Sustainability has emerged as the most encompassing issue of the 21st century. The availability of water, alternative energy, materials recycling, resource management, infrastructure resilience, social equity – and many related concerns – are now being addressed for the first time from the holistic and long-term view of sustainability. The commitment to preserving the quality of life for current generations as well as for future generations is now shared by a worldwide assemblage of individuals, communities, businesses, and governments.1 Remarkably, this movement has coincided with the appearance of accelerating climate changes that are also truly global in magnitude.
In the United States, over 560 universities and colleges are providing critical leadership in sustainability through the Presidents Climate Commitment.2 Sustainability is arguably one of the strongest energizing forces on campuses, involving coalitions of students, faculty, staff, and administrators.3 Programs for “greening the campus” are widespread among American institutions, and their impact will be profound. The University of Arizona has clearly been a leader in many areas of sustainability for more than a decade and has recently been recognized as one of the top six universities having a comprehensive approach to sustainability.4 The 2009-2013 UA Strategic Plan states: “The University of Arizona’s strengths in water, environmental science, energy and sustainable engineering practices must be mobilized to meet the challenges of growth.” In September 2007, President Shelton affirmed the University’s commitment to sustainability by establishing the Campus Sustainability Committee which now coordinates research, curriculum, operations, planning, and building design across the entire campus. However, the Committee recognizes that our lasting contributions will likely be judged also by the unique vision we create – and can clearly communicate.
Fundamental to our approach to sustainability at the University of Arizona is that we believe that we must practice what we instruct. Ultimately, concepts of sustainability are likely to have little use unless we demonstrate the reality of their impact. This commitment to practice by the Campus Sustainability Committee is a core value that we believe is shared the entire university community, especially as a land grant institution. Therefore, the Committee calls for the transformation of the University of Arizona campus as a living, learning laboratory for sustainability. Our university must be community that is learning and demonstrating “what works” for sustainability through specific projects, case studies, demonstrations, and best practices which are delivered through an innovative curriculum. Importantly, we also need to partner with a broader community beyond the campus borders to prove the effectiveness of our approaches.
The mandate for a sustainability laboratory is inherently connected to the uniqueness of our location. The arid Southwest has presented enormous challenges to human resilience and adaptation, but yet there have been over 4,000 years of human history evident below “A” mountain. This ancient laboratory for human existence provides a profound and inspirational reference for our efforts at the University of Arizona.
Red and blue have illuminated the modern banners of the University of Arizona. The University of Arizona is now committed to the concept of “greening the campus” in all aspects [“red and blue go green” has been a frequently adopted slogan], but the Campus Sustainability Committee would seek to remind our community of a deeply historical reference not necessarily to the color green but rather a more thought provoking shade: sage.5 Our experience more clearly resonates with this characteristic variance on the color green that is prevalent in Arizona. It reflects the both the reality of our location and the persistent tenacity of life in general in the Southwest environment. In addition, the use of this word adroitly conveys our need to impart wisdom and learning: the members of our university community must all endeavor to become sages who develop solutions for sustainability. The practicality of our approach through a living, learning laboratory will focus on the demonstrable impacts of sustainability projects.
We propose that the vision for the University of Arizona Campus Sustainability initiative and our “signature” would be best be embodied by:
This vision embodies our university heritage and our locale in the arid Southwest. It emphasizes the impact of the practice of sustainability through real-world projects, best practices, and community involvement. The scope is comprehensive and collaborative. Transformative roles for students, faculty, and staff will be created as they develop our “sustainability laboratory” for our community both on and off campus.
1 In his most recent book, Blessed Unrest, Paul Hawken reveals that at the start of the 21st century there are now an estimated two million organizations throughout the world committed to the goals of ecological sustainability and social justice.
2 www.aashe.org
3New York Times, July 27, 2008. The article noted that a Princeton Review survey of 10,300 college applicants revealed that 63% said that “a college’s commitment to the environment could affect their decision to go there.”
4 “Campus Environment 2008: A National Report Card on Sustainability in Higher Education”, National Wildlife Federation. The press release of August 21, 2008 by WFL cited the University of Arizona as being one of six schools (out of 1,068 institutions involved in the studies conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International) having high numbers of exemplary marks for environmentally progressive and sustainable operations.
5The editorial board of the very first UA student newspaper published in January 1899 briefly carried the name “The Sage Green and Silver”. An editorial stated: “The origin of the name lies in the established colors of the university. We think those colors well chosen, as they show originality and individuality. They bear a local significance and are suggestive of our resources. The sage brush is distinctly our and although no one will envy us its possession, we feel it a friend for is it not every with us in the remotest wastes? “Silver” symbolizes our mining industries which are the main stay of our territory and the student of which is an important branch of the institution.”
© 2008 Arizona Board of Regents
