George Mason University
EN-10: Community Partnerships

George Mason University faculty member Michael Gilmore has been working on community-based sustainability and conservation work with the Maijuna tribe since 1999. The Maijuna are an indigenous tribe located in a remote part of the Peruvian Amazon, which is one of the most biologically rich places on Earth. Professor Gilmore has formally partnered with four of the Maijuna communities, and assisted in creating their indigenous federation FECONAMA (Federación de Comunidades Nativas Maijuna). This community based research and activism could not be possible without the partnering of multiple organizations and institutions: San Diego Zoo Global, Oregon State University, Amazon Rainforest Workshops, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, University of California Berkeley, and various Peruvian governmental and non-governmental organizations. This distant community partnership has involved multiple projects that encompass all three aspects of sustainability. As mentioned before Mason supported Professor Gilmore in creating FECONAMA, which helped empower the community to prevent the loss and destruction of their ancestral land. Mason is also helping the tribe create community based management plans for biologically significant species, and helped the community efficiently collect stingless bee honey to create a sustainable source of income. The most important aspect of this sustainable community research is actively engaging the indigenous tribe and making sure they are actively involved in decisions. Multiple departments within Mason have funded Professor Gilmore's work and research with the Maijuna.

Patriot Pack Out (PPO) was first implemented in 2007, and has actively engaged students, faculty, and staff on campus for 10 years. During PPO, students donate clothing, small appliances, and non-perishable food items at the end of the school year. Over the years, Mason has partnered with multiple non-profit organizations to send the donations to: Goodwill of Greater Washington, Food for Others, Capital Area Food Bank, and Northern Virginia Family Services. Items also go to Mason's Food Pantry which benefits food insecure or homeless Mason students. The university assists in the implementation of the program by providing materials such as bins for donations, trash bags, gloves, and a waste management crew to pick up the donations and transfer them to donation trucks. The organizations that benefit from the collection have provided logistical support. This program supports all three dimensions of sustainability by diverting large amounts of waste from landfills, and also helping increase social equity and economic prosperity by providing food and clothing to vulnerable local populations.

Since 2012, George Mason University has actively been partnered with the Arlington Chamber of Commerce’s Green Business Committee, Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment and the Arlington County Office of Sustainability and Environmental Management to sponsor the George Mason University Arlington Green Patriot Awards. The Arlington Green Patriot Awards recognize an individual and a business/organization that exemplify environmental sustainability in more than one aspect of their recent life or operations in order to better civic life in Arlington, Virginia. Since the award was established 5 years ago, it has been celebrated each spring to coincide with Earth Day. George Mason University has provided promotional materials, a venue, food, and personalized plaques for winners of the awards for the multi-year event. All communities within Arlington are represented when planning this event, and are represented by the Arlington County Public Schools and the Arlington PTA. Two distinct green awards are given: one for an individual environmental stewardship and one for a business or organization.

Data is for FY17.