University Business - June 2011 - (Page 8)

E D I TO R ’ S N OT E Sustainability as a Way of Life T HIS ISSUE MARKS OUR SIXTH ANNUAL “GREEN guide,” looking at sustainability trends and technologies at campuses around the country. Some students even base enrollment decisions on an institution’s commitment to the environment. “Green” and “sustainability” seem to have become ingrained in the collective higher education consciousness—which, of course, was the idea all along. This was brought home to me in a conversation I had with Karli Grant, a product manager for Campus Management. Grant recently participated in a University Business web seminar on sustainability for an audience of several hundred viewers around the country. It focused on a number of steps that colleges and universities could implement that would have a significant impact on energy efficiency, cost savings, and carbon reduction. Mercer University (Ga.) is a good example. The institution At one point in the webinar, Grant asked the audience a simple doesn’t have a formalized green IT program, yet President William question: “How formalized is a green strategic plan at your institu- Underwood has a longstanding commitment to conserving energy, tion?” Nearly 11 percent said they had a published “green” strategic buying energy-efficient computers, and recycling electronic and plan that spans the institution and actively involves all departments. other waste. The school has even created an environmental supAbout a quarter of those surveyed (24.7) said a “green” strategic plan port fund to award grants for various environmental improvement had not yet been fully rolled out, while initiatives on campus. It’s not carved in 15.4 percent said their strategy is “somestone; it’s just what they do. Nearly half of institutions what formalized but efforts fall mostly to So, while some schools may have IT or other singular departments.” surveyed reported that backed off their aggressiveness in formal“I think I was most surprised that 49.2 ized programs, they approach sustaintheir green IT strategy is percent said their strategy was not formalability in other ways. “They still strive for ized,” Grant says. “I suspect there were a not formalized. LEED certification when they are buildcouple reasons for this. At some instituing new facilities,” Grant notes. “Things tions, I think it may be reflective of the like energy efficiency and water conservachanging priorities regarding the economy over the last few years. In tion are part of the planning from the earliest design stage.” the early and mid-2000s, there was a lot of emphasis around going Let me now pose the question to University Business readers. green. The technologies being developed were known to be costly, Has your commitment to sustainability changed in recent years? but were determined to be valuable. Then, with the downturn in the If so, then how? Have you had to scale back any green initiatives? economy, some institutions had to make difficult decisions regard- Or, like Mercer, is sustainability just part of the fabric of your ing their spending, and long-term gains of energy efficiency may not institution? Let me know, and we’ll publish your thoughts in an have stood up to short-terms gains on campus.” upcoming issue. The other reason, she surmised, is that not all institutions may feel the need to have a formalized plan, but still recognize the value of being “green.” In other words, sustainability might already be a way of life at these schools, whether it is spelled out in a formal document or not. Write to Tim Goral at tgoral@universitybusiness.com. LIM College admissions found the next best thing to cloning. You could be a Model of Efficiency Too! See page 78. 8 | June 2011 universitybusiness.com http://www.universitybusiness.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of University Business - June 2011

University Business - June 2011
Contents
Editor's Note
College Index
Ad Index
Behind the News
Sense of Place
Financial Aid
Independent Outlook
Four Fearsome Risks
Safra One Year Later
The Power of Green
Viewpoint
What's New
Internet Technology
End Note

University Business - June 2011