Overall Rating	Bronze - expired
Overall Score	37.31
Liaison	Stephan Classen
Submission Date	March 6, 2018
Executive Letter	Download

STARS v2.1

Cascadia College
AC-8: Campus as a Living Laboratory

Status	Score	Responsible Party
	3.60 / 4.00	Jodie Galvan Assistant Director of Sustainable Practices Student Learning

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Air & Climate

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Air & Climate?:

Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Air & Climate:

Students are Cascadia are encouraged to participate in several sustainability research projects and initiatives on campus including: Student Led Solutions to Stormwater Pollution; Campus Climate Dialog; CCUWBee Research Initiative; Native Plants for Pollination and Education; Recyclemania; STARS; Classroom Garden Beds and Food Forest; Waste Diversion Research; and the EcoChallenge. http://www.cascadia.edu/discover/about/sustainability/sustainabilityresearch.aspx

Buildings

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Buildings?:

Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Buildings:

One of our buildings, CC3, is LEED Platinum Certified and provides the students with opportunities to engage in the design and operation of a highly energy and water efficient building. One of the best features is the dashboard while students, staff and faculty can access to see how much water and energy each of our buildings are using at any time and how much solar energy is being generated by our panels at any time.

Energy

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Energy?:

Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Energy:

Food & Dining

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Food & Dining?:

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Food & Dining:

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Grounds

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Grounds?:

Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Grounds:

Cascadia College is blessed to have a 57-acre restored Wetland attached to the campus that is a true functioning living laboratory that students benefit from real time data collection and evaluation. Wetlands are a valuable and integral resource in the global landscape. Because wetland formation and ecology are vastly influenced by climate, geographical location affects the size and type of wetland found at specific global locations. As such, students will examine the unique ecology that evolves when the presence of water on terrestrial systems is pervasive enough to create changes to the soil and biotic community. Students explored the large wetland restoration project located on-campus through ‘hands-on’ field laboratories assessing soil quality. Cascadia’s campus is bountiful with native vegetation so the students utilized the surrounding trees and plants for identification as preparation for off-site restoration field trip. Students also utilized the ground to practice various techniques associated with tree/plant verification and density. In addition, the grounds are certified Salmon Safe and pollinator plantings are found across campus which facilities our new CCUWBee Research Initiative. http://www.cascadia.edu/discover/about/sustainability/sustainablecampus.aspx

Purchasing

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Purchasing?:

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Purchasing:

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Transportation

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Transportation?:

Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Transportation:

Students took on a class project to evaluate the transportation behaviors of the students in efforts to analyze the driving force of why students take single occupant vehicles (SOV) to and from the school. This provided the students and the school administration with a baseline survey to base future decisions on parking and commuting to and from the college.

Waste

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Waste?:

Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Waste:

Students conducted live waste stream analysis on campus and utilized this lab to engage other student of proper disposal. One student completed an internship on campus by leading our participation in Recyclemania. This student estimated and reported our waste diversion rates daily throughout the duration of the competition.

Water

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Water?:

Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Water:

North Creek flows through campus. This waterway is 303d listed for fecal coliform. Students are actively researching sources of pollution in North Creek and identifying potential solutions to those sources. Students are also able to study and engage with a variety of low impact development features on campus including rain gardens, green roofs, bioswales and permeable pavement as well as our 57 acre restored wetland. Our LEED platinum certified CC3 building uses recycled rain water to flush toilets and students are able to tour the building and see how that system works.

Coordination & Planning

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Coordination & Planning?:

Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Coordination & Planning:

Students host an annual campus wide event in sustainability and climate change that engages students, faculty, and staff on the need to reduce carbon emissions for the college. Known as the Campus Climate Dialog, this event seeks to identify specific strategies that can be deployed on campus to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. The results of the Dialog are reported to the Executive Team and College Board of Directors for use in campus planning. In addition, all students, staff and faculty are invited to engage in the Campus Master Planning Process http://www.cascadia.edu/discover/about/campus/master_plan.aspx as well as in multiple college committees such as the Cascadia Sustainability Committee and the Transportation Committee.

Diversity & Affordability

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Diversity & Affordability?:

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Investment & Finance

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Investment & Finance?:

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Public Engagement

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Public Engagement?:

Yes

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Public Engagement:

In addition to hosting the Campus Climate Dialog, students, faculty and staff are encouraged to participate in sustainability activities on campus throughout the year. This may include hosting tables or activities during our annual joint campus Earth Week celebration or forming an active student club to take on projects throughout the year. In Fall 2017 we will have a new student recycling club that will promote waste diversion on campus.

Wellbeing & Work

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to Wellbeing & Work?:

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to Wellbeing & Work:

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Other Impact Areas

Is the institution utilizing its campus as a living laboratory for multidisciplinary student learning and applied research in relation to other areas (e.g. arts & culture or technology)?:

A brief description of the student/faculty projects and how they contribute to understanding campus sustainability challenges or advancing sustainability on campus in relation to other areas:

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Optional Fields

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:

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Additional documentation to support the submission:

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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.