Sustainability at ASU: Going Green in the Office

“…be the change you want to see in the world…”

Mahatma Gandhi

Bonny Bentzin and Betty LombardoUniversity Sustainability Practices

This Talk• Not a talk about a crisis – nor to debate climate

change• Will be about solutions and opportunities

– What is Sustainability?– ASU’s Sustainability Goals– Integrating Sustainability into our organization – Green Offices– Green Events– Resources

What is Sustainability?

Economy

Society

Environment

Sustainability “Defined”

"If you get right down to it, sustainability is really the study of the interconnectedness of all things."

Barbara LitherUS Environmental Protection Agency

“Sustainability is a way to grow & prosper while reducing the stress on the planet.”

Michael CrowPresident, Arizona State University

Sustainability is about taking a long-term view and then putting efficient business practices in

place. This is our approach at ASU.Bonny Bentzin

Director, University Sustainability Practices

A Personal Responsibility

• “Live fully – tread Lightly”• “Treat the earth as if we intend to stay”• “Don’t eat our seed corn”• “A balance between economic, environmental

and social imperatives”• “Planning for five generations”• “Placing humans back in the environment”

this is not a political issue…..

Barriers to Sustainability“There’s no proof”

“Doesn’t affect/benefit me”“Its all hype”

“Too expensive”“Its not trendy” or “Its too crunchy”

“Its too much work” or “I don’t have time”“We’ve been fine up to now”

“It doesn’t matter - it’s too late”

Ecological Footprint

If everyone in the world had the standard of living of the average American, we would need 3.2 planet earths to sustain life today

…but population and per capita energy is rising

ASU’s Sustainability Goals

Sustainability Goals 1. Carbon Neutrality

– American College and University President’s Climate Commitment (ACUPCC)

– Energy – Purchased, Site Generated, Natural Gas

– Transportation

– Solid Waste, Refrigerants, Fertilizers

Sustainability Goals2. Zero Waste

– Solid waste• Reduce• Reuse• Repurpose• Recycle• Front-end elimination

– Water waste• Low-water use appliances• Water-capture• Largely still to be defined

Sustainability Goals3.Active Engagement

– Using our campus as a living laboratory

– Engagement tools

– 81K (+/-) Change Agents

• There are 68,000 students plus faculty & staff who can change the world one by one. We link the ASU community around solutions to walk the talk.

Sustainability Goals4. Principled Practice

– Expressing our value system in operating our campus

– Procurement, Cleaning Practices

– Food, Campus Harvest

Evaluations• “Sustainability” has been added as criteria to evaluations

– This was given a “trial run” in the past year• Will be more fully implemented this year

– Will not penalize • Next year – full implementation• “Tools” are under-development

– Manager/Staff check-lists (under review)– Online education (1/10)

• Evaluation will include three components– Support of general University efforts (such as recycling)– Support of efforts as it pertains to your unique role– “Extra efforts”

Integrating Sustainability into

our OrganizationIt will take everyone – you all have a responsibility

Basic Philosophy• Build a holistic strategy – using YOUR core values

• Three spheres – “family”, clients, vendors• Audits – Benchmarking is critical• Waste = Lost Money and added risk• Challenge = Opportunity• Set short and long-term goals and keep raising the bar• Look out for Sustainability Band-aids and

“Greenwashing”• If at first you don’t succeed….

The Approach• Educate• Measure• Strategize – Set Goals• Implement• Publicize/Promote• Evaluate• Set New Goals – Raise the Bar• We are all change agents

“Nobody makes a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could only do a little.”-Sir Edmund Burke (1729-1797)

Integrating Sustainability - 4 P’s:Products(& Technology)

+ Practices + Policies + Philosophies(Culture &

Leadership)

Styrofoam Vs.

RecyclableVs.

Compostable cup

What do you do with the

cup?

How do you measure the impact of the cup and your involvement

with that cup?

Why do you care about the cup?

Step out of your silos (primary challenge)• Communication

Breakdown• Lost opportunity• Prevents efficiency• Creates defects and

added risk.• Barriers to collaboration

aka innovation.All organizations have their own version of silos….

