University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire
AC-8: Campus as a Living Laboratory

Students led by Dr. Scott Clark have been long-time waste auditors in the main Campus dining location. This research has tracked contamination in landfill, recycling, and compost bins, and led to the creation of a new student orientation waste sorting game, as well as multiple research posters and presentations.

This research project helps students understand how to correctly compost on campus and helps student researchers understand the motives behind what makes students not sort their waste correctly. The research helps inform what new interventions the university undertakes, for example, the BluBox system that was implemented in 2022 that eliminated most of the single-use containers from our lower-campus dining area.

https://www.wqow.com/archive/uwec-challenge-promotes-recycling-composting/article_13ec266f-0cc3-5c7c-8ac3-96e16367f6a5.html

Environmental studies students examine sustainability features of County Materials Complex: “They’re learning fundamental principles of sustainability but they’re applying it to not just a specific case — like a case study analysis — but it’s part of their campus that they are helping to pay for,” Dr. James Boulter, professor of chemistry in UW-Eau Claire’s public health and environmental studies department, says of the students in his class.

UW-Eau Claire students got a glimpse recently of the 21-acre site and installation of one of the primary sustainability features of the complex — a ground source heating and cooling system. The geothermal technology uses energy from the earth to heat and cool the 172,000-square-foot complex, scheduled to open in May 2024.

Work crews are drilling 190 wells that are 500 feet deep, a total of 95,000 feet or about 18 miles of piping for the geothermal system. About 115 wells have been drilled so far.

This project will have a sustainability dashboard in the lobby to connect the building and its sustainability features to the public.

The sustainability dashboard in this new facility will allow students, faculty/staff, and members of the community to engage with its sustainability features and will encourage our campus to keep moving forward in its sustainability efforts. This will allow community members to become involved with our new sustainability features and help them realize the potential of these new buildings.

https://www.uwec.edu/news/news/environmental-studies-students-examine-sustainability-features-of-county-materials-complex-5723/

UW-Eau Claire testing classroom air quality in preparation for fall: Team members Pierce and Boulter have enlisted 12 student researchers to conduct air-quality tests in selected rooms across campus.

“Our students are actually testing CO2 in rooms across campus to make sure we have enough ventilation to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission in our buildings,” Pierce says.

“It’s difficult to do,” Pierce says. “You can look at trace gases like methane, but we are using a Harvard University model to see how fast a room breaks down its CO2, removes that CO2 from the space. The CO2 is representative of vapor we all exhale, so if someone is exhaling vapor containing aerosols with the COVID-19 virus, our measurements will show how quickly a particular room ventilates and removes the virus from the air.”

This testing allows our campus to see where progress can be made and will help inform how we ventilate rooms in future projects. Proper ventilation can save energy and create more efficient laboratory spaces which is something that will create a more sustainable campus.

https://www.wisconsin.edu/all-in-wisconsin/archive/uw-eau-claire-testing-classroom-air-quality-in-preparation-for-fall/

Environmental studies students examine sustainability features of County Materials Complex: “They’re learning fundamental principles of sustainability but they’re applying it to not just a specific case — like a case study analysis — but it’s part of their campus that they are helping to pay for,” Dr. James Boulter, professor of chemistry in UW-Eau Claire’s public health and environmental studies department, says of the students in his class.

UW-Eau Claire students got a glimpse recently of the 21-acre site and installation of one of the primary sustainability features of the complex — a ground source heating and cooling system. The geothermal technology uses energy from the earth to heat and cool the 172,000-square-foot complex, scheduled to open in May 2024.

Work crews are drilling 190 wells that are 500 feet deep, a total of 95,000 feet or about 18 miles of piping for the geothermal system. About 115 wells have been drilled so far.

This project will have a sustainability dashboard in the lobby to connect the building and its sustainability features to the public.

Students in the class worked directly with the commissioning agent to collect data for LEED and WELL HSR certification (WELL is focused on human health).

