Green Game Day was a bright spot on an otherwise disappointing day for UConn football fans. The Huskies lost a close game on the field, but Mother Earth won outside the stadium where EcoHusky and EcoHouse volunteers, along with Office of Sustainability interns, took to the tailgating fields to collect cans and bottles from fans. Volunteers sporting blue Green Game Day shirts walked among the rows of cars, approaching UConn alumni, Connecticut locals and even some Illinois fans to help make their game day a bit greener.
Some student volunteers even ventured into the spirited student lot, all in the name of recycling! Unsurprisingly, they emerged with more bags than any other tailgate area.
In total, the volunteers collected 58 bags of recyclable bottles and cans.
While most of the volunteers scoured the fields, others staffed the Office of Sustainability tent in the HuskyFest fan zone, quizzing fans on their environmental knowledge and giving out prizes for correct answers. One notable addition to the prize table this year was the new UConn Sustainability Activity Book. Our youngest fans (and a few older ones) jumped at the chance to color and learn. One excited young Husky was heard walking away from the tent exclaiming: “Dad look! Jonathan’s on every page!”
From baby boomers to generation Z, all ages were equal parts enthralled, enthused and stumped by the intern’s questions. At the end of their experience at the tent, all participants had learned something about the environment and UConn’s sustainability efforts.
Once inside, fans were treated to a recycling PSA from none other than Jonathan the Husky. Likely due to the inspiring recycling video, the Huskies got off to a strong start, scoring the first 13 points. Alas, it was not to last, as Illinois came storming back to win 31-23.
While UConn’s first loss of the season was disappointing, it can teach us a valuable lesson about recycling: Care for the environment must be sustained, or else we risk losing all our progress. And vice versa: No matter what your habits are, you can always turn it around and become an EcoWarrior.
Green Game Day was a roaring success for all involved. We hope to see you during the basketball season at Gampel, or next year at the Rent!
Co-Winners in the Faculty Category, Jack Clausen, Scott Wallace (accepting for Dave Wagner) and Carol Atkinson- Palombo, receive their ELA trophies from Rich Miller and Greg Anderson
Hosted on April, 4th at the UConn Foundation, the 6th biennial award ceremony recognized a variety of prominent environmental achievements led by faculty, staff, students, and external partners. Most notably was the successful student-faculty led push for the establishment of an Environmental Literacy GenEd requirement—which was approved by the University and will be in place for the fall 2019 semester requiring that all students take at least one course with an environmental focus. It also highlighted UConn’s first-ever Metanoia on the Environment, which featured 44 events held throughout the 2018 spring semester. While these initiatives involved dozens of individuals and groups, a handful of standout students and faculty helped lead these charges into fruition. Amongst these include several ELA award winners.
2017 – 2018 ELA Winners
Dr. John (Jack) Clausen
Winner, Faculty Category
Professor, Department of Natural Resources & the Environment
Co-Chair, Metanoia on the Environment
Co-Chair, Environmental Literacy Workgroup
Dr. David L. Wagner
Winner, Faculty Category
Director, Center for Conservation and Biodiversity and Professor, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Co-Chair, Metanoia on the Environment
Co-Chair Environmental Literacy Workgroup
Dr. Carol Atkinson-Palombo
Winner, Faculty Category
Associate Professor, Geography & Director, Environmental Studies Program
Chair, General Education Environmental Literacy Task Force for UConn Senate
Founded the Natural Resources Conservation Academy (NRCA), as NRE Department Head
Instrumental leader and champion among UConn’s senior administrators for the Environmental Metanoia, Environmental Literacy Gen Ed, and creation of the new UConn Institute for the Environment
Georgia Hernandez-Corrales
Winner, Graduate Student Category
Class of 2019, M.S. Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Conducts research on plant physiology and global warming
Communicates research to rural communities in Costa Rica
Awarded NSF-Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation – Research Fellowships
Founder of Brenesii – a Social Enterprise, focused on activities that combine science communication and outreach for individuals in marginalized communities
Len Oser
Winner, Staff Category
Instrumental in launching EcoCoin program at the Bookstore
12,000 bags have been avoided and $600 was raised for various charities
Host to the annual Eversource Energy Efficiency Outreach Event and LED Desklamp Promotion during Move In/Week of Welcome at the UConn Bookstore
