleges & Universities (AASCU) Association of Higher Education Facilities Officers (APPA) Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) Association of College & University Housing Officers International (ACUHO-I) Association of College Unions International (ACUI) Association of Governing Boards of Universities & Colleges (AGB) National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) National Association of College & University Business Officers (NACUBO) National Association of Educational Procurement (NAEP) National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA) Society for College & University Planning (SCUP)

5. Mission To support and enhance the capacity of higher education to fulfill its critical role in producing an educated and engaged citizenry and the knowledge needed for a thriving and civil society. Purpose Learn from each other Work together on joint projects Access the best practices in sustainability Advance education for a sustainable future

6. Critique of Traditional Development The Brundtland Commission in 1987 found that after talking to a million people over 5 years that; Traditional Development contributes to health problems, ecological degradation, poverty and social injustice and it undermines ecological, social and economic capital of communities.

7. “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” World Commission on Economic Development. (1987). Our Common Future. England: Oxford University Press. What is Sustainable Development?

8. Why HEASC? • It is strategic! • It is educational! • It is future–oriented! • It is cost beneficial! • It is the right thing to do!

9. It is strategic • Circle of concern Circle of Influence

10. It is Strategic • Global warming is happening • Population is increasing • Affluence and technology are exported heavily • The associations see themselves as part of the solution

11. It is educational • Core missions are professional development and lifetime learning • There is a responsibility to bring information to the public • The mass media is interested in the who, what, when, why, where, and how of sustainability

12. It is future-oriented • Ecological economics teaches the benefit of total costs of ownership vs. first costs • Good stewardship today means dwindling resources can be made available longer and for more people • Life cycle assessment supports best value purchases in lieu of the old low bid system • If the Feds can do it why can’t HE?

13. It is cost beneficial • HE Associations are here for the long term • Operating costs are rising dramatically • Why reinvent the wheel?

14. It is the right thing to do! • Social justice is a real issue • Socially responsible investing is a very real issue • Spiritual leaders are endorsing the sustainability movement • Many asked “Is the local environment better today than it was when I was a child?”

15. Higher Ed Modeling Sustainabilityas a Fully Integrated Community

16. Higher Education’s Importance to Sustainability • Training future leaders & professionals • Influences K-12 education • New ideas and experimentation • Critical mass & diversity of skills • Crucial but overlooked leverage point • Large economic engine

17. Why Sustainability Now? We are the first generation capable of determining the habitability of the planet for humans and other species.

18. Trends • Students are demanding it • Donors are requesting it • Some prime contractors are requiring it

19. Benefits • Reduced redundancies in planning and products • Increased quality and synergies on projects • Ongoing support community • Ongoing availability of sustainability expertise • Capacity building for all HEA’s to make sustainability a foundation of the association

21. Resource Center • Publications • Press Releases • Link to AASHE resources • Link to NAEP resources • Sustainability websites of members

22. Dimensions of Sustainability • Human Health • Social Justice & Equity • Economic Opportunity for All • Ecological Integrity & Diversity Its not just the environment Stupid!!

23. The imbalance • 20% of the world’s people consume • 80% of its resources

24. Footprint If everyone on Earth lived like the average Canadian, we’d need at least THREE Earths to provide all the materials and energy they use.

25. The worst case And TEN if we lived like the average American... 10

26. Related Organizations • AASHE • ACUPCC • ULSF

27. American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment • Plan to achieve climate neutrality • Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Inventory • Operations, Education & Research • Adopt select emission reduction measures • Public reporting through AASHE www.presidentsclimatecommitment.org

28. Arizona State University Ball State University California State, Chico College of Menominee Nation Drury University Central Washington University Cal Poly, Pomona University of Pennsylvania New York University Norfolk State University Northern Arizona University Oberlin College University of California (10 campuses) University of Florida University of Tennessee U Wisconsin – River Falls UNC Chapel Hill U Washington, Seattle ACUPCC Signatories (135) For complete list of signatories, see www.presidentsclimatecommitment.org/signatories

29. Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher EducationAASHE 200 institutions Professional Development Resources Weekly newsletter (what is happening in HE) www.aashe.org

30. What NAEP gets • Staff training in sustainability • Participation with other members in projects • Opportunity to inform a legislative agenda • Opportunity to shape legislation • Access to resources we could never afford

31. 3 Year Goals for HEASC Members • Teach The Natural Step principles in each association • Develop the capability for each organization to teach and apply the principles in their operations • Get locally sourced/sustainably grown food • Develop convention site selection/operation tool • Promote paperless office or use of recycled paper and soy-based inks as the default for publications • Carbon neutral conferences • Carbon neutral operations

32. Specific Subset of Actions • Make the invisible “Visible” • Single name badge for all organizations • Continuous exchange of knowledge and information • Access to best practices of any sectors in operations, etc. • Ongoing transparency and advertising

33. Greening HEASC Meetings Hotel & Facilities Materials & Giveaways Food Transportation Offsets

34. What does HEASC want from NAEP? • NAEP is the strategic partner which can most immediately and effectively translate sustainable development principles to the campus and the local community. • Consortium purchasing opportunities for their organizations

35. Why NAEP? • Best opportunity to affect the bottom line & deliver the bang for the buck • NAEP is leading by conducting the Sustainability Institute at ASU at the end of April 07 • We are the partner who can literally deliver the goods

36. Why Green Purchasing? • HEASC members do not need endless argument and scientific research to tell them they need to alter their behavior • There is no better way to model the changed behavior than to change your purchasing habits. • HEASC believes the time to act is now! “It is far to late and far to bad to be pessimistic” Dee Hock

37. Purchasing is where the rubber meets the road • HE Institutions spend massive amounts of money 277 b, 2.8% GDP • Purchasing officials control where the money is spent • Purchasing can insist on sound environmental and societal practices • Cases studies show vendors are “getting it” • Competitive advantage drives business models

38. Green Purchasing Encompasses • Recycled content products • Environmentally preferable products • Biobased products • Energy- and water-efficient products • Alternative fuel vehicles/alternative fuels • Non-ozone depleting substances

39. Green Purchasing • Green Purchasing encourages evaluation of multiple environmental impacts of every product throughout its life cycle: • Raw materials acquisition • Production / Manufacturing • Packaging / Distribution • Use & Operation • Maintenance • Disposal (recycling/re-mfg.) / End-of-Life

40. Environmentally Preferable Purchasing "...products or services that have a lesser or reduced effect on human health and the environment when compared with competing products or services that serve the same purpose..." U.S. Federal Executive Order 13101 High Quality Purchasing/Supply Chain Management

41. Do Great Things!!

43. Harvesting rain is easy - Use as irrigation and commode source - Does expensive chemically treated water make sense flushing human waste? Water Opportunities

44. Operational Opportunities • Office furniture and office supplies offer huge opportunities • Services are fertile ground as they offer long term cost savings as well as environmental benefits • Can demonstrate the link between “talking the talk and walking the talk”

45. Buy EnergyStar appliances • They will save you money • They will reduce Co2 emissions • They will have a lower total cost of ownership • Your customers will be happier with performance

46. Invest in durable, maintainable long lived materials

47. Specify the reuse of materials

48. Buy and use recycled materials 90% RECYCLED ALUMINUM RECLAIMED CYPRESS SALVAGED BRICK LOCAL STONE • 50% of building materials recycled content • Materials originate within 500 miles of site • 50% of construction waste is recycled

49. Specify fly ash concrete Waste product from coal fired power plants • Used to replace Portland cement • 9 to11% of global CO2 • Stronger concrete using less water

50. Commit to waste minimization Compost kitchen and food waste and eliminate buying compost and fertilizer Remember that waste = food in the natural system