Green Office• Did you know?• Waste Reduction• Transportation• Purchasing• Energy• Cleaning and Breakrooms• Publications• Quality of Life

Please remember: Baby steps count!

Did you know?You already work in a GREEN office!

• New computers are Energy Star™ and Epeat™ certified.• Low flow water fixtures have been installed in many buildings.• Carpet is 100% recyclable with no volatile organic compounds

and no VOC’s from paint on renovations and new builds.• Green cleaning products are utilized.• Paper from “Stores” is 30% post consumer recycled content, or

100% post consumer recycled content.• Your furniture may be recyclable.• Your Canon copier can scan to e-mail.

Waste Reduction• Reduce – Repurpose - Reuse - Recycle• Share supplies through ASU SunSET: Surplus

Exchange and Transfer and/or in a designated area in your office.

• Print or copy to both sides of a page whenever possible. Set this as a default. Use visual reminder.

• Reuse paper that has text on one side whenever appropriate.

• Use inter-office instead of regular envelopes whenever possible, and promote the redistribution of inter-office envelopes in office or department.

Waste Reduction• Reduce paper margins in order to decrease the

length of documents that are printed.

• Reduce junk mail with Ecological Mail Coalition on Mail Services site: http://uabf.asu.edu/mail_ecological

• Use electronic documents.

• Reusable cups and mugs – “Lug a Mug Program”

Transportation• Try public transportation (U-Pass), ASU Shuttle, ridesharing,

bicycling, and Zipcar for personal use.• Consider a shared bicycle or office Zipcar account for local

business use. (ASU Bike Co-op)• Schedule meetings to match mass transit arrival times.• Work-related travel - explore greener transport options through

PlanetTran (taxis) and Zipcar.• Work-related lodging - consider lodging with one of the

following certifications: US EPA Energy Star Label for Hospitality, LEED, Green Hotels Association, or EcoRoom.

Purchasing• Office Supplies- opt for eco-friendly products.

• Avoid highly packaged items.

• Reuse, return or recycle packaging materials.

• Buy Local, organic (where appropriate).

• Buy fair trade/organic or Rain Forest Alliance certified coffee.

• For printing and copying, use paper containing AT LEAST 30% recycled content (100% preferred).

Purchasing• Before purchasing office furniture, such as file cabinets,

desks, etc., check ASU Surplus Properties.

• When purchasing new furniture consider “green” options.

• Purchase new (or used) appliances and equipment (printers, copiers, microwaves, etc), that are Energy Star or EPEATcertified models.

• Use office supplies that are made with AT LEAST 30% recycled content.

• Reminder – review ASU Green Purchasing Guidelines.

Energy• Shut off monitors, computers, printers or copiers and/or

manually send into energy-saving modes (standby or hibernate) when not in use and at night.

• Turn off lights when not in use during the day and at night, including in common areas such as kitchens, conference rooms, storage closets, and bathrooms.

• In our desk lamps use CFLs (Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs). To dispose of CFLs enclose them in a plastic bag and contact EH&S.

• Consolidate printers and other electronic devices into networked systems.

FY 2008 Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Incl. Transp.) for All Campuses

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

350,000

1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Year

Met

ric T

ons

CO

2 E

q.Transportation

Refrigerants

Solid Waste

Agriculture

Fleet

On-campusStationary (NaturalGas) Purchased ChilledWater

PurchasedElectricity

Energy

• Pull blinds on windows at the appropriate time.

• Use power strips as central turn-off points in individual work stations and switch them off each night.

• Unplug microwaves, coffee makers, and other small appliances at night or are programmed to shut off through a timer. Avoid these appliances in individual offices – share with other departments.

• Resources: Campus Metabolism Virtual Room.

Cleaning and Breakrooms• Purchase napkins and paper towels with at least 30 percent

recycled content.• Use environmentally preferable (biodegradable) dishwashing

soap. • Replace bottled water service or reverse osmosis water

treatment system with a charcoal or other simple water filtration system.