Congratulations to Cherie Taylor for celebrating 20 years at UConn this year! I’m fortunate that 15 of them have been in her role as my Administrative Coordinator, and as the office manager and “mater familiae” for the OEP, which was recently reconfigured and refocused as UConn’s Sustainability Office. She’s been the perfect complement to me as Director, given my skill set and management style, and has helped our office make a positive difference, not only for the University, but also (as you can see by the testaments below) in the lives of the staff and students who have worked here over the years. Happy Administrative Professionals Day, Cherie! Thanks for all you do. – Rich Miller, Director, Office of Sustainability
“Cherie is our #1 supporter, and will do anything to help us out in anyway that she can, and that does not go unnoticed. In and out of the office, Cherie always has out backs. One time, I needed to print a poster for a research presentation, and I didn’t realize I had to submit the request so far in advance. Cherie called the Print Shop and had the order rushed, and because of her I had my poster printed on time. That is just one of the ways Cherie goes above and beyond to help out the interns in the office.” – Caroline Anastasia
“Cherie is absolutely magical. If any intern comes to her with a tough problem that they have been unable to solve, she swoops in to fix it with no expectations greater than a thank you. Her care for the well-being of the people in her life is made abundantly clear every day when I walk into work and see some kind of snack or baked good ready to save me if I’ve had to skip lunch.” – Emma MacDonald
“If our office was a plant, Cherie would be the entire root system. She ultimately holds together the office, connects us with so many other departments on campus, and provides us with the information, motivation, and accountability we need. Roots grow and make new connections. Cherie makes things happen and knows exactly who, how, and when to do all that she does. I have never heard or seen anyone get things done faster than Cherie does. Roots also store energy and nutrients for the plant for future use. Cherie stores years of experience and knowledge – not just about the office and this campus community, but also about life. Thank you, Cherie, for giving your advice to us. Although roots may not be seen from an outside view, they are so vital for growth, beauty, and life of the plant. Thank you for being our roots and dedicating so much for the office, we appreciate you!” – Mara Tu
“Cherie is a force of nature and she makes things happen! She is such an important part of keeping the office running. She consistently goes above and beyond to make sure that everything is done right and that everyone in the office takes care of themselves.” – Charlotte Rhodes
“Cherie always takes the time to notice the little things that make people happy and often uses this knowledge to brighten people’s days when they need it the most, whether it’s bringing in snacks, making a pot of coffee, or complimenting someone’s outfit. Additionally, Cherie always has everyone in the office’s best interests in mind by expecting a high standard from us, but also remaining understanding and going above and beyond to deliver whenever we need her help. She definitely is the mother of the office, and we are all grateful for the care she takes to help make the OEP such a wonderful place to work.” – Jon Ursillo
“Cherie has been a steady presence in the office since my first day on the job, and my experience at the OEP has been made that much better for this. Cherie has always made me feel welcomed and appreciated in the office, and clearly cares about the interns and our well-being. She has so much faith in our success, and has helped me feel better on multiple stressed or sad occasions. I am also quite confident that the office would not have achieved half of what we’ve accomplished if it weren’t for Cherie keeping us all on track.” – Sophie MacDonald
“Thank you for always being our greatest advocate, for guiding us with encouragement, and for the care you have shown each of us both during and after our time at the OEP.” – Christen Bellucci (’18)
“Cherie runs a tight but loving ship. She’s always willing to lend support to anyone that needs it and if Cherie’s on the case, best believe things get done!” – Rose Croog (’17)
“Cherie treats us like we’re her own family, always has our back no matter what, and teaches us some super valuable life lessons – like pushing in your chair and not putting pictures of monkeys on your resume!” – Katie Mae Main (’18)
“Cherie is amazing! She made me feel so welcomed from our very first phone conversation during my hiring process. I’m so thankful to have been a part of the OEP group and gotten to know her. Congratulations on 20 years! ” – Jennifer Williams
“Cherie has been a rock for me at OEP through the many years and many changes. With her heart of gold she has always put others ahead of herself. She supported me through my almost 13 years here and helped me navigate the UConn culture. She also had the knack of finding leftover meeting food for me which is always welcomed and appreciated. – Paul Ferri, EH&S Manager
