The University News

Great article emphasizing sustainability activities cross-campus. This is very exciting and have to commend Alexia and the staff of Unews for keeping this topic front and center in the discussions on campus. rkj

To all those interested in campus greening:
I am writing now as an informed student and active member of the global community. I say that I am concerned, because I have recently noticed some problems in the current policies present on my own college campus that I am certain are not exclusive from other colleges. I hope that by making these issues known that I will aid in the movement to increase the awareness of the general population about environmental issues. It is not difficult to see that while many campuses and other organizations have taken steps to help to better the environment, there is still an immense amount of room for improvement.
The University that I currently attend, Pace University, has taken many steps in recent years especially to make the campus "greener." The University has offered environmental courses to students for many years, even going so far as to make them an option to use these courses as a way to satisfy core requirements necessary for graduation. It is common knowledge to all Pace University students on the Pleasantville campus that our University has an environmental center open for visitation by all students, and that various animals are care for there including chickens, hawks, goats and others. Certain courses make trips to locations such as Stone Barns, an organic farm and restaurant facility nearby, as well as to places such as the Rockefeller State Park and the Long Island Sound. The goal of such trips and undertakings is to further educate students as to the significance of nature to society as a whole, as well as how commonplace it is for leaders in the local community to take steps to take care of nature and the environment. There is also a deep-set concept that is transferred upon students as to just how many people still disregard the environment and take its current well-being, even as it wanes, for granted.
Pace University now has recycling bins for paper products, cans, glass and plastic containers in order to make the decision to recycle as a way to improve the environment a simpler one for students. The school hosts "Earth Month" rather than Earth Day one month per year, and hosts educational events for students to attend regarding the natural environment. These include the expected events, such as campus clean-ups and tree/flower plantings, as well as the unexpected of on-site visitations by live wild wolves, brought on campus by a wildlife reserve nearby. Pace U runs buses campus-to-campus every 20 minutes, helping to reduce emissions by allowing students on other campuses to not need to drive their own individual cars to and from class. In 2005, one class even successfully collaborated with a local car dealership in a $2000 undertaking to run a fully-functioning University bus solely using French-fry oil (NWF 2).
While the University has taken many steps to address current environmental issues and increase awareness among students, there is still much more work to be done. Perhaps instead of just running the French-fry oil bus as a one time undertaking, the University could take steps to run the buses on a similarly less harmful fuel instead of the standard diesel oil on a regular basis. Instead of just providing recycle bins indoors in bathrooms and main walkways, they could be places outside near trash bins, as well as in all classrooms on campus. Many students feel that there are just not enough of these containers available in enough locations that they can recycle as often as they should for convenience purposes.
Pace's dining service, Lackmann, does not take part in many environmentally efficient undertakings. While they have recently switched their soup containers from Styrofoam to cardboard, the more commonly used plates are still oversized aluminum plates that could stand for replacement or improvement. The service could offer more soda-dispensing machines and reusable containers to reduce the use of individually packaged plastic bottles.
While Pace has taken many steps on campus, the University could stand to reach out to the local community on the issue. Rather than simply placing a few bins on campus and allowing the environmental center to function and make decisions on its own, the University could take a more active approach. For example, the University could place recycling centers in town where the shuttle bus stops through, so that students and other members of the local community can more conveniently help the environment. Perhaps they could even host environmentally-centered programs in town or publish articles on current issues in local newspapers.
Pace University has done a great job over the years in responding to environmental issues and ensuring that its students gain a better understanding of their presence. The University has made some clear efforts to help environment where they saw it to be affordable and efficient. As a student, I have seen what efforts have already been made, and yet grown increasingly concerned as to how much work could still stand to be done. There is still more work to be done; only by taking more of an active role can these problems become a thing of the past.