May 2015
The Green Scene@GSU
Check out all the recent happenings with regards to sustainability for the GSU Campus Community.

GSU Earth Week Wrap-Up

This was GSU's second year hosting Earth Week and we were humbled to see growing attendance and enthusiasm at all of our events!! The Office of Sustainability collaborates to successfully implement a week-long series of festivities open to the entire campus and public to engage and educate about all issues relating to sustainability. 

While Monday's Farmers Market was rained out, students received great insights from experts conducting a panel discussion on sustainability perspectives. The Environmental Law Society graciously hosted two distinguished speaker sessions; 1) on Tuesday, with acclaimed Climatologist, Kim Cobb showcasing her episode from the  Years of Living Dangerously documentary, and 2) Thursday's very empowering discussion on plastic pollution with the young founders of One More Generation, Carter and Olivia Ries, and City of Atlanta Sustainability Director/Green Law Executive Director, Stephanie Stuckey Benfield. The highlight of our week had to be Wednesday's Street Festival with participation from a wide variety of local vendors/organizations, student groups, and GSU Offices/Departments catering to over 500 attendees celebrating Mother Earth along Gilmer Street.  We capped off the week with an exciting EcoCouture Fashion show with University Housing in which clothing was re-used and showcased in a versatile and reusable manner. 

A special shout out to our GSU environmental student groups: Delta Zeta - Pink Goes Green, Housing Green Team, GeoSciences Club, Nutrition Student Network, and SET. We would also like to extend our gratitude to all of the campus and outside groups and organizations who made this week possible and invite everyone to view the GSU_Earth_Week_2015 Album  and get involved next year!  Check out the pictures from this year's Earth Week celebration!

 


Panther Power Down

This year, with the help of the Office of Sustainability, Georgia State University expanded its participation in Campus Conservation Nationals to include all housing buildings as well as a number of classroom and office buildings on campus. This competition took place from April 1st until April 22nd and required the involvement of multiple parties to make it a success. 


 

CCN is the largest electricity reduction competition for colleges and universities in the world. Organizers of our CCN campaign, which we lovingly refer to as "Panther Power Down," decided to set our campus goal to a 10% reduction in electricity use during this time. We surpassed that goal with over 870,575 kWh saved. That equates to $69,646 in savings! Way to go Panthers! To see more about the competition,visit our dashboard.


First Round of Student Sustainability Fee Funds Awarded

This year marks the first year of awarding student fee funds towards sustainability initiatives on campus. Georgia State University now includes a mandatory student fee of $3 each semester towards sustainability. This was an idea brought by students and faculty and was created using a sun setting library fee. 

Recently, the committee that votes on proposals met to review and voted to allot funding to the following:

  • 40 new bicycles for the campus bike share program
  • Additional bicycle racks (covered and non-covered) across campus
  • A large bicycle storage shed
  • Financial support for the 2016 GSU Bicycle Summit
  • Operating Budget for the Sustainable Energy Tribe student group
  • Multiple Big Belly solar compacting recycling and trash receptacles to increase outdoor recycling
  • Financial support for the GSU monthly farmers market
  • Lighting retrofits for the Student Center and Unity Plaza

Georgia State University Partners with Emory and Georgia Tech on Faculty Development

 

Next week, Georgia State University professors will travel to Emory to take part in a faculty workshop aimed at infusing sustainability in the curriculum, led by Dr. Peggy Barlett. This is the first year that the three schools have joined together in this endeavor and we look forward to the ideas that come from this inter-campus collaboration!  

GSU "Caps" off new CHaRM Facility Partnership

 

After years of determined promotion of the recycling of non-traditional materials, the City of Atlanta has finally officially signed off on the opening of a Center for Hard-to-Recycle Materials, or CHaRM Facility in partnership with LiveThrive.  The CHaRM Facility is a brick-and-mortar drop-off site for items and materials that people cannot recycle and should not dispose of in the trash. In practice, it is essentially a clearinghouse for the waste diversion of an assortment of items (including hazardous waste) from the landfill, where these items would generally become a direct pollutant to the land, air, and water of our local environment. Georgia State University acknowledges the CHaRM Facility as a wonderful opportunity for education and engagement with our Campus Community, especially because it is located downtown and in close proximity to our campus. 


 

As a gesture of our partnership and agreement with the goals and purpose of the CHaRM Facility, GSU volunteers from the University Housing Green Team conducted a bottle cap sign project.  Students morphed over 1700 assorted bottle caps into a collage/mural of the CHaRM facility logo.  The collage/mural serves as street signage at the new CHaRM Facility located at 1110 Hill St, Atlanta, GA.  The sign was also recently featured at the Atlanta Dogwood Festival, where Green Team volunteers assisted LiveThrive with the ever-popular EcoVillage attraction. 

Georgia State University
Office of Sustainability
10 Park Place, Suite 460
Atlanta, GA 30303


STAFF CONTACTS

Jennifer Asman
Sustainability Coordinator
sustainability@gsu.edu

Laurene Hamilton
Recycling Coordinator
recycling@gsu.edu
Contact us for more volunteer opportunities!