Transcript Chesapeake College Sustainability Roundtable

Chesapeake College
Sustainability Roundtable
Monday, March 23, 2009
Presentation by William E. Kirwan
Chancellor, University System of Maryland
Sustainability Ethos
• Every year we are burning fossil fuel carbon that took 1 million
years to deposit
– rate is rapidly increasing
• Even without considering the impact on the Earth’s climate
– we will soon hit the point of maximum extraction - - “peak oil”
– we will soon be running out of this precious resource
– we need alternative sources of energy
• The world’s natural resources are limited
• Human sustainability requires natural resource sustainability
Environmental Sustainability Initiative
• Reducing the rate of climate change represents a great challenge for
this and future generations
• The science is clear:
– Greenhouse gas emissions increasing faster than worst-case
scenarios of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
– Changes in climate, rise in sea levels, and the melting of the
polar ice caps occurring faster than scientists forecasted
• Vast majority of scientists and public believe action is required
• Higher education, which generates knowledge and understanding,
must lead, address doubts, and take direct action
USM’s Environmental Sustainability Initiative
The Three Pillars
• Programs
– Undergraduate curriculum / general competence
– Graduate programs / innovation and coherence
– Environmental research
• Practices
– Campus-based mitigation efforts
– Green design for new facilities and renovations
• Policies
– State’s Climate Change Commission
– Chesapeake Bay restoration
– Clearinghouse for policy expertise
Programs
• Programmatically we are striving to:
– Provide instructional programs and experiences for students
to prepare them to be good environmental stewards
– Provide specialized education for the experts of the future
– Enhance research in global science and sustainability
• Pleased that Building a Sustainability Curriculum is a topic
for discussion at this Roundtable
– This curriculum must extend to all students from K-12 to
graduate schools
Programs: Examples
•
University of Maryland, College Park
– Joint Global Change Research Institute
– Center for Environmental Research
•
•
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
–
–
Center for Earth Systems Technology
Goddard Earth Sciences and Technology Center
•
•
Degree in Environmental Studies/Environmental Science
Towson University
–
•
Nation's first Master’s in Sustainable Energy Engineering
Center for Geographic Information Sciences
Frostburg State University
–
Sustainable Energy Research Facility
Practices
• Institutions committed to “Going Green”
• Require new buildings to achieve at least a LEED Silver certification.
– The Kendall Center at the Universities at Shady Grove is LEED Gold
– The new Law School at University of Baltimore will be LEED Gold
• The Presidents of all 13 USM institutions have endorsed the American College
and University Presidents Climate Commitment
– One of the few university systems 100 percent aboard
– Most institutions have completed their greenhouse gas emission inventories
– Currently developing their Climate Action Plans
• Campuses are also a driving force for Smart Growth in Maryland
– Making their communities livable
Practices: Examples
• USM campuses achieving greater energy efficiency and
implementing “green” practices:
– Salisbury University
• Partnership with Pepco to implement campus-wide energy
conservation measures
– UMCP
• Campus shuttles run on a mixture of biodiesel fuel
manufactured from waste cooking oil
• “Buy green" program targets purchasing energy efficient and
environmentally friendly products
– Frostburg
• Employs alternative energy sources, such as solar and wind
Policy
• To advance effective policies, USM experts are working at local, state,
national and international levels
• I served on the Maryland Commission on Climate Change that
submitted its report last year.
– Numerous USM experts contributed to the working groups
– UMCES President Don Boesch led the Scientific and Technical
Working Group that produced the Assessment of Impacts of
Climate Change in Maryland
• USM faculty participating in National Academies America’s Climate
Choices study and its summit in Washington next week
• USM faculty serve on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
Policy: Examples
• UMCP and Towson economists conducted study that
paved the way for Maryland to join in the Northeastern
Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative
– implemented a cap-and-trade system to reduce emissions
from power plants
• UMCES and the Wye Center’s College of Agriculture and
Natural Resources are key participants in Governor
O’Malley’s BayStat program
– Monitoring and accelerating efforts to restore the Bay
Conclusion
• USM uniquely suited to help tackle this issue
– Outstanding research universities
– Committed and involved faculty, staff and students
– University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, known for cuttingedge research on environmental issues
• Don Boesch, President of UMCES, leading USM initiative
– Vice Chancellor for Environmental Sustainability
• USM—and partners in higher education—will play pivotal role in
advancing sustainability
– Environmentally friendly practices on our campuses
– Environmentally focused educational and research programs
– Environmental expertise provided to policy makers