“Whether you go to Cherie for advice on department operations, the inside scoop on UConn administrative changes, or a confidential chat on a personal matter, you always know you’ll get a straight answer, the wisdom of a sage, and just enough sarcastic humor to spice things up. Thanks for all you do Cherie. And since I am POSITIVE we cannot convince you to stay on another 10 or 15 years, good luck wherever in the world your future takes you.” – Jim Hutton, Environmental Compliance Specialist
Cherie is undoubtedly the glue that keeps UConn’s high achieving sustainability program together. Her organization, persistence, and wealth of institutional knowledge impresses me every day! The personal investment Cherie makes toward supporting our student interns is what truly separates her in my opinion. We rely heavily on and have high expectations of our student sustainability interns. Cherie does anything she can to ensure their success, even if that means cooking for them or providing life guidance. And I’ve been the lucky recipient of more than one baked good… sometimes daily! Cherie It’s been a pleasure learning from you in my first year at UConn. Thank you for all your support – you’ve been a great teammate! The little things you do that make our lives easier and better don’t go unnoticed, so today we thank you and celebrate your achievement at UConn. Congratulations!- Patrick McKee, Sustainability Program Manager
Earlier this month, Greg Anderson accepted the first Lifetime Achievement Award in the 15-year history of UConn’s Environmental Leadership Awards
From 1973 and the moment he arrived in Storrs as a young assistant professor in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Greg Anderson has been a campus environmental leader, dedicating time and effort, above and beyond his internationally recognized research and academic pursuits, to making UConn a greener place. Four-and-a-half decades later, having been named a Board of Trustees’ Distinguished Professor, and served as an EEB department head, then a Vice Provost for Graduate Research & Education (VPGRE), Greg remains the “heart and soul” of the environmental movement at UConn.
Even as a semi-retired, emeritus faculty member, working from his lab in Torrey Life Sciences for the past few years, Greg is still as active, engaged and passionate about the environment as anyone on campus! Nearly 25 years ago, he founded and remains a leader of the committee that oversees UConn’s thought-provoking Teale Environmental Lecture Series. Similarly, more than two decades ago, Greg established, and still co-chairs, the Campus Arboretum Committee, which has planted, identified, preserved and mapped out the locations of dozens of specimen trees across campus. In fact, just this past year, Greg has worked with the co-president of EcoHusky to begin a tradition of planting a graduating Class Gift Tree, using crowd-sourced funding by students and friends of the Arboretum, plus tools and expertise provided by UConn’s landscape architect and arborist staff.
His moral support and leadership has also been key to an environmentally-responsible campus. In 2008, while serving as VPGRE, he was the senior administrator most responsible for convincing then-President Mike Hogan to sign UConn’s pledge for developing a Climate Action Plan (CAP) and achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. Greg was at the front of the room, standing proudly alongside then-state DEP Commissioner Gina McCarthy (who later served eight years as head of President Obama’s EPA), when Hogan signed onto this important climate leadership commitment. And he was there four years later when Susan Herbst reaffirmed UConn’s carbon commitment upon her arrival as the University’s President.
Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, John Volin (right) and Director of the Center of Biological Risk, Associate Professor (EEB), Mark Urban (left), congratulate Greg Anderson for receiving the ELA Lifetime Achievement AwardGreg Anderson also delivered an inspiring keynote address to a full house of award winners, runners up, finalists and nominators during UConn’s 6th ELAs, held at the UConn Foundation on April 4th, 2019.
That year, and for several years after, Greg helped organize an annual series of panelists and guest speakers on topics relevant to Climate Impact, Mitigation and Adaptation, and he was instrumental in bringing his longtime colleague, Gene likens, a pre-eminent ecologist and founder of the Cary Institute for Ecosystem Studies, to UConn as President Herbst’s Special Advisor on the Environment. The CAP has since driven UConn’s rise to the top of national and international green campus lists, according to the Sierra Club’s annual “Cool Schools,” Best Colleges, and GreenMetric World University rankings, among other sources.
The inaugural UConn Environmental Leadership Award for Lifetime Achievement looks great in the hands of Greg Anderson, the “heart and soul” of UConn’s Environmental movement for more than four decades.
