Welcome, Konrad! UCCS Hires New Director of Sustainability |
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Konrad Schlarbaum is the new UCCS Director of Sustainability. Schlarbaum assumed the role on May 9.
Schlarbaum has over 10 years of higher education sustainability experience, with his most recent at Pikes Peak Community College for the past eight years. In this role, he was responsible for advancing equitable, environmental and economical sustainability practices in a community of over 16,000 plus engagement with partners in the Pikes Peak Region.
He successfully developed two sustainability-related degree programs, championed alternative transportation through the well-used MMT College Pass Program that connects all four campuses, and engaged thousands of students through campaigns, events and experiential learning.
With the recent adoption of the University’s third Sustainability Strategic Plan that will guide UCCS through the next decade, Schlarbaum will be a critical leader in the continued innovation and success of this 17-year-old department.
“I am thrilled to join the UCCS Community and continue the legacy of my predecessors as the new Director of Sustainability,” Konrad Schlarbaum said. “I look forward to partnering with students, faculty and staff to foster a culture of sustainability with the recently adopted Sustainability Strategic Plan as our guide.”
From his time as an interpretive ranger at the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve to being awarded the DEI Staff of the Year Award at PPCC to his personal passion for continuing education, Schlarbaum leads with intentionality, fiscal responsibility and a focus on community.
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UCCS approves 2030 Sustainability Strategic Plan |
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In line with its commitment to sustainability and innovation, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs (UCCS) has approved its 2030 Sustainability Strategic Plan to chart the institution’s next decade of environmental progress.
The plan rests on four core strategies focusing on leadership; teaching and research; operations; and engagement with the wider community.
The strategies include:
- Fostering a culture of sustainability at UCCS and beyond.
- Cultivating excellence in research and teaching related to sustainability, climate change, energy, environmental justice and equity.
- Modeling sustainability, efficiency and innovation in UCCS’ campus operations, infrastructure and facilities management.
- Engaging UCCS students, faculty, staff and members of the Colorado Springs community with events and programming related to sustainability.
The plan seeks to deepen existing institutional commitments to sustainability, many of which permeate campus life. For instance, all UCCS students must complete a sustainability course as part of their general education requirements. UCCS has a strong zero-waste program across campus, including recycling, compost and low-wattage electronics, helping the university to achieve a 50 percent diversion rate. 15 of its buildings are LEED Gold-certified high performance facilities, and since 2012, the student-led Green Action Fund has approved and invested over $1.3M in funding for 140+ innovative sustainability projects on campus.
The plan also seeks to leverage new approaches, with a focus on reducing UCCS’ carbon footprint. Proposed initiatives include increasing the number of faculty and student researchers involved in sustainability-related research, investing in emerging water efficiency technologies, retrofitting older campus spaces, pursuing Net Zero Energy and Zero Waste strategies and reducing emissions and fossil fuels related to university functions.
The goal is to make UCCS a recognized leader in sustainability — weaving social justice, economic and ecological values into institutional programs and practices.
“We are in an era requiring leadership and innovative approaches to prepare our graduates for a rapidly changing global environment,” said Venkat Reddy, Chancellor of UCCS, in the introduction to the plan. “UCCS seeks to play a pivotal role in creating a culture of sustainability, providing both the knowledge and practices that students will carry with them into their lives after college.”
“UCCS has seen great success from the two previous campus Sustainability Strategic Plans in reducing the University’s carbon footprint, creating research and courses on sustainability, climate action and justice topics, and engaging our campus and broader community in educational opportunities to foster positive change through awareness and passion,” added Kimberly Reeves, Interim Director of Sustainability. “To continue making UCCS more sustainable, it will take our entire campus community. The exciting opportunities this plan outlines are an encouragement for you to innovate and advocate and engage.”
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Campus Sustainability Award 2022 Recipient - Suzanne Cook
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Help us celebrate Suzanne Cook, Senior Instructor of French Languages and Cultures, who was awarded the 2022 Campus Sustainability Award!
Her nominator wrote, "Suzanne has been a positive and dependable advocate for sustainability at UCCS. Not only did she create a sustainability-focused upper-class course in French, and encouraged other faculty in the Languages and Culture department to create sustainability courses in other languages, she has also been an integral part of the effort to revise the UCCS Sustainability Strategic Plan 2030. Suzanne’s collaborative efforts make her an excellent recipient for the Campus Sustainability Award."
The UCCS Campus Sustainability Award is presented annually at the Campus Award Ceremony each spring.
This award was designed to recognize candidates acting beyond their primary University responsibilities. We define campus sustainability as "An engaged learning community demonstrating leadership in our policies, programs and practices toward local and global ecological integrity, social equity, and economic vitality."
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Community-supported agriculture will bring farm to table this summer |
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This summer, the UCCS campus community has a new opportunity to buy — and eat — local.

For the first time, UCCS will be a pick-up site for the Excelsior Farmers Exchange, a community-supported agriculture (CSA) program that brings fresh, local food from southern Colorado to the plates of the community.
The Excelsior Farmers Exchange will offer 18 weeks of fresh organic produce, eggs and artisan cheese, delivered once a week, for UCCS community members to pick up at the William J. Hybl Sports Medicine and Performance Center every Friday from 3:45–5:45 p.m. The program will run from June 20–Oct. 21, 2022.
Those interested can purchase a full share of produce for the summer, which will provide them with 15–20 pounds of produce, grains, seasoning and spices each week, or a part share, which will provide 7–10 pounds. Egg shares and cheese shares can be added to each bundle or purchased separately. A full share of produce will cost roughly $36 per week, and a part share will cost roughly $27.
“Being part of a CSA provides economic security to small-scale family-owned farms in exchange for a weekly share of produce and other local foods,” said Sean Svette, Instructor and Program Coordinator for the Department of Human Physiology & Nutrition within the Hybl Center. “Food will be sourced through the Taproot Cooperative and primarily feature farmers in southern Colorado and the Arkansas River Basin. Each week that you pick up produce, you’ll be greeted by our SWELL graduate students, who will share food samples and recipes featuring the seasonal foods in your share.”
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KFL Office Supply Recycling Station |
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Do you have
- pens
- markers
- permanent markers
- mechanical pencils
- and broken binders
that no longer work?
The Kraemer Family Library is here to support you!
In the KFL Sustainability Plan, adopted in late 2018, the KFL Team Green identified sustainable practices to implement in the library operational and educational practices.
Through a Green Action Fund funded project, you can bring all of these unwanted, single-use office supplies to the library near the circulation desk on the west side of the building.
Once the container is full, KFL Team Green members will ship it back to Staples to be up-cycled into new materials.
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Bike to Work Day | Wednesday, June 22nd 6am-9am & 4pm-7pm |
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Bike to Work Day in Colorado Springs returns Wednesday, June 22, 2022!
After two years of celebrating Bike Month differently during the COVID-19 pandemic, Bike to Work Day will once again offer FREE breakfast at various stops along the trail network, welcoming riders along their morning commute.
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The UCCS Office of Sustainability supports and engages the UCCS and broader community through educational campaigns, updated infrastructure, programs, project, events, and more! Join our collaborative and engaging office that fosters the development of leaders that strengthen community, protect our natural environment and address social challenges of our time. |
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