Overall Rating Reporter - expired
Overall Score
Liaison Chelsea Hamilton
Submission Date March 1, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Vanderbilt University
PA-1: Sustainability Coordination

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete Reporter Chelsea Hamilton
Sustainability Outreach Program Manager
Environmental Health, Safety, and Sustainability
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Sustainability Committee(s) 

Does the institution have at least one sustainability committee?:
Yes

The charter or mission statement of the committee(s) or a brief description of each committee's purview and activities:
The Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC) serves in an advisory capacity to the university administration in creating a comprehensive environmental management program for Vanderbilt University. The committee will advise, develop and promote practices and policies that maximize environmental performance for institutional operations, research, academics and patient care and will assist in complying with all relevant laws and regulations as well as promoting and integrating sustainability, stewardship and resource conservation into activities and services. The environmental management and sustainability program will include a comprehensive environmental management system which will assess environmental impacts, develop and track measures of our progress and consider and recommend campus-wide short and long-term environmental goals.

None
Members of each committee, including affiliations and role (e.g. staff, student, or faculty):
¥ Dr. James Clarke – faculty – Civil and Environmental Engineering ¥ Dr. Roger Chalkley – faculty – VUMC Molecular Physiology and Biophysics ¥ Dr. Kathy Friedman – faculty – Biological Sciences ¥ Dr. Steve Goodbred – faculty – Earth and Environmental Sciences ¥ Dr. Ron Schrimpf – faculty – Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences ¥ Dr. Douglas Fisher – faculty – Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences ¥ Dr. Joe Bandy – faculty – Sociology and Center for Teaching ¥ Steven Meranze – faculty – VUMC Department of Radiology ¥ Chris Vanags – faculty – School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt ¥ Dr. Andrea George – staff – Sustainability and Environmental Management Office ¥ Steve Gild – staff – Sustainability and Environmental Management Office ¥ Ruth Nagareda – staff – VU Compliance Officer ¥ Mark Petty – staff – Plant Operations ¥ Kevin Warren – staff – Vanderbilt Environmental and Health Safety ¥ Gary Streaty – staff – VUMC Facilities and Construction ¥ Mike Perez – staff – VU AVC Facilities ¥ Eric Kopstain – staff – VU Vice Chancellor for Administration

Sustainability Office(s) 

Does the institution have at least one sustainability office that includes more than 1 full-time equivalent (FTE) employee?:
Yes

None
A brief description of each sustainability office:
The Sustainability and Environmental Management Office (SEMO) was formed in January 2008. SEMO’s mission is to initiate, promote, coordinate, evaluate and encourage environmental management and sustainability initiatives that improve Vanderbilt’s impact on the community and environment.

None
Full-time equivalent (FTE) of people employed in the sustainability office(s):
4

Sustainability Officer(s) 

Does the institution have at least one sustainability officer?:
Yes

Name and title of each sustainability officer:
Andrea George – Director, Sustainability and Environment Management Office (SEMO) Steve Gild – EMS Coordinator (SEMO) Chelsea Hamilton – Sustainability Outreach Coordinator (SEMO) Alexandra Ewing – Assistant director (SEMO)

Institution-Wide Coordination 

Does the institution have a mechanism for broad sustainability coordination for the entire institution (e.g. a campus-wide committee or an officer/office responsible for the entire campus)?:
Yes

A brief description of the activities and substantive accomplishments of the institution-wide coordinating body or officer during the previous three years:
• Received the 2016 and 2018 TN Sustainable Transportation Award from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation; • Ranked #21 on Princeton Review’s Green Colleges list in 2018 • Reduced greenhouse gas emissions in 2015 by 27% from 2008 peak and by 11% in one year; • Awarded a $4.5 million, three-year federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program (CMAQ) grant • Awarded multiple awards from Nashville PARK(ing) Days in 2017 and 2018 • Increased recycling in 2016 500% from 2007; • Completed a $29 million conversion of the VU power plant to all natural gas fuel, eliminating coal use on campus in November 2014 and reducing power plant greenhouse gas emissions 25% in two years; • Certified 16 projects under the environmental requirements of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program; • Invested $8 million in energy efficiency retrofits to existing buildings; • Reduced overall greenhouse gas emissions by 18% from 2008 and by over 29% per square foot; • Diverted 32% of waste from landfills; • Recycled 8.6 million pounds of materials in 2015, up 13% since 2014, and just over triple the volume since 2010; • Installed the first-ever solar hot water heater system on campus in 2016, saving 40% of the building’s natural gas use annually resulting in significant cost savings; •  Assisted Vanderbilt University and Medical Center in becoming the only certified Bike Friendly University in Nashville in 2015; • Composted 132 tons of landscaping and leaf waste annually, which is reused as mulch; • Retrofitted 900 showerheads on campus to low-flow, high-performance models saving 28 million gallons of water per year and over 3,500 bathroom fixtures conserving another 50 million gallons annually • Organized 37 student volunteers each year to serve as Eco-Dore peer environmental educators for undergraduate residential students

Optional Fields 

Job Description (1st position)

Job title of the sustainability officer position:
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Job Description (2nd position) 

Job title of the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
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Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
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Job Description (3rd position) 

Job title of the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
http://www.vanderbilt.edu/sustainvu

Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
http://www.vanderbilt.edu/sustainvu/who-we-are/meet-the-staff/ http://www.vanderbilt.edu/sustainvu

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