We would like to spotlight our senior intern Caroline Anastasia, who has now been part of 10 Green Game Days!
More than 35 student volunteers from Ecohusky, EcoHouse, and the OEP gathered at Gampel Pavilion for two basketball Green Game Days in March to educate Husky fans about recycling and
create an atmosphere buzzing with energy about the environment. Volunteers promoted recycling by engaging with fans as they entered the stadium and by standing next to trash and recycling
containers to make sure recycling was properly sorted. Additionally, by making these games carbon neutral through the purchase of offsets, we prevented a total of 8.5 metric tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere! We would like to thank all of our volunteers who made these events possible and to especially spotlight our senior intern Caroline Anastasia, who has now been part of 10 Green Game Days!
In celebration of these events, we talked with student athletes at UConn who are passionate about the environment and appreciate the outreach that happens at events such as our Green Game Days. Here is what they had to say…
“Much like the human body, I believe what you put in and what you do to your body is eventually going to affect what comes out. The environment is an organism too. So, the things that we’re experiencing are a result of what we’ve done to the planet.
Education and knowledge are what changes everything. People are born uncivilized until they learn something or they’re influenced by something that leads them to make change for the better.”
– Carlton Steer, Senior Sociology Major, UConn Football Defensive Line
“A large majority of pollution is in our waters – oceans, rivers, lakes, ponds, etc. We’ve seen it in most of the places we’ve raced. While it may not directly affect our regatta performance, it’s a sign of a larger problem that affects all of us – if we see it here, then it’s probably worldwide, and it might be worse where people care less about the environment. It’s disheartening, it’s hard on the eyes, it’s damaging to the wildlife, and it’s why we need to keep pushing for more people to care.”
– Maxwell Miller, Sophomore Finance Major, Sailing Team President
“In order to properly advocate for the right to health for all, it is essential to equip people with the knowledge and skills to take responsible action to protect the environment. Through caring for our planet, we make the basis for just, sustainable, and equitable health outcomes possible.”
– Jen Koo, Junior Allied Health Sciences Major, Track & Field
Thank you to the student-athletes we talked to for your thoughtful reflections. Best of luck to our Husky women’s basketball team in the Final Four tonight!
Editor’s note: OS interns are integral to the success of the program and we couldn’t be more proud of them! Read below to learn about more about the interns hired in spring 2018.
Emma MacDonald – Sophomore, Natural Resources
Emma MacDonald is a sophomore in the Natural Resources department with a focus in sustainable forest management, which aligns with her avid love of hiking. After two inspirational geoscience classes last fall, Emma has decided to pursue a minor in Geoscience as well. Since arriving at UConn, Emma has been an active member of EcoHusky, volunteering at events like Green Game Day before becoming an intern. She is the Vice President of the Forestry and Wildlife club, where her responsibilities include planning meetings and events, like hiking trips and maple syrup production classes. In addition to her environmental passions, Emma has always loved theatre, performing in over 25 shows throughout her career. Her favorites to perform are Guys and Dolls, Footloose, and The Music Man, while her favorite soundtracks are Les Miserables, Rent, Phantom of the Opera, and Wicked. Within the OS, Emma is our social media coordinator as well as our videographer; look out for her many posts promoting events and other OS news along with exciting videos, like this one training Recycling Auditors! So far, her favorite memories with the OS are 2018’s Earth Day Spring Fling, and this fall’s football Green Game Day where her video of the “Goodest Boy in all of Connecticut,” Jonathan XIV, teaching UConn Nation how to recycle was debuted.
Matthew McKenna – Junior, Environmental Engineering
Matthew McKenna is currently a junior studying Environmental Engineering. In the office, Matt has worked on several different projects, including the annual Storrs campus Greenhouse Gas Inventory, creating a LEED building database, and improving the bikeability of campus. Last summer, Matt worked as an engineering intern at the Drinking Water Section of the CT Department of Public Health. While there, he was responsible for ensuring water systems complied with the Lead and Copper Rule (LCR) & the Safe Drinking Water Act, researching water treatment methods for Legionella, and maintaining a database of water reservoirs around the state. On campus, Matt is a student with the Connecticut Brownfield Initiative, through which he has written an EPA proposal grant for the town of Stafford and is currently working on creating a comprehensive brownfield inventory for the south central region of Connecticut. This summer he plans on interning with Arconic in Davenport, Iowa. He will be responsible for keeping track of Arconic’s emissions and environmental footprint while coming up with ways for the factory to become more sustainable. As a hobby, Matt enjoys camping and hiking, and is excited to work on UConn’s HEEP trails later this semester.
