8/14/2023 0 Comments Pacific 12 conferenceParineh discussed the difficulty of tackling emission offsets as part of Stanford’s ambitious new climate action plan, and the many stakeholders that need to be involved in that process. The discussion turned to what the panelists saw as significant sustainability challenges they need to address. “We have 275 of these receptacles 26 of our buildings – that’s pretty darn impressive,” he said. He also lauded the installation of shared waste stations in common areas in place of individual trash bins. In Athletics, Muir reflected on the success of the zero-waste game day challenges, the installation of LED lighting at athletic venues, and the reduction of water usage on Stanford’s golf course. “And eight years later, the university has now invested over $3 million in transforming how we clean our campus.” “It was just as effective if not more effective than traditional cleaners on the market,” she said. She also cited the ways that Stanford is using its own campus as a living laboratory to test solutions, such as one former student’s idea for an ozone-based cleaning system to replace chemical-based products. Parineh said a new partnership between the Office of Sustainability and the Doerr School will include the new Sustainability Living Laboratory Fellowship Program, through which fellows will work on complex university-wide problems related to sustainability. And Koseff noted the 2008 construction of the Yang and Yamazaki Environment & Energy (Y2E2) building, which was designed to conserve natural resources and has sustainable features that are now common practice across campus. Livingston highlighted Stanford’s investment in the Central Energy Facility and a large heat exchanger as among the infrastructure improvements. They cited the Sustainable Energy System Innovations (SESI) program, which has transformed the university’s energy system from a fossil fuel-based system to 100% renewable, grid-sourced electricity. The discussion opened with the panelists sharing the collaborative sustainability accomplishments taking place across campus. In the morning, Moira Zbella, Stanford’s Scope 3 Emissions program manager, moderated a panel discussion with Stanford leaders: Bernard Muir, athletics director Kristin Parineh, associate director of climate action planning in the Office of Sustainability Randy Livingston, CFO and vice president for business affairs and Jeff Koseff, professor of engineering and founding director of the Stanford Woods Institute. Thursday’s program took place at Denning House and included discussions on mitigating contamination, implementing sustainable practices at large sporting events, and the work that student-athletes are doing to implement sustainability measures.įrom left: Moira Zbella, Bernard Muir, Jeff Koseff, Kristin Parineh, and Randy Livingston. In addition to the sustainability conference, Team Green hosts the Pac-12 Zero Waste Competition and the Pac-12 Sustainability Working Group. The Pac-12 Sustainability Conference is one of the key components of Pac-12 Team Green, a platform that promotes sustainability among all 12 member universities. “Every time we host an event, whether it is a practice, a contest, a clinic, or a camp, we have the opportunity to demonstrate our universities’ commitment to sustainability,” he said. But he said that sports can also generate considerable waste, emissions, and other impacts that harm the environment, and he encouraged Pac-12 schools to collaborate on finding solutions. With regard to athletics, he noted the ability of collegiate sports to bring fans and campus communities together and provide a platform for student-athletes to compete. He shared some of the sustainability work happening across Stanford, including the recent opening of the Doerr School of Sustainability. “Together, we have the opportunity to promote a culture and mindset of sustainability, here in the Pac-12, and beyond,” Tessier-Lavigne said at the event. In the evening, conference goers attended a welcome reception at Stanford Stadium where President Marc Tessier-Lavigne delivered the keynote address. The conference kicked off Wednesday afternoon with tours of Stanford’s Central Energy Facility, Recycling Center, and The Barn. Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne delivers the keynote address at the Pac-12 Sustainability Conference.
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