Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 46.15
Liaison Jessica Bilecki
Submission Date March 4, 2021

STARS v2.2

University of the Pacific
EN-3: Student Life

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.00 / 2.00 Kelsey Smith
Sustainability Coordinator
Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Student groups 

Does the institution have an active student group focused on sustainability?:
Yes

Name and a brief description of the active student groups focused on sustainability:
1) The Green Club, founded in 2018 on the Stockton Campus, works to promote awareness of environmental concerns among the community and teach fellow students how to adopt sustainability practices. In addition to biweekly meetings, Green Club has hosted movie nights, plant potting, a vegan Thanksgiving gathering and other events free to all students.

2) Resiliency Garden Club on the Sacramento Campus is a supported community of students, staff and faculty where individuals can learn how to grow produce, maintain plots, network and manage self-care with natural resources from the garden.

https://pacific.presence.io/organizations

Gardens and farms 

Does the institution have a garden, farm, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery program, or an urban agriculture project where students are able to gain experience in organic agriculture and sustainable food systems?:
Yes

A brief description of the gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects:
The Pacific Garden Program includes the Community Garden at the Sacramento campus and the Ted and Chris Robb Garden at the Stockton campus. Both gardens are focused more on education than production. They are spaces that bring together people of all generations to grow food, learn to be more responsible consumers of food, have an enriching encounter with nature and build community in a common space. We aim to provide learning experiences for people at all levels who wish to learn more about gardening in a way that they are empowered with the skills, knowledge and confidence to engage in sustainable gardening and to share that knowledge with others.

Pacificans can adopt a plot or plant at the Sacramento Community Garden. The Robb Garden is managed by one staff member and multiple student interns. Be it tending medicinal and culinary herbs; building compost; planting annual vegetable crops; pruning fruit trees; starting seeds in the greenhouse; or co-leading garden tours, students are provided opportunities to better understand and participate within the ecosystem and community that surrounds them.

https://www.pacific.edu/about-pacific/sustainability/pacific-garden-program.html

Student-run enterprises 

Does the institution have a student-run enterprise that includes sustainability as part of its mission statement or stated purpose?:
Yes

A brief description of the student-run enterprises:
Student gardeners at the Ted & Chris Robb Garden improve their marketing, business and interpersonal skills by managing a garden stand where produce is available by donation.

Sustainable investment and finance 

Does the institution have a sustainable investment fund, green revolving fund, or sustainable microfinance initiative through which students can develop socially, environmentally and fiscally responsible investment and financial skills?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives:
Sustainability Project Investment Fund (SPIF). Students may apply for funding for projects that benefit sustainability efforts on campus. Students learn skills around project development and implementation, including budgeting for the project. Student-led projects funded by SPIF include Tiger Treasure Exchange (now called Green Move Out), Green Club outreach and project feasibility research.
https://www.pulse.pacific.edu/about-pacific/sustainability/planning-and-policy/sustainability-committee/sustainability-project-investment-fund-(spif).html

Events 

Has the institution hosted a conference, speaker series, symposium, or similar event focused on sustainability during the previous three years that had students as the intended audience?:
Yes

A brief description of the conferences, speaker series, symposia, or similar events focused on sustainability:
April is designated as Sustainability Month at Pacific. Events of different types are organized by students, staff and faculty with a focus on one or more aspects of sustainability. Sustaining Pacific plans many of the events and collaborates on others. Events are compiled onto a calendar which is distributed on campus throughout the month.

April 2017 events:
- Flower Planting Service Day, April 1
- Greening the Town: A Conversation with Stockton Activists, April 11
- 7th Annual Green Fashion Show, April 14
- Brewery Tour & Tasting, April 10 & 15
- John Muir Garden Birthday Party, April 21

April 2018 events:
- Magazine Strip Art, April 3
- Cooking for Beginners, April 5
- 8th Annual Green Fashion Show, April 13
- Wellness Corner, April 18
- Can the Anti-Hunger Movement Solve Hunger, or Just Feed People? (Lecture), April 19
- Garden Party, April 20
- John Muir Birthday Celebration, April 23
- "Knot Your Average" Service Event, April 26

April 2019 events:
- Sustainability in Industry Panel, April 2
- Robb Garden Workshop: Pricking Out Seedlings, April 4
- Hydration Station, April 9
- Robb Garden Farmer's Market, April 11
- 9th Annual Green Fashion Show, April 12
- John Muir at Pacific Celebration, April 13
- Clothing Swap & Donation Drive, April 17
- Robb Garden Workshop: Transplanting into Garden Beds, April 18
- Robb Garden Party, April 19
- Earth Day: River Clean Up, April 22
- Eco Land at Tiger Lands, April 26

Cultural arts 

Has the institution hosted a cultural arts event, installation, or performance focused on sustainability with the previous three years that had students as the intended audience?:
Yes

A brief description of the cultural arts events, installations, or performances focused on sustainability:
Pacific's Annual Green Fashion Show features handmade fashion designs and art made from sustainable repurposed materials. The purpose is to discourage fast fashion, encourage thrifting and show how beautiful sustainability can be. The Green Fashion Show will be celebrating its tenth year in April 2020.