Charlotte Rhodes – Junior, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Charlotte Rhodes is a junior at UConn studying Ecology and Evolutionary Biology with a minor in Environmental Studies. Since joining the office, her projects have included writing for the blog, working on social media outreach, leading the newsletter production as editor, and assisting in the UConn@COP program. This past summer, Charlotte was a CAPAL Public Service Intern and worked with the U.S. Forest Service as a Sustainability Operations, Climate Change, and Wildlife Ecology Intern in California. Her many tasks included documenting and writing about the intersectionality of climate change, developing an Electric Vehicle Charging Process Guide, spearheading a Greening Fire initiative, and summarizing literature about prey species of the California Spotted Owl. Charlotte is passionate about public service, building relationships, climate change, and research. After graduation, she plans to pursue a graduate degree in entomology with a focus on disease vectors, hoping to eventually facilitate research at the nexus of climate change and public health. In addition to being an OS intern, Charlotte is part of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars, a UConn@COP24 Fellow, and a member of EcoHusky. She is meticulous about staying organized, and doesn’t go anywhere without her planner! In her free time, Charlotte enjoys hiking, fishing, singing, exploring new places, crafting, and playing with her dog, Violet.
Natalie Roach – Sophomore, Environmental Science
Natalie Roach is a sophomore Environmental Sciences and Human Rights double major at UConn, integrating her passion for these two fields. In the office, she applies her interest in social justice issues, collaboration of ideas, and environmental conservation in her projects which include writing and co-editing the office blog, social media outreach, the office social justice initiative, and organizing for Earth Day Spring Fling. An active student on campus, Natalie is an officer of Revolution Against Rape, a cultural center discussion group facilitator, a member of the USG Sustainability Subcommittee, and a participant in Community Outreach’s alternative breaks. She is also part of a National Science Foundation research project focused on sustainable development in Ethiopia, and is doing research on the history of housing discrimination in Hartford for a traveling exhibition. Last summer, she worked on coordinating a high school internship program that introduced students to the water utility industry and the importance of water resources as program coordinator at Regional Water Authority. Outside of UConn, she is a dedicated member of the CT Sierra Club Political Committee. Natalie’s drive to combat inextricably linked social and environmental issues is rooted in finding community-based, inclusive, and just solutions. She hopes to carry this mindset into a professional career in environmental law, nonprofit organizations, or corporate social responsibility work. In her free time, you can catch her going on hiking adventures, playing lacrosse, at a hockey game, attending environmental conferences, baking, talking about social and political issues with peers, or spending quality time with her friends.
Mara Tu – Sophomore, Environmental Science
Mara Tu is a sophomore Environmental Sciences and Urban & Community Studies student in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. At the OS, she has brought enthusiasm to all of her projects including Green Game Days, EcoMadness, RecycleThon, and has contributed content to the webpage. Mara’s values of open dialogue, the spread of ideas, and encouragement of communal energy are reflected in her work in the office and on campus. Outside of the OS, she is the treasurer of UConn’s EcoHusky, a team leader on the UConn alternative break to Birmingham, Alabama focused on civil rights and urban poverty, as well as a member of the USG Sustainability Subcommittee and ChinaCare. Her interests in the environmental field include conservation, local planning, urban systems, urban farms, and social equity. Currently, she is also in the UConn Climate Corps, an independent study program where students work with local municipalities to recommend potential adaptations to climate change, and is working on a history of housing discrimination in Hartford exhibit. She enjoys working on crossword puzzles (but rarely finishing them), crafting, hanging out with friends, engaging in political and social conversation, napping, taking photos, and dancing and singing to her favorite musicians!
This past week, UConn President Susan Herbst was part of a coalition of university presidents who took an important step toward achieving an equitable, environmentally conscious future by signing UConn on to the Second Nature’s Call to Action and Guiding Principles for Accelerating Equitable and Just Climate Solutions. Below is the statement she released explaining the role of UConn in creating a future that is healthy and safe for everyone.
