2007 Southern Metro Mini

"Toward Total Regional Sustainability"

May 17, 2007
University of South Carolina (USC)
West Quad Learning Center
Building D, Room 102
1216 Wheat St.
Columbia, SC 29208

Conference Proceedings

Program and Proceedings – look for the PDF files under the events column

Presentation Abstract

Clemson University

At the heart of Clemson University is an ethic born in a Land Grant tradition. From its inception the university has had a special relationship with its place. Arising from the plantation of John C. Calhoun, the university has matured into one of the best public research universities in the nation. The key now is to advance the mission of the university while getting back to a balanced and sustainable pattern that was once an immutable part of the experience of life.

Many steps have been taken by Clemson University on the road to sustainability. Policies have been put into place, plans have been formulated, operations have been created, and the idea of sustainability is seeping into every facet of the teaching, learning, research, and service aspects of the institution.

In addition to steps taken by the university as an institution, some steps have been taken by students to introduce sustainability into their individual experiences. Through the consistent inclusion of sustainability into teaching and research efforts, the importance of sustainability has become much more to students than merely an aspect of their coursework. In order to further their experience and knowledge in the topic of sustainability, they participate in meetings, lectures, workshops, conferences, competitions, and much more.

This presentation will review many of the ongoing sustainability efforts that are taking place at the university with a special emphasis on the efforts that students are making on both a curricular and extracurricular level.

Campus Sustainability: Fact or Fiction? Boon or Bane? An answer from Warren Wilson College

Warren Wilson College operates a farm, raising antibiotic and hormone free beef and pork. The farmlands are pesticide free. The forests are sustainably managed, and provide lumber and firewood for the campus community. The organic garden supplies the produce for the organic and vegetarian Cowpie Café. Students insist upon a sustainable residence hall, and the Ecodorm is built. Native grasses and wildflowers are replacing ornamental grass across the campus. Propane lawnmowers cut the grass, and biodiesel fuels the campus heavy equipment.

Students produce video about mountain top removal in West Virginia, develop a campus emissions footprint, and sustainability indicators for the campus. Faculty bring their students to facilities management to discuss how their students can have an impact on the campus. A LEED™ Gold building was constructed by the campus crews, and four other buildings are undergoing certification. Hundreds of local, national, and our international community have taken our Campus Green Walkabout™.

How did this come about? Is Warren Wilson College an anomaly? Can you accomplish this on your campus, and what are some tools that can help you move in this direction? We will explore the successes Warren Wilson College has achieved—and some of their challenges they face. And we will answer: LEED™: help or hindrance?

West Quad Living-Learning Center—
University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC

As the university's first green building and the largest green residence hall in the country, the LEED™ Silver West Quad is a unique blend of residential, academic, office, and retail space. Opened in 2005 and consisting of four buildings, West Quad houses over 500 students and contains such sustainable features as solar water heating, low-flow plumbing fixtures, an Energy Star™ rated roof, light shelves, renewable materials, and total stormwater management integration. Completed at a cost of $30.9 million, the project was constructed at the same cost as a traditional residence hall, yet it uses 45 percent less energy and 20 percent less water.

The 9,000-square-foot Learning Center at West Quad, provides meeting and office space for students, faculty, and the public. Every meeting space uses natural daylighting and low-VOC materials in its carpet, furniture, and paints, as well as technological features such as wireless internet, overhead LCD projectors, and plasma screen monitors. With a "green" turf roof, a fuel cell, and changing rooms for bicycling commuters, West Quad and the Living Learning Center are green, clean and financially lean.