In April 2018, Sustaining Pacific collaborated with the campus art gallery to host Magazine Strip Art, an event where students could make piece using repurposed magazines and art supplies to create beautiful works of art. The students were given the opportunity to display their art in the gallery as part of their exhibit, "The Revolution will be DIY."

"The Revolution Will Be DIY" was an interactive exhibit hosted by the Reynolds Gallery which ran from March 20 to April 13, 2018. The gallery hosted "art installations, collaborative projects, and performances by campus and community artists that empower change through creative action." Events included a community weaving workshop, a screen printing demonstration, and an installation addressing food security accepting nonperishable food and hygiene products to donate.

Wilderness and outdoors programs 

Does the institution have a wilderness or outdoors program that follow Leave No Trace principles?:
Yes

A brief description of the wilderness or outdoors programs that follow Leave No Trace principles:
The Tiger Escapes programs provides outdoor experiential learning for the Pacific Community. Trips vary and go to places such as camping at Point Reyes National Seashore, rafting the American River or snowshoeing at Tahoe. All trips are planned in advance, attendees are advised to respect nature and only travel to and on pre-approved trails.

https://www.pacific.edu/student-life/activities-and-programs/athletics-and-recreation/tiger-escapes

Sustainability-focused themes 

Has the institution had a sustainability-focused theme chosen for a themed semester, year, or first-year experience during the previous three years?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability-focused themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences:
All undergraduates have to complete a series of seminar courses. Pacific Seminar One is a required course for all freshmen in their first term at Pacific. In this Seminar, students explore issues related to "What is a Good Society?" Course readings deal with race, gender, age, political diversity, social injustice, and the environment.

https://www.pacific.edu/academics/majors-and-programs/general-education-program/pacific-seminar-i.html

Sustainable life skills 

Does the institution have a program through which students can learn sustainable life skills?:
Yes

A brief description of the programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills:
-The Kitchen Co-op program hosts workshops to teach cooking skills. Past event topics include meal prepping, beginner cooking skills, salsa, chili, gnocchi and sushi.
https://www.pacific.edu/about/sustainability/kitchen-co-op

-The Robb Garden Program offers students the opportunity to learn how to grow produce in a more sustainable manor through internships, volunteer opportunities and workshops.
https://www.pacific.edu/about/sustainability/garden-program

-Pacific's food vendor, provides educational information about food and environmental impact. They also host regular workshops at the main dining facility to teach people about healthy eating.
http://pacific.cafebonappetit.com/

-During orientation, students attend breakout sessions on the topic of their choosing. In the Sustainability session, they are given information about sustainability programs on campus and sustainable living tips. All students are also given a double-sided handout on proper recycling procedures.

Student employment opportunities 

Does the institution offer sustainability-focused student employment opportunities?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability-focused student employment opportunities offered by the institution:
Sustaining Pacific and the Pacific Garden program hire students each year for different paid positions. All students work to engage the campus community in sustainable action. Positions include Green Team manager, outreach coordinator, social media coordinator, food security coordinator, graphic designer, Green Move In and Green Move Out leads, and garden interns. Special projects positions are hired as needed. Positions are for academic year and summer.

(Archive page - see notes) https://www.archive.pacific.edu/about-pacific/sustainability/take-action/volunteer/student-jobs.html

Graduation pledge

Does the institution have a graduation pledge through which students pledge to consider social and environmental responsibility in future job and other decisions?:
No

A brief description of the graduation pledge(s):
N.A.

Optional Fields

A brief description of other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives that do not fall into one of the above categories:
---

Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Some of the webpages above are no longer publicly available due to a Fall 2020 website update. Pages are still available internally to Pacificans:
https://www.pulse.pacific.edu/about-pacific/sustainability/planning-and-policy/sustainability-committee/sustainability-project-investment-fund-(spif).html

https://www.archive.pacific.edu/about-pacific/sustainability/take-action/volunteer/student-jobs.html

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.