Susan Herbst:
As a Land Grant and Sea Grant institution, the University of Connecticut has always felt a special responsibility to set high standards and uphold strong principles on the ways in which we understand and protect our environment both locally and globally.
For these and many other reasons, we wholeheartedly endorse the imperatives articulated in Second Nature’s Call to Action and Guiding Principles for Accelerating Equitable and Just Climate Solutions, which wereannounced recently at the 2019 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit in Tempe, Arizona.
These principles remind us that universities have not only the power to motivate change and the expertise to offer innovative solutions, but also the responsibility to ensure that those solutions are equitable and developed in collaboration with the people most impacted.
That responsibility is especially challenging when it comes to climate change because of the distance between our actions here and now, and their consequences, which are often far removed in time and space.
It’s our duty as global citizens to adjust behaviors today for carbon mitigation and resilience preparation that will primarily benefit future generations, or vulnerable populations located somewhere else around the world. To this point, Second Nature’s Guiding Principles advise us to think globally; we must continuously review and refine our campus climate action plans to ensure that our goals and strategies reflect the best available science about the effects of climate change.
As a state flagship, public research university, UConn‘s mission has always included public service. We frequently partner with state and local governments and strive to be engaged leaders in our community. Second Nature’s Guiding Principles urge us to extend this engagement to the global community. In the context of climate change, we can do this by accounting for how the long-term costs of our institutional activities might “negatively impact people and the planet, and strive to measure, internalize, and avoid these costs to the greatest extent possible.”
The first step is raising awareness about the underlying science of global warming and collectively accepting our share of responsibility for its harmful effects, which are already occurring in places far removed from our nation’s campuses. This includes subsistence farms in North Africa wiped out in recent years by historic droughts, entire coastal communities in Pacific island nations displaced by sea level rise and flooding, and essential drinking water supplies threatened by receding glaciers in the Himalayas.
Informed by this knowledge and driven by basic human decency, the next step of higher education institutions should be recognizing the urgent needs of the world’s most vulnerable populations by accelerating our climate strategies.
UConn has historically been a leader on this front, and we continue to reaffirm our efforts to this end. We recently adopted an environmental literacy general education requirement that will ensure our students graduate from UConn with a grasp of important, intersectional environmental issues including climate change.
UConn is also an active agent in local climate adaptation projects, notably through the University’s Connecticut Institute for Resilience and Climate Adaptation (CIRCA), which works with economically disadvantaged communities to improve their climate resiliency.
In 2017, we joined a multi-sector coalition of American businesses, state and local governments, NPOs, and colleges and universities by signing the “We Are Still In” pledge, reaffirming our commitment to the goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement.
Last fall, we joined 17 other major research universities in the University Climate Change Coalition (UC3), sharing our expertise in order to accelerate solutions to global warming. And, for the past four years, our UConn@COP program has brought a delegation of students to the U.N.’s annual international climate summit for an immersive, hands-on learning experience, with the goal of developing future leaders in climate science and policy.
This year, UConn’s Sustainability Office will meet with departments and stakeholders across campus, including at a student summit scheduled for next month, in order to update our strategic goals and metrics for climate leadership through 2025. This is the next five-year milestone in our long-term Climate Action Plan. It’s also the perfect opportunity to utilize Second Nature’s Guiding Principles as a more global and equitable lens for reviewing our progress and envisioning more impactful strategies toward a carbon-neutral campus.
Dr. Thomas Katsouleas, was officially voted into office this past Tuesday by UConn’s Board of Trustees as the 16th president in UConn’s history. Serving as the current Provost and Executive Vice President at the University of Virginia (UVa) and previously as Dean of the Pratt School of Engineering at Duke, Katsouleas is certainly well qualified for the job. Even more notable, is his demonstrated commitment to furthering environmental sustainability efforts in his previous leadership positions at Duke and Virginia.
This past October, members of the student organizations EcoHusky, ECOalition, and the Undergraduate Student Government Governing Board drafted a letter to UConn’s Presidential Search Committee urging them to only consider candidates who have demonstrated a sincere commitment to environmental sustainability in their career. The letter was formally endorsed by the University Senate, reflecting a unified interest between the student body and this important UConn legislative organization, which is comprised of faculty, staff and students.
