HEASC

Brian K. Yeoman

Higher Education Associations Sustainability Consortium

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

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

HEASC membersAmerican 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)

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.

PurposeLearn from each otherWork together on joint projectsAccess the best practices in sustainabilityAdvance education for a sustainable future

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.

“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?

Why HEASC?

• It is strategic!• It is educational!• It is future–oriented!

• It is cost beneficial!

• It is the right thing to do!

It is strategic• Circle of concern Circle of Influence

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

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

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?

It is cost beneficial

• HE Associations are here for the long term

• Operating costs are rising dramatically

• Why reinvent the wheel?

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?”

Higher Ed Modeling Sustainabilityas a Fully Integrated Community

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

Why Sustainability Now?

We are the first generation capable of determining the habitability of the planet for humans and other species.

Trends

• Students are demanding it

• Donors are requesting it

• Some prime contractors are requiring it

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

Resource Center

•Publications•Press Releases•Link to AASHE resources•Link to NAEP resources•Sustainability websites of members

Dimensions of Sustainability

• Human Health• Social Justice & Equity

• Economic Opportunity for All

• Ecological Integrity & DiversityIts not just the environment Stupid!!

• 20% of the world’s people consume

• 80% of its resources

The imbalance

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.

The worst case

And TEN if we lived like the average American...

Related Organizations

•AASHE•ACUPCC•ULSF

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

ACUPCC Signatories (135)• 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, SeattleFor complete list of signatories, see www.presidentsclimatecommitment.org/signatories

Association for the Advancement of

Sustainability in Higher EducationAASHE• 200 institutions

• Professional Development• Resources• Weekly newsletter (what is happening in HE)

www.aashe.org

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

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

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

Greening HEASC Meetings

Hotel & Facilities

Transportation

FoodMaterials & Giveaways

Offsets

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

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

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

• 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

Purchasing is where the rubber meets the road

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

• 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

Green Green PurchasingPurchasing

"...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

Environmentally Preferable Purchasing

High Quality Purchasing/Supply Chain Management

Do Great Things!!

Water OpportunitiesWater Opportunities

Harvesting rain is easy

- Use as irrigation and commode source

- Does expensive chemically treated water make sense flushing human waste?

Operational OpportunitiesOperational 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”

Buy EnergyStar appliancesBuy 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

Invest in durable, maintainable Invest in durable, maintainable long lived materialslong lived materials

Specify the reuse of materialsSpecify the reuse of materials

• 50% of building materials recycled content• Materials originate within 500 miles of site• 50% of construction waste is recycled

LOCALSTONE

SALVAGEDBRICK

RECLAIMEDCYPRESS

90% RECYCLEDALUMINUM

Buy and use recycled materialsBuy and use recycled materials

Specify fly ash concreteSpecify 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

Commit to waste minimizationCommit to waste minimization

Compost kitchen and food waste and eliminate buying compost

and fertilizer

Remember that waste = food in the natural system

Change the paradigm from revenue to environmental stewardship

Reengineer your recycling Reengineer your recycling programprogram

Green Purchasing will beGreen Purchasing will be

A journey. . . .

. . . . not a destination

Changed minds

Is what is required for

Changed behavior to occur