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November 2007 The Greening of GW
Presidential Task Force Is University’s Newest Environmental Initiative By Julia Parmley At 4.5 billion years old, the Earth is beginning to show its age. Warmer temperatures, melting polar ice caps, and intensifying storm cycles are signs the planet is feeling the effects of overuse—and the University is doing something about it. The GW community is coming together to promote environmental conservation in academic programs, facilities construction and management, and a wide range of ongoing operations with the intention of placing the University at the forefront of sustainability efforts. On Oct. 3, President Steven Knapp announced the formation of a Presidential Task Force on Sustainability. Composed of students, faculty, and staff members, the task force is charged with developing recommendations to enhance GW’s environmental stewardship and climate change initiatives, as well as examining and suggesting improvements in relevant University policies. The presidential task force is co-chaired by Mark Starik, professor and chairman of strategic management and public policy in GW’s School of Business, and Lew Rumford, senior advisor for business development. “GW is committed to operating all its programs and activities in ways that express its responsibilities as a preeminent institutional citizen of the nation’s capital,” says Knapp. The members will spend the next nine months evaluating GW’s existing academic and administrative programs and will develop recommendations addressing energy conservation, resource and waste management, sustainability awareness, research programs, learning/curricular opportunities, procurement policies, and service initiatives and partnerships. It will issue a report on June 1, 2008. The task force complements a host of ongoing green initiatives at the University. Academic programs focused on the environment include the Law School’s Environmental Law Program, which is ranked 12th in the nation; the School of Business’ Environment and Social Sustainability Initiative; and the School of Engineering and Applied Science’s Environmental and Energy Management Program. LeRoy C. “Lee” Paddock, associate dean for environmental law studies and a member of the sustainability task force, says that GW's Environmental Law Program is one of the “pioneering” programs in the field, having been established almost 40 years ago. “Today, the Law School is expanding the program to better address the serious international environmental problems, such as climate change, and critical national environmental problems such as restoration of the Chesapeake Bay,” says Paddock. “Our goal for the program is help provide the skills needed by the next generation of environmental leaders to successfully tackle these difficult and complex problems.” Making sure the University is adhering to environmental regulations is partly the job of GW’s Energy and Environmental Office. Manager Doug Spengel says the office ensures the University complies with myriad environmental laws for air emissions, water, and fuel oil, including those set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and District Department of the Environment (DDOE), which conducts on-site inspections. The office is also taking steps to conserve energy on campus. Using a grant from the DDOE, Spengel says 4,500 fluorescent light bulbs and 1,400 ballasts—devices limiting the amount of current flowing in an electric circuit—were changed in eight academic buildings in an effort to conserve power. “It was designed to save an estimated 400,000 kilowatt hours of energy a year,” he says. “If we can use less energy to light buildings, we can lower our emissions.” Sustainability also will be an essential component in future campus development. Recently approved by the D.C. Zoning Commission, the Foggy Bottom Campus Plan: 2006–2025 embodies sustainable design in construction, landscaping, and maintenance; transit-oriented development; and neighborhood planning principles. GW is the first university in the District of Columbia to agree to a minimum Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) score of 16 points for all new construction. Student organizations, including Net Impact and Green GW, also are spearheading sustainability education and awareness programs. “Today’s students are the future leaders of the country, and they’re interested in furthering environmental causes,” says Brett Kaplan, a graduate student in the School of Business and vice president of environmental initiatives at Net Impact, a national organization comprising business students who believe in the “triple bottom line”—social, economic, and environmental. “You can make an economic impact while fostering citizenship.” Net Impact members serve on the boards of local nonprofit organizations, coordinate community service projects, hold fundraisers to provide additional resources for interns working with triple bottom line programs, and campaign to increase coursework focused on the triple bottom line. One of the group’s major initiatives is a green roof on Duquès Hall. Kaplan says the roof, which would be partially covered with plants, would reduce energy costs, absorb heat, extend roof life, and improve storm water management. “The purpose is to provide a tangible product to demonstrate that ‘green business’ is here to stay,” he says. The GW Sustainability Coalition, a group composed of representatives from all the environmental organizations on campus, meets regularly to discuss campus-wide efforts. “The mission of the Sustainability Coalition is to present a unified voice for sustainability,” says coalition chair and GW student Jeff Gustafson. Gustafson, a senior, says one of the most active organizations, Green GW, is focusing its efforts this year on awareness, environmental policy, and training students in environmental politics. Last spring, Green GW joined other student groups to participate in GW’s Green Move Out, in which students recycled and donated items at the end of the academic year. The University also received first place in D.C. in the Environmental Protection Agency’s RecycleMania 2007 competition in the per capita classic category, recycling 17 pounds of materials per student over a 10-week period. “If we do not respect the concepts of sustainability and environmental stewardship, there will be nothing left for future generations,” says Gustafson.
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