• When purchasing supplies, look for :– Renewable, non-toxic, plant based natural ingredients– Chlorine and ammonia free, non-aerosol– Biodegradable, phosphate free– No animal ingredients, cruelty free– Hypoallergenic, recycled, recyclable

Publications• Publish newsletters electronically. • Use document sharing sites, read review, track changes for

team projects.• For all printing completed outside of the office, request paper

that is AT LEAST 30 percent recycled content (50 – 100% preferred), use vegetable based inks and use a printer that is FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified.

• Design publications that require fewer varnishes and coatings.• Document/publicize your choices. • Use a Paper Choice Calculator.

– www.papercalculator.org

Quality of Life • Healthy workers

– Staff Health and Wellness Program• Healthy Work Environment

– Green cleaning products– Natural Daylighting– Indoor Air Quality– Flexible Work Spaces

• Community Embeddedness– Volunteering– Sense of Place - On-campus “field-trips”

• Learn why things are the way the are. Then explore improvement opportunities.

Green Events• Planning• Transportation• Lodging• Waste/Recycling• Promotional Items• Food Service Ware• Advertising/Signage• Communication• Evaluation

Green Events• Planning

– Ensure that the planning committee is committed to green the event.– Select caterers and vendors that have a commitment to sustainability

practices. • Transportation

– Use electric or hybrid vehicles to shuttle VIP’s.• Lodging

– Recommend hotels that are within walking distance of ASU.• Waste/Recycling

– Consider reusable options. Recycle paper, cardboard, hard plastics (e.g., bottles, plates, etc – no bags) metals and glass.

– Use large beverage containers instead of individual water bottles. – Avoid “boxed” meals.– Use bulk condiments.

• Promotional Items– Select items made from recycled materials or natural items. (flowers,

cactus, quartz, pumpkins, pine cones, etc). – Email printserv@asu.edu for promotional vendors who provide eco-

friendly promotional items.

Green Events• Food Service Ware

– Use paper products that contain post consumer materials, are designated as unbleached, no chlorine bleach, or oxygen bleached, or are made from a non tree source.

– Use low-waste water options – avoid disposable water bottles.• Advertising/Signage

– ASU Print & Imaging Lab which is located at the Polytechnic Campus. Received certifications from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI).

• Communication– Tell your sustainability story.

• Evaluation– Tabulate or record the impact of your sustainability efforts.

We can’t do this alone…

What’s your legacy?

Collaboration –Partnerships are ESSENTIAL

Useful ResourcesBooks• Mid-Course Correction, Ray Anderson• From Green to Gold, Esty/Winston• Ecology of Commerce, Paul Hawken• Cradle to Cradle, William McDonough• Leading Change Toward Sustainability, Bob Doppelt• 1001 Ways to Save the Earth, Joanna Yarrow

Organizations• www.greenbiz.com• www.aashe.com (the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher

Education)• http://www.presidentsclimatecommitment.org/ (ACUPCC – President’s Climate

Commitment)• http://www.gemi.org/ (Global Environment Management Initiative)• www.papercalculator.org (Paper Choice Calculator)

Many more…..

ASU Resource Sites• Global Institute of Sustainability –

http://sustainability.asu.edu– weekly listserve - http://sustainability.asu.edu/events– Sustainability Toolbox -

http://sustainability.asu.edu/campus– Pocket Change –

http://sustainability.asu.edu/docs/gios/ASU-pocketchange.pdf

• Sustainability Points of Pride– www.asu.edu/tour/sustainability

• Campus Metabolism– http://cm.asu.edu

ASU Resource Sites• Campus Harvest

– http://uabf.asu.edu/arboretum_volunteer• SunSET: Surplus Exchange and Transfer

– http://www.asu.edu/sunset• Recycling

– http://recycle.asu.edu• Purchasing Guidelines

– http://uabf.asu.edu/buying_products_services• Transportation

– http://uabf.asu.edu/parking_transportation• Energy –

– http://energy.asu.edu• Ecological Mail Coalition on Mail Services site:

http://uabf.asu.edu/mail_ecological• Dining -

– http://www.campusdish.com/en-US/CSMW/ArizonaState/

Questions?

Discussion

Contact information:Bonny.Bentzin@asu.edu

Betty.Lombardo@asu.edu

Thank you!