Sustainability Advisory Committee Membership 2008-2009
Tyler Blangiardo '09
Robert Bossange, Assistant Vice-President for Administration
Beth DeSombre, Frost Professor of Environmental Studies
Karen Doherty, Resident Director
Andrea Herbin '10
Jessica Hunter, Program Coordinator, Environmental Studies
Kristina Jones, Director, Botanical Gardens
Jason LaPrade, Manager, Food Services
Leslye Penticoff '11
Kate Salop, Executive Assistant to the President, co-chair
Susan Wang '09
Patrick Willoughby, Associate Director of Physical Plant Administration, co-chair
Anli Yang '09, President, WEED
Sustainability Advisory Committee and Community Awareness
The Sustainability Advisory Committee developed a formal policy statement which was adopted by the president in February 2007. This statement, which reads: "Wellesley College considers environmental sustainability to be an important component of its core mission. As part of this commitment, the college will consider sustainability as a factor in all institutional decisions. Members of the Wellesley community have individual and collective responsibility for environmental stewardship." is now being incorporated across the college.
This website contains a detailed, but not exhaustive, narrative of the progress which has been achieved by the college thus far and identifies a number of sustainable initiatives we may pursue in the near future. The list will change over time as the college continually evaluates its goals and in light of changing technologies in this ever-evolving field.
Initiatives
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Develop a First Year Orientation program to educate incoming students
about sustainable initiatives and goals at Wellesley
College.
Implementation: Provide information on recycling, energy and water conservation, as well as general information on the work of the committee and relevant student organizations. Members of the committee participated in the First Year Orientation program in 2007 providing information and distributed personnel recycling bins. This was well received and will be a part of future orientations. The program will be augmented and refined especially as student help is engaged.
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Prioritize and select a feasible number of sustainable initiatives for
the committee to help implement.
Implementation: These must be primarily driven by the institutional priorities, but will incorporate the expertise and enthusiasm of committee members and the community at large.
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Continue to integrate sustainable initiatives and investigations within
relevant academic courses.
Implementation: Coordinate with professors through the Sustainability Committee to attain mutual goals. (ongoing)
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Review, prioritize and implement feasible sustainable project
initiatives including relevant student projects.
Implementation: This will be one of the functions of the Sustainability Committee in cooperation with other departments within the college. The “Green Fund” established by the Class of 1957 will be utilized to fund some of these initiatives as prioritized by the committee. Other funding will need to be identified as additional initiatives are prioritized. Implementation began Spring semester of 2007 and will be ongoing to achieve sustainable goals. Examples include: Vending Misers, energy awareness stickers, Eco Rep Program, low flow shower heads, limiting of bottled water, Eco Guide for the college, etc
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Verify and update data on the college’s overall carbon footprint to
provide an accurate baseline. Investigate all associated costs to
achieve carbon neutrality noted in the Presidential Climate Commitment
Agreement.
Implementation: Utilize current and future information provided by faculty and students. Continue to refine and verify data being utilized through various departments on campus. (2007-2008).
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Participate in external and internal events that increase community
awareness and provide an incentive for changed behavior.
Implementation: Participate in Recyclemania, sponsor annual Sustainability Month programming and on-campus energy competitions. (Ongoing)