Toward Carbon Neutrality

GoGreenLogoToward Carbon Neutrality

The President’s Sustainability Action Committee has been working on a detailed proposal for the President that outlines a strategy for achieving carbon neutrality by the year 2050.

This proposal recommends that Truman reduce its emissions by 50% by the year 2030, and achieve full carbon neutrality by 2050.

The strategy below outlines the draft proposal for how Truman can plan, implement and measure its progress toward carbon neutrality.

Sustainability 2.0 – High-level Overview of the Proposed Plan

  1. Utilize our AASHE membership to take advantage of resources, benchmarking tools, and partnerships.
  2. Complete the STARS Survey and utilize the SIMAP tools to measure our progress on an annual basis.
  3. Join the Climate Leadership Network and consider signing a formal Carbon Commitment (focused on reducing greenhouse gases).
Utilize our AASHE membership to take advantage of resources, benchmarking tools, and partnerships.

Continue to utilize our AASHE (Advancing Sustainability in Higher Education) membership to stay involved in overall issues promoting sustainability on campus. 

Since 2005, AASHE has been guiding higher education institutions in their efforts to build and support a thriving, equitable and ecologically healthy world.  This organization provides a resource hub, benchmarking tools (STARS), training, and vendor partnerships to institutions of higher education.
 

AASHE – The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education

AASHE empowers higher education faculty, administrators, staff and students to be effective change agents and drivers of sustainability innovation. AASHE enables members to translate information into action by offering essential resources and professional development to a diverse, engaged community of sustainability leaders.

 
Complete the STARS Survey and utilize the SIMAP tools to measure our progress on an annual basis.

Truman will continue to utilize the STARS tool to measure progress toward our sustainability goals.  This will involve the following:

  • Timing –
    • Informally complete a yearly STARS update (by March 1st) to ensure Truman is included in the Princeton Review and Sierra Club Cool Schools reviews.
    • Complete a formal STARS certification at least every 4 years.
    • Complete the Greenhouse Gas Emissions (STARS OP-1), and several other operational sections, on an annual basis.
  • Both STARS and the Climate Leadership Network (see below) promote the use of the SIMAP tool and calculators, so we will adopt this tool to measure our progress.
  • Ensure that the STARS information will be reliably gathered on a regular basis by identifying the offices responsible for each reporting area. While PSAC members will be very involved in data collection, we need to ensure this is viewed as a campus responsibility.
 

STARS

The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) is a transparent, self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to measure their sustainability performance.

SIMAP® – Simplifying Sustainability Decisions

SIMAP® is a carbon and nitrogen-accounting platform that can track, analyze, and improve campus-wide sustainability. It includes proven algorithms, based on nearly two decades of work supporting campus inventories with the Campus Carbon Calculator, CarbonMAP and Nitrogen Footprint Tool, and will help create a baseline, benchmark performance, provide reports, set goals, and analyze progress.

 
Join the Climate Leadership Network and consider signing a formal Carbon Commitment (focused on reducing greenhouse gases).  Initially join for a year to ensure this is the best resource for Truman.

Consider joining and utilizing the resources of Second Nature and the Climate Leadership Network to help guide us in our efforts in reducing our carbon emissions.

  • Consider signing a formal Carbon Commitment (focused on reducing greenhouse gases).
  • Second Nature has resources to assist Universities through the planning and transition process.  They offer specific presentations, tools, and peer-to-peer advising.  In addition, there is extensive educational material (webinars, documents, etc.) that detail what resilience might look like for a higher-education institution.
  • An implementation liaison from the institution is assigned to work with the consortium and report progress toward the implementation of the commitment plan.
  • Timing –
 

 Second Nature and the Climate Leadership Network

The Climate Leadership Network is comprised of colleges and universities in nearly every state and the District of Columbia who are taking action on climate change and preparing students through research and education to solve the challenges of the 21st century.