Loyola Marymount University
AC-8: Campus as a Living Laboratory

Green LMU participates in the Campus Race to Zero Waste (formerly Recyclemania) Game Day Challenge during the Spring semester. Green LMU works with Athletics in hosting a game that promotes sustainability by reducing the amount of waste produced during the game. Composting and recycling is implemented throughout the game. Plastics such as straws and the lids are removed from the concession stand. Members of the basketball team also filmed short videos that were payed throughout the game promoting sustainability topics the public could act on. The game helps show campus members the influence sports has on sustainability and how each fan and/or athlete can make an impact on sustainability.

Built with the support from and located adjacent to LMU, Ballona Discovery Park serves as a rich living laboratory for research and teaching. Designed to replicate the Ballona Creek Watershed, there are interpretive panels to guide participants through various habitats associated with the historical and current landscape of the area. In addition, the Park serves to support the cultural history of La Ballona with exhibits of Native American architecture and an oral history kiosk. Ballona Discovery Park is home to a surprisingly diverse community of living organisms that are supported by the native plant gardens. There is outdoor seating and an amphitheater for presentations and for informal science and cultural education. The site is also fully supported with electrical outlets and wireless internet coverage. The park uses LMU students trained as Education Docents to offer information to the visitors at the various stations that represent portions of the watershed.
The management partnership at Ballona Discovery park hosts numerous middle and high school field trips, and local community members interested in urban ecology of the watershed. They are eager to support classes, tours and community groups who wish to use the Park.

Students work on numerous political campaigns and research and outreach through centers on campus including the center for service and action.

https://academics.lmu.edu/cures/students/undergraduates/

Student internship, work study positions, and class projects contribute to the school's green house gas accounting. Students learn principles of greenhouse gas accounting, research methodology, help prepare the report, and gain an understanding of. Completion of greenhouse gas inventories is the positive outcome.

Student internship, work study positions, and class projects help to shape the school's climate action plan to reduce environmental impacts in the future. They gain an understanding of air and climate through this and work to reduce university's impact on the climate in the future.

Environmental Science research - a Merck grant and Undergraduate Biology and Mathematics (UBM) grant to study air pollution and its stresses on the wetlands.

There are numerous class projects based around green building, and architecture research for the buildings on campus. Specifically students have designed projects in environmental science classes to improve the function of buildings on campus. Additionally, students have supported green building efforts and contributed to the LEED process and educated other students on LEED across campus through clubs, classes, events, and projects.

Water run off projects conducted regarding rain fall events and filtering of on campus green roofs.

Through both Urban Studies and Environmental Science courses, students research, compile a plan, and propose projects to staff members that retrofit buildings to be more energy efficient. For example, a project that replaced all of the light fixtures to be more energy efficient in University Hall (the largest building on campus) was completed by one of these individual projects.

Through an assignment in an environmental science course a study on the food digestion system used in the main dining hall was conducted by students. They studied the water quality of the digestor and found that the waste water was too high in bacterial presence to be used for irrigation, contrary to the manufacturer's claims. Consequently, the system was replaced by a more sustainable one that now allows for the water to be reused for irrigation.

Additionally, students have been involved in the fair trade certification process on campus, additionally they have been involved in MSC certifications, Real food Network, and other projects including donation of food to food banks that have made sure our sourcing and waste is handled in a more sustainable manner. They have researched and aided in implementation of many initiatives.

https://lmudining.sodexomyway.com/explore/sustainability

Courses on global nutrition also use the campus garden for learning.

The Grounds team began working with the student group, Herbicide Free LMU. Student volunteers began working with the groundskeepers in eliminating the use of pesticides around campusand transitioning the campus to 100% organic land management.

Reduced water through native & drought tolerant landscaping. Students have been working in conjunction with The Bay Foundation (a nonprofit housed on campus) to plan, construct, and maintain a natively vegetated rain garden on campus. It is an example often referred to for ways to increase biofiltration on campus.

The campus garden is also a research location on campus that serves as a place for student projects, research, and experimentation. Besides learning urban gardening techniques this educational location hosts events to educate the local community. Additionally, this garden has served as a test bed for the rest of campus.

