Sponsors & Support:
Acknowledgments:
- Campus Green Team Project Director:
Leith Sharp - Campus Green Team Project Manager:
Alayne Moody - Campus Green Team Content
Providers:
Alayne Moody, Leith Sharp, Allison Rogers, Emily Sadigh - Campus
Green Team Graphic Design and Web Design Support:
Alayne Moody, Leith Sharp, Sheldon Schwartz and Maggie Husak
Introduction
Students are the most numerous, energetic and visionary force on any college or university campus, and they have the potential to be the most politically powerful as well. Employees are an equally important force on campus because they hold the keys to institutional practices and development. Because staff remain after students graduate, they are also the carriers of institutional learning and memory.
The question guiding this manual is: How can we create frameworks to ignite, resource, organize and focus students and staff to achieve campus sustainability? Two programs developed by the Harvard Green Campus Initiative (HGCI) to address this question are described on this website. They are the Green Living Program (GLP) and Student Internship Program (SIP). We hope you will take what you need from this manual and build upon the models—evolving, adapting and improving them to benefit your campus and allowing you to enjoy the fruits of focused student-staff power.
The Fruits of Success
As shown at Harvard University, a well-resourced and well-managed GLP or SIP can produce real outcomes in the following areas:
- reduced greenhouse gas emissions
- decreased waste
- water conservation
- increased recycling
- increased purchasing of environmentally preferred products
A GLP or SIP will more than pay for itself by reducing the college or university's energy, waste, maintenance and water bills. In addition, the programs will catalyze a new level of environmental literacy and the establishment of earth-friendly habits among many individuals. GLPs and SIPs offer educational and employment opportunities to students and greatly enhance their abilities to serve as committed sustainability practitioners and leaders. For staff and administrators, GLPs and SIPs help identify, implement and capitalize on new, more efficient ways of going about the day-to-day business of running a college or university.
Website Overview
This online manual is designed to help members of other campus communities develop green living and student internship programs that result in the economic, environmental and educational benefits experienced at Harvard. Readers will find a wide range of ideas, approaches and resources to assist them in creating active and exciting learning opportunities that bring students, staff and administrators together to work toward the common goal of campus sustainability. The main chapters of the manual are as follows:
The introductory chapter lays out the global climate change problem and explains why colleges and universities should lead the way in addressing it. The GLP and SIP models developed by the HGCI are described in detail, along with the reasons why they are powerful mechanisms for improving campus sustainability.
This chapter guides the reader through the process of getting a new GLP or SIP off the ground, from building community support for a program that addresses sustainability problems to presenting the idea to potential funders and key decision-makers in the college or university administration.
Here, we share what we have learned at the HGCI about promoting sustainable behaviors in campus residence halls. From the details about how to develop and sustain a GLP to the many great campaigns and activities undertaken by Harvard GLP reps, this section gives you the starter seeds for growing your own successful program.
A SIP is a great way to learn more about the opportunities on your college or university campus to achieve sustainability. This section looks at how to find funding for your program as well as how to define projects, manage interns, relate to sponsors and even turn internships into long-term programs.