OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY
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Looking to advance sustainability in your department? An offset is an optional added fee to the cost of traveling (air or ground transportation) to fund a separate project that reduces carbon emissions elsewhere, such as a wind farm or forestry project. In some cases, offsets can make the net carbon footprint of travel effectively zero. For OSU-funded travel, the Sustainability Office offers assistance to campus units by sourcing high quality offsets and bundling offset purchases. These offsets are affordable -- 1 metric ton of CO2 emissions can cost as little as $10 to offset! They also make a significant impact -- if all OSU-funded travel were offset, total emissions would drop by 14%!
The Faculty Senate Carbon Commitment Committee (C3) is excited to share Earth Week Bingo! Click here to view the bingo card links and log your progress through the Google Form. Submit by May 1 for a chance to win prizes or by the end of May to receive a certificate! You do not need to complete all actions, but more completion means an increased chance of prizes and greater recognition on your certificate.
March 6-8, OSU hosted in Corvallis the Washington & Oregon Higher Education Sustainability Conference (WOHESC). WOHESC is organized by Pacific Northwest higher education institutions and travels to a different host school each year to inspire change, facilitate action, and promote collaboration around sustainability within the region. Sessions, workshops, and networking at WOHESC empower participants to advance environmental and social justice.
The OSU Sustainability Office thanks all of this year's WOHESC speakers and sponsors! Many students, staff, and other members of the higher education community attended the conference and helped make the event a huge success. We look forward to attending next year's WOHESC at Western Washington University!
OSU's new Sustainability Engagement Program is a two-part leadership course designed to offer a structured, practical, and meaningful experience for students who wish to explore sustainability without committing to the time or expense of a for-credit class. This non-credit, transcript-visible course is free of charge. The Summer session begins June 26.
Green Certifications help the OSU community further sustainability efforts and receive recognition for excellent work. Green Office, Lab, and Greek certifications utilize online Qualtrics surveys to assess existing practices, such as energy and water use, waste management, purchasing, transportation, and outreach. Each survey can be saved and continued at any time, allowing you to complete it at your own pace. Once data entry and analysis are complete, we will send your score and certification level, as well as customized recommendations for improvement to reach the next level!
As part of a recent Capstone project, four senior-level Mechanical Engineers teamed up to design and implement a new mechanical cable management system for the OSU Solar Trailer. The Solar Trailer has a flexible conduit connecting the panels to the lower part of the trailer, and the new system is designed to prevent the conduit from getting caught or damaging other moving components. The simple device can be easily assembled and adjusted for future uses. Learn more about this project here.
Check out other innovative Capstone projects at this year's Engineering Expo on June 9, 2023!