As an established green campus leader, it is crucial for UConn to have a president who recognizes sustainability as one of the University’s transcendent values. With the appointment of Dr. Katsouleas, it is clear that the Presidential Search Committee took these student concerns seriously.
As Dean of Engineering at Duke, Katsouleas helped to organize the inaugural National Academy of Engineering (NAE) Grand Challenges Summit. In 2010, he formed Duke’s Katsouleas NAE Grand Challenge Scholars Program. This program, the first of its kind in the nation, challenges students to use their expertise and skills to address one or more of 14 challenges posed by the NAE, many with links to sustainability.
Katsouleas is also an advisory board member of UVa’s Yamuna River Project. A heavily polluted waterway in India, the Yamuna is an environmental and public health concern. The project aims to restore the river and promote ecosystem recovery through interdisciplinary collaboration, with sustainable design solutions that “take into account, culture, behavior and policy, as well as technical feasibility and economic viability.”
As a Yamuna River board member, Katsouleas was in full support of the project as both a public service and learning opportunity. In a statement to CTMirror.org, he referred to these experiential learning opportunities as “not luxuries, but essential for an educated populace that wishes to address the human element in today’s challenges.”
Other notable involvements include helping to organize, and presenting at, UVa’s Sustainability Retreat in August 2015. The retreat convened 60 of the University’s leaders in order to develop a framework for longer-term sustainability strategic planning. As Dean of Engineering at Duke 10 years ago, Katsouleas supported the construction of Duke’s Smart Home, the nation’s first LEED Platinum-certified “live-in laboratory.” The Smart Home provides 10 select students with a greener, technologically advanced living space, while also demonstrating those attributes for related research and educational purposes.
President Katsouleas certainly has big shoes to fill, but his commitment to sustainability and students proves that he is up to the challenge.
Cultural immersion is one of the key pillars of the UConn@COP program. This year, our fellows had the opportunity to tour various landmarks, facilities, and participate in breakfast club meetings to recap the events of the day. For more photos of the trip, please click on one of the photos below to be directed to an album.
Auschwitz and Birkenau
One of the most moving experiences throughout the trip, was the opportunity to tour Auschwitz and Auschwitz II-Birkenau. While many of our fellows have learned about the Holocaust, visiting the site gave them a new, personal, connection to the events that took place there.
Scenes from Krakow
During the trip, the UConn delegation stayed in Krakow. This historic city was filled with music, food, and vendors.
Wieliczka Salt Mine
The Wieliczka Salt Mine is one of the oldest operating salt mines. Inside the mine, our fellows learned about the mine’s history and got to explore ST. Kinga’s chapel.
Breakfast Club
Every morning at COP started with a Breakfast Club. These meetings allowed students to reflect on the their experiences and facilitated lively discussions about all aspects of the trip.
Higher Education Networking Event
This year UConn co-sponsored a COP24 Higher Education Networking Event with Cornell University. The event was hosted at Jagiellonian University and gave our fellows an opportunity to connect with other students attending COP24.
Wawel Castle
Wawel Castle has served as home to many Polish kings, and is now an art museum featuring pieces from a variety of time periods.
Editor’s note: Our COP fellows learned so much from the conference, but so did the faculty members who accompanied them. Below are their thoughts from the trip.
Outcomes of COP 24: Accounting and Finance – Scott Stephenson
Opportunities at COP24 – Frank Griggs
Outcomes of COP 24: Accounting and Finance
Scott Stephenson – Assistant Professor, Department of Geography
Following progress made last year at COP 23, COP 24 promised to focus attention on several issues critical to finalizing the so-called “Paris Rulebook,” the set of guidelines countries will follow in implementing their Paris commitments now and in the future. While all parties to the Paris Agreement pledged in 2015 to submit plans (“nationally determined contributions”) for reducing emissions over time, key questions such as how thoroughly and how often they should report on their emissions remained unresolved.
