Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 68.50
Liaison Derek Nichols
Submission Date May 17, 2022

STARS v2.2

University at Buffalo
EN-11: Inter-Campus Collaboration

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.00 / 3.00 Ryan McPherson
Chief Sustainability Officer
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Is the institution currently a member of a national or international higher education sustainability network?:
Yes

The name of the national or international sustainability network(s):
The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education
Second Nature

Does the institution actively participate in a regional, state/provincial, or local higher education sustainability network?:
Yes

The name of the regional, state/provincial or local sustainability network(s):
The New York Coalition for Sustainability in Higher Education
The State University of New York Sustainability Coalition

Has the institution presented at a higher education sustainability conference during the previous year?:
Yes

A list or brief description of the conference(s) and presentation(s):
Maximizing the Impact of Renewable Energy and Carbon Offsets, Second Nature, Boston, MA, 2021.
How Higher Education Institutions Can Lead the Charge to a More Sustainable Future, CannonDesign & Pace University, New York, NY, 2021.
Building Your Sustainability Strategy, the Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY, 2020.
Renewable Energy, What Could Possibly Go Wrong?, State of New York Sustainability Conference, the New York Coalition for Sustainability in Higher Education, Cornell University, 2020.
Learning from COVID to Advance Climate Action, State of New York Sustainability Conference, the New York Coalition for Sustainability in Higher Education, Cornell University, 2020.
Global Learning for All: Educating for a Sustainable Future, University Global Coalition 2020 Virtual Gathering, Albany, NY, 2020.
Pathways to Neutrality: Creating Interactive & Engaging Climate Action Plans, Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit, Second Nature, Atlanta, GA, 2020.

Has the institution submitted a case study during the previous year to an external higher education sustainability resource center or awards program?:
Yes

A list or brief description of the sustainability resource center or awards program and submission(s):
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Environmental Excellence Award https://www.dec.ny.gov/press/122710.html

The Times Higher Education Impact Assessment (ranked #1 in the world in SDG13) https://www.buffalo.edu/sustainability/news/latest-news.host.html/content/shared/www/sustainability/articles/news-articles/UB-the-impact-rankings.detail.html

Has the institution had employees or students serving on a board or committee of a sustainability network or conference during the previous three years?:
Yes

A list or brief description of the board or committee appointment(s):
The New York Coalition for Sustainability in Higher Education, board chair, Ryan A McPherson (University at Buffalo Chief Sustainability Officer)

The New York Coalition for Sustainability in Higher Education, board member and Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion committee lead, Derek Nichols (Assistant Director of Sustainability at UB)

The State University of New York Sustainability Coalition, co-chair, Ryan A McPherson (University at Buffalo Chief Sustainability Officer)

The State of New York Sustainability Conference, planning committee member, Ryan A McPherson (University at Buffalo Chief Sustainability Officer)

Does the institution have an ongoing mentoring relationship with another institution through which it assists the institution with its sustainability reporting and/or the development of its sustainability program?:
Yes

A brief description of the mentoring relationship and activities:
The University at Buffalo's Chief Sustainability Officer was the co-chair of the State University of New York Sustainability Coalition until 2021. In this role we play a pivotal part in working to build up sustainability coordinators across the 64 campuses to advance their sustainability strategies.

Has the institution had employees or students serving as peer reviewers of another institution’s sustainability data and/or STARS submission during the previous three years?:
Yes

A brief description of the peer review activities:
The University at Buffalo was an official reviewer of the University of Albany's STARS submission in 2019 and plans to do this again in 2022.

Optional Fields 

A brief description of other inter-campus collaborative efforts around sustainability during the previous year :
The University at Buffalo's Chief Sustainability Officer led a process to develop sustainability goals for the entire State University of New York system and its campuses through the SUNY Global Learning for All initiative (please see attached supporting documentation for this innovative new strategy frame that leverages the Sustainable Development Goals)

Website URL where information about the institution’s inter-campus collaborations is available:
https://www.buffalo.edu/sustainability/about-us/sustainability-partners.html

Additional documentation to support the submission:
GLFA_Reccomendations_from_SDG_Committee.pdf

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.