The class that was offered in partnership with the construction of this new complex allowed students to get an up-close look at how sustainability can be implemented in large-scale projects. These students will be able to take this knowledge with them into advance sustainability further on this campus and in their professional careers.

https://www.uwec.edu/news/news/environmental-studies-students-examine-sustainability-features-of-county-materials-complex-5723/

The Measure of Sustainability, led by Dr. James Boulter. In this class, two times a week, students take part in boots-on-the-ground work to measure and quantify the UW-Eau Claire carbon footprint. From administering a campus-wide survey to gauging commuting habits to sifting through Excel Energy statements, the 2018 fall cohort is only the latest in a string of students, dedicated to helping create a better, more sustainable world.

This class helps students discover what fully encompasses a greenhouse gas report and all of the different inputs that must be taken into account. These students are able to find areas that the university can improve on, and this helps administrators advance sustainability in those areas by creating new projects and interventions.

https://www.uwec.edu/news/university-honors-program/honors-colloquia-spotlight-taking-the-measure-of-sustainability-3499/

In 2023, Dr. Gloria Howerton taught the course 491 Intersectional approaches to the Environment. This class worked directly with the sustainability coordinator and the procurement director to brainstorm recommendations for the next RDP for dining services on campus, with a focus on sustainability and equity.

Additionally, an honors course in 2022 completed a survey of residence hall students and the accessibility of dining services for food allergens, as well as investigating interest and commitment to eating less meat due to its positive environmental impacts.

The Intersectional Approaches to the Environment course allows students and faculty to discover what sustainable practices are possible for our dining services, and what ways we can improve upon them.

This 230-acre park is a special place on campus. Blugolds use this beautiful nature-filled space to read, relax, or go on a nature walk. The Department of Biology takes advantage of the learning and research opportunities provided by the diverse animal and plant habitats.

Biology faculty, students lead effort to remove invasive species from Putnam Park

Julia Inman knew from her biology classes that common and glossy buckthorn are invasive plants that can disrupt the ecosystem, harming native plants and wildlife.

However, spending an afternoon identifying and removing the invasive plants from the natural area that runs through her University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire campus took the Blugold’s understanding to a whole new level. The project — part of her conservation biology class — also is helping her see how she can help combat the invasive species problem in Putnam Park and elsewhere.

https://www.uwec.edu/news/news/biology-faculty-students-lead-effort-to-remove-invasive-species-from-putnam-park-4924/

The park allows the entire community to immerse themselves in nature, and with the university ensuring its protection and survival, they are able to see that it is able to be used by future generations. Our grounds crew limits their use of pesticides which creates a healthier environment and a more sustainable way of maintaining our campus.

The class "Taking the Measure of Sustainability", led by Dr. James Boulter. In this class, two times a week, students take part in boots-on-the-ground work to measure and quantify the UW-Eau Claire carbon footprint. From administering a campus-wide survey to gauging commuting habits to sifting through Excel Energy statements, the 2018 fall cohort is only the latest in a string of students, dedicated to helping create a better, more sustainable world.

This class helps students discover what fully encompasses a greenhouse gas report and all of the different inputs that must be taken into account. These students are able to find areas that the university can improve on, and this helps administrators advance sustainability in those areas by creating new projects and interventions.

This class helps students discover what fully encompasses a greenhouse gas report and all of the different inputs that must be taken into account, especially in regards to transportation. Some examples being student and faculty/staff travel to and from campus on a daily basis, fleet vehicle usage, and student travel for study abroad. These students are able to find areas that the university can improve on, and this helps administrators advance sustainability in those areas by creating new projects and interventions.

https://www.uwec.edu/news/university-honors-program/honors-colloquia-spotlight-taking-the-measure-of-sustainability-3499/

Students led by Dr. Scott Clark have been long time waste auditors in the main Campus dining location. This research has tracked contamination in landfill, recycling, and compost bins, and led to the creation of a new student orientation waste sorting game, as well as multiple research posters and presentations.

This research has allowed students to track waste sorting patterns by students in our lower campus dining area. We have been able to track their progress and regression over multiple years of data collection. This data allows us to discover areas that we can improve, and create a more sustainable campus.

https://www.wqow.com/archive/uwec-challenge-promotes-recycling-composting/article_13ec266f-0cc3-5c7c-8ac3-96e16367f6a5.html

Senior Katherine Langfield collects research samples in Little Niagara Creek on lower campus. Langfield, who will graduate in May with a degree in geology, says research has been a big part of her undergraduate education at UW-Eau Claire.