Some of these rules have provoked fierce debate among parties. For example, while the United States and most European countries have argued for common transparency standards for all parties, some developing countries and China in particular have been wary of disclosing their emissions accounting to outside observers. Coupled with the uncertain role of the U.S. in the negotiations going forward, such disagreements repeatedly threatened to derail adoption of a robust rulebook, with clear signals for increased ambition by 2020, in the run-up to and throughout COP 24. In the end, following several missed technical deadlines and a delayed plenary that continued past the scheduled end of the talks, the COP signed off on a rulebook that resolved many of the most pressing issues while tabling several others until COP 25 and beyond.
One of the most significant developments was a resolution on emissions accounting that would require countries to use the latest accounting guidance from the IPCC last updated in 2006 and currently being updated for next year. A common set of accounting rules is essential for ensuring that countries meet their climate pledges. The final rulebook outlines a single set of rules without explicitly differentiating between developed and developing countries.
However, in order to gain the support of countries with low capacity to meet targets, the rulebook also allows countries to use “nationally appropriate methodologies” to report their emissions, which may lead some countries to portray their emissions as better than they actually are. Thus, we can expect continued tension on this issue as countries’ reporting methodologies come under scrutiny in the years leading to the first global stocktake in 2023.
Climate finance remains a challenging issue following COP 24. The Paris Agreement requires developed countries to contribute $100 billion per year by 2020 to support mitigation and adaptation efforts in developing countries. Contributions are currently well short of this goal, not helped by the U.S.’ reneging on its $3 billion pledge last year. Perhaps to remove perceived bureaucratic barriers to fulfilling climate finance pledges, the language of the rulebook tended toward flexibility and permissiveness in terms of how contributions are reported, allowing countries to count the full value of loans as climate finance rather than their “grant-equivalent” value. This could render collective goals such as “$100 billion per year” meaningless as the full “face value” of loans is typically less than the sum of the discounted future payments made by the loan recipient over the period of the loan.
On the positive side, Germany doubled its 2014 contribution to the Green Climate Fund (€1.5 billion), while Norway pledged $516 million, and the World Bank announced it would allocate $200 billion for its climate investment program. Ultimately, these contributions and more must be matched by other developed countries in order to meet not only the 2020 goal, but a new, more ambitious climate finance goal to be set by 2025. Countries have agreed to start discussing this goal at COP 26 in 2020.
Opportunities at COP24
Frank Griggs – Doctoral Candidate, Political Science
The UConn@COP24 returned to Storrs at approximately 1:45am on Saturday, December 8, after 22 hours of shuttles and flights from Poland. The trip was a tremendous opportunity. I learned a lot as a researcher, citizen, and human being, and managed to have a good time. It was inspiring to be amongst diplomats, researchers, students, and civil society activists who are working hard for the benefit of humanity and ecology.
The trip was super busy: early morning meetings and discussion with the UConn group; hour-long-plus bus rides to and from the conference in Katowice (we stayed in Kraków where there was less expensive lodging, also turned out there was more to do as tourists); all day participation in the COP (e.g. watching diplomats meet, listening to presentations by IPCC officials, civil society representatives, or country delegations); touring Auschwitz-Birkenau on our first day, prior to the COP’s commencement; tending to professional and familial matters back home during the evenings; and exploring Kraków as time and energy permitted.
I expected the conference to be organized into strictly delimited zones. Instead, country delegates and non-state actors extensively comingled at presentations, dining areas, displays, and simply walking about the conference center. This produced a serendipitous meeting. I was excited by the prospect of meeting diplomats, so I introduced myself to a group of delegates as a student-observer. I was especially pleased to meet them because they were the delegation from Sierra Leone, and I recently assigned an article and taught a class about energy justice in Sierra Leone. The delegation was likewise excited and insisted that I take a picture with their Minister of Energy (see photo below).
I highly recommend participating in the trip if you are interested in climate change and ecological issues beyond the scope of our GEP course. UConn’s Office of Environmental Policy coordinates the trip. Applications are accepted during the latter part of Spring term. Keep an eye out for notifications in the Daily Digest and the OEP website (https://ecohusky.uconn.edu/uconn-at-cop/).
Class of 2018, B.S. Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
“Cherie runs a tight but loving ship. She’s always willing to lend support to anyone that needs it and if Cherie’s on the case, best believe things get done!” – Rose Croog (’17)
