Student and Class Projects
The Office of Sustainability regularly consults on class projects related to sustainability. The following are some of those projects:
Environmental Policy Workshop
Throughout the spring 2009 semester, Office of Sustainability staff consulted with Environmental Policy Workshop (PUAF 660) graduate students who sought to identify cost effective strategies for improving the environmental performance of University operations. The student's work covered a bredth of topics including a water efficient bus washing station, low-mow meadow creation, traffic alternatives for Campus Drive, and 31 other recommendations. The students presented their work to the vice presidents of Student Affairs and Administrative Affairs, among other University administrators.
Campus Creek Restoration
The project to restore Campus Creek was an endeavor aimed at fostering support for sustainable landscaping on University of Maryland grounds. Campus Creek runs through the College Park campus near Comcast Center. The surrounding areas have been highly developed and the ecosystem has been allowed to degenerate into a bare shadow of what it once was. The small wooded space around the stream has a high percentage of invasive plants and high levels of soil erosion from storm water discharge.
During spring 2009, student volunteers worked toward improving the ecosystem along high traffic areas by removing and replacing the invasive plants with natives. Attention was not only being directed towards the environmental aspects of the site but also the aesthetic qualities. Making this an attractive part of campus in a sustainable fashion helps show that campus grounds can be more ecologically sound and beautiful with a little attention.
QUEST Teams Develop Sustainability Metrics and Carpooling System
During the fall 2008 semester, the Office of Sustainability worked with two QUEST teams to develop projects that would enhance campus sustainability. The QUEST-Metrics team developed a list of 25 Campus Sustainability Metrics, which will be used to monitor the progress of the University of Maryland in reducing its environmental impacts, enhancing social equity, and ensuring continued economic development of the University. The team studied the sustainability metrics used by leading corporations and various colleges and universities to create the list, but also considered measures of sustainability that are unique to a campus in our region, such as protection of the Anacostia River and Chesapeake Bay.
The QUEST-Carpool team worked with the Department of Facilities Management (FM) to develop a smart carpool system for the hundreds of employees within the Department. This team hosted focus groups with FM employees to determine the barriers to carpooling and to learn what sort of incentives employees might need to share rides to and from work. Based on their surveys, the team identified existing online carpooling services that address the needs of the employees.