Undergraduate research has been a big part of Katherine Langfield’s college experience, but the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire senior geology major still was nervous about presenting her research for the first time during a professional conference this spring.

“I’m still in shock,” Langfield says of her success at the Wisconsin section conference of the American Water Resources Association, the premier meeting of water science professionals in Wisconsin. “This was my first presentation at a conference. I have presented posters before, but never given talks. And it was my first virtual conference, so I did not know what to expect. I was super nervous and intimidated. I was the only student, undergraduate or graduate, in the baseflow section and that only heightened my anxiety.

“Then, in the moment, I was able to just calm down and let all the times I practiced take over.”

Langfield’s presentation focused on her work as a member of a UW-Eau Claire faculty-student research team that is collaborating with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources on research involving stream flow measurements.

For the project, Langfield collects monthly baseflow measurements at streams in north-central Wisconsin. The data is put into a DNR database where it can be used for different purposes such as quantifying the effect of farming and water withdrawals on the surface water of the region, she says.

Little Niagara is one of many examples that we can use to convey our campuses' interaction with water and sustainability. This creek has allowed our campus to determine what our potential runoff may be from our grounds operations and help them stay sustainable in their practices. The creek reminds our student population of the ducks that frequent it and the important resource that it is for all types of wildlife, this helps them stay mindful of sustainable practices that keep this habitat available for wildlife.

https://www.uwec.edu/news/news/research-shapes-geology-majors-uw-eau-claire-experience-4660/

Many STEM classes utilize Little Niagara as a component of their coursework.

In 2020-2021, the Chancellor's Sustainability & Climate Action Task Force included a student co-chair.

Charter of the task force:
Within the UW-Eau Claire and UWEC-Barron County community, we recognize sustainability is realized at the intersection of equity, economy, and the environment. The return on investments in sustainability includes impacts on financial wellbeing, human and environmental health, ecological and societal resilience, and future members of the Blugold family’s right to prosperity. The call is challenging. No community is immune to the health, economic, and social consequences of climate change and unsustainable practices. The best scientific assessments tell us we must begin this transformation immediately. This Task Force is charged with making recommendations for a strategic plan focused on Stewardship, Sustainability and Resiliency that will address the known impacts our campus community will face as a result of the Climate Crisis. Input will be gathered from students, staff, faculty, and administration. In particular, the S&CTF will create a Sustainability and Climate Action Plan for the institution focused on the nine key facets found below. The task force will address these topics and make impactful recommendations to address these specific areas of sustainability and climate action.

This task-force keeps our faculty and staff involved in the sustainability efforts that our student population wants to see occur. It also allows faculty and staff to make recommendations to change items within day-to-day operations, an example being that our dining services now supplies fully compostable cutlery at all of their catering events.

Environmental studies students examine sustainability features of County Materials Complex: “They’re learning fundamental principles of sustainability but they’re applying it to not just a specific case — like a case study analysis — but it’s part of their campus that they are helping to pay for,” Dr. James Boulter, professor of chemistry in UW-Eau Claire’s public health and environmental studies department, says of the students in his class.

Students in the class worked directly with the commissioning agent to collect data for LEED and WELL HSR certification (WELL is focused on human health).

UW-Eau Claire students got a glimpse recently of the 21-acre site and installation of one of the primary sustainability features of the complex — a ground source heating and cooling system. The geothermal technology uses energy from the earth to heat and cool the 172,000-square-foot complex, scheduled to open in May 2024.

UW-Eau Claire students have provided $350,000 to the project to support LEED certification and WELL Health-Safety Rating (HSR) that includes features such as air and water quality monitoring, and other cleaning and sanitation practices.

https://www.uwec.edu/news/news/environmental-studies-students-examine-sustainability-features-of-county-materials-complex-5723/

These projects help our campus realize its potential with implementing sustainability. Sustainability is something that has been on our students' minds for some time, and our new commitments will help them realize what can fully be done. Our new buildings will be major upgrades over current infrastructure, and student and staff wellbeing was at the forefront of their designs.