AASHE 2011 Creating Sustainable Campuses & Communities Conference

Earlier this month, almost 2,100 attendees met in Pittsburgh, PA for AASHE 2011 Creating Sustainable Campuses and Communities Conference. Just like most college campuses, the AASHE conference was full of activity and spirit. Conference attendees ranged from student representatives and professors, to facility operators and sustainability directors. Renewable Choice was proud to be one of the exhibitors supporting AASHE. Other exhibitors included large brands such as: UPS and Glad, sustainability consulting firms including the Brendle Group, and product manufacturers touting everything from bikes to water filtration.

Campuses have huge opportunities to support sustainability. They simultaneously have a responsibility to educate their students on principles of sustainability so that as students graduate, they take with them the experience and knowledge to implement sustainability in their careers. Organizations such as AASHE, are encouraging environmental sustainability, providing resources for campuses and recognizing leaders and success stories. This organization is helping students view sustainability as a norm for operations and business, not an exception.

An impressive group of key note speakers including, Dr. Wangari Maathai, Majora Carter, Bill McKibben, Dr. Tim White, and Sandra Steinberger offered their experience and research as inspiration and knowledge for those in attendance. After hearing about their accomplishments and experiences on ways to improve sustainability efforts and environmental responsibility, students and faculty alike walked away with immediately applicable ideas.

In the main exhibit hall, schools had the opportunity to hang posters describing their efforts to reduce environmental impact. These efforts ranged from bike share programs, to recycling and composting, to sophisticated energy management systems. Stanford’s plan to build a campus-wide temperature regulations system was on display too. It was clear that much time, brain power, and energy had been dedicated to making these ideas a reality and measuring the positive impacts they generated.

Thank you to those of you who stopped by Renewable Choice's booth and entered to win a iPod Nano. Congratulations to the winner, Lydia Vandenbergh, Program Coordinator at Penn State University. Enjoy your iPod Nano, Lydia!

If you are interested in finding out how to green your campus, check out our free educational resource: 6 Simple Steps: How to Improve Sustainability on Your Campus. And for those of you who requested more information about our new carbon accounting software, Mosaic, you can view a demo here, or sign up for a free trial here.

Jamie Dandar is Director of Market Development for Renewable Choice.