The fair trade committee at LMU is comprised of a student representative from each service organization, two representatives from the Loyolan and a representative from ASLMU. They worked to make LMU acquire Fair Trade certification in 2013, and have been promoting the purchasing of fair trade products by the university.

https://fairtradecampaigns.org/campaign/loyola-marymount-university/

Green LMU utilizes its on campus bike shop known as the Cycling Lion to help encourage healthy commuting choices. The bike shop is operated by Green LMU students who help faculty, staff, and students repair their bikes. The Cycling Lion also offers rental bikes further encouraging alternative transportation. The Cycling Lion is working on creating a Master Bike Plan that will help the university further implement policies around alternative transportation around campus.


Student engineering project to create a solar powered cart for green lmu. whitepaper coming designed with faculty, staff input and student engineering research.

https://www.facebook.com/cyclinglionLMU/

Student workers, researches, and class projects partner with campus recycling to learn the process of recycling, and study the options for increased recycling, reduced waste, and increased environmental awareness across campus. Students are trained in the recycling process and learn how our campus plant runs. Additionally, student recommendations and research have been used to improves processes on campus including securing grants, and improving processes.

Students are working on waste reduction projects on campus. Specifically, many students have been working on compost research. There is a student work study position available in the Office of Sustainability that works on implementing a new compost policy on campus and works with faculty and staff to research waste reduction.

With support from the department of Civil Engineering and Environmental Science, students conducted studies on the stormwater runoff from one of the largest parking lots on campus (Freshman parking lots F, G and H). Some solutions to convey parking lot runoff into permeable surfaces were suggested. Last summer, various curb cuts and other changes were made to the landscaping in this parking lot to maximize groundwater infiltration and mitigate the quantity of runoff.

Associated Students of LMU, in keeping with the Jesuit and Marymount tradition, empowers the voice of the students and actively promotes a vibrant campus life.The ASLMU Director of Environmental Responsibility is appointed each year by the elected Student President and Vice President. His/her duties include managing the bi-weekly Farmers' Market, planning and co-sponsoring events to raise environmental awareness, and being the principal advocate for students regarding resource consumption, recycling and waste management, campus sustainability and environmental justice outside of LMU. He/She maintains a Environmental Responsibility Committee each year.

The LMU intercultural affairs office pledges to Enhance curriculum, pedagogy, scholarship and creative work, to involve students and faculty in the learning process and to prepare them to engage issues of diversity as concerned
citizens of the world.

The Intercultural Facilitators was designed to help students learn about identity based social inequalities and social justice outside of the classroom. The program offers members of the broader LMU community yet another venue by which they may engage in dialogues about important social divides concerning race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and class in an increasingly diverse world. The program will also assist the students in making a positive connection to the University, particularly as they transition to becoming members of the campus community.

Environmentally Conscious & Organized (ECO) Students: a student run club on campus works to make the campus and community greener. They focus on becoming politically involved with environmental legislation, creating a "greener" and more sustainable LMU, and providing direct service to the surrounding community. This semester they are building upon the Fossil Free LMU divestment campaign by focusing on learning about and advocating for coal divestment.

In July 2017, LMU signed onto the United Nations supported Principles of Responsible Investing (PRI) in an effort to align the endowment portfolio with ESG concerns. Joining the PRI was supported by students and on-campus groups as part of the on-going sustainability effort. LMU will continue to work with the PRI through coordinated engagements, educational events, and the annual reporting process.

LMU has a Responsible Investing (RI) Associate staff position that works to research ESG topics, lead the RIAC, and present RI initiatives to the Endowment Committee of the Board of Trustees. This includes leading the discernment process on the relevancy and prudence of possible ESG related actions LMU could take. The RI Associate is tasked with being attuned to the main sustainability concerns of the campus and to find ESG measures appropriate for those concerns.

https://bus.lmu.edu/investing/

LMU launced their MyWellness Rewards Program to support faculty and staff and their family to get healthy and stay healthy. This program offers many resources to support a healthy living journey. A variety of classes, workshops and programs to encourage and motivate work/life balance are offered. These take place in various locations on campus, and encourage individuals to make use of their work environment by stepping away from the office to interact with different parts of campus. These classes range from education, meditation and yoga to spin class. The graduate students in the Yoga Masters Program teach some of these courses to fulfill program requirements. The MyWellness Incentive Program, has individuals earn points to win big prizes.

Students are athletic trainers in the gym and use work as well as classes in the wellness center to increase campus wellness.
http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/yoga/