Sustainability. Does that word mean something to you?
For some, there’s a strong awareness of its importance. For others, some education may be in order. In simple terms, sustainability is meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
For campus leaders, sustainability is something to which they’ve devoted many hours of thought. In fact, its importance led to the creation of a new position, campus sustainability manager. It’s also led to the unveiling of a campuswide “Sustainability Master Plan.”
“Folks need to understand we cannot continue operating in the manner we have in the past,” said Melanie Stewart, campus sustainability manager. “If our air and water is dirty and our soil is depleted, how can crops grow? If we spend more than we take in, how will we survive? This is all about planning and monitoring trends now to avert disaster in years to come.”
That’s the purpose around the new master plan, identifying a path to allow UNMC and Nebraska Medicine to continue to operate facilities in a sustainable way — meaning, to conserve energy, protect the environment and reduce costs.
The work to create this plan began two years ago and involved extensive interviews with many departments on campus, including facilities, food service and parking, to name a few. UNMC and Nebraska Medicine partnered with Verdis Group, a sustainability consulting firm, to assist with developing goals and objectives that are attainable and appropriate for the campus.
The master plan focuses on areas such as water usage, transportation and parking, emissions, energy and waste. In the coming months, you’ll hear a lot more about the plan. The plan can be found here on LiveGreen’s revamped website. The new site is also designed to provide information on LiveGreen’s efforts as well as provide simple ways you can have an impact.
“For us, it’s a triple bottom line,” Stewart said. “It’s about our mission to improve public health, to be financially responsible and to be sustainable for the future. Nebraska Medicine and UNMC together make up the city’s largest employer. We have a huge impact on energy use and consumption. We need to be a leader in sustainability.”