Nairobi, 23 July 2009
- Six universities from the US, UK, Spain
and China have become the first academic
institutions to come on board the Climate
Neutral Network
(CN Net) - an initiative led by the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to
promote global action to de-carbonize our
economies and societies.
They are the pioneers
among hundreds of universities, colleges
and other academic institutions worldwide
that are taking steps to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions, promote "greening"
of their campuses and invest in low-carbon
research and development.
UN Under-Secretary-General
and UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner
said: "The Climate Neutral Network
was inspired by a simple idea that a transformation
to a low, even zero emission future is a
learning process. It is therefore fitting
that universities from all over the world
should join this global networking platform
and help make the best knowledge on climate
neutrality available to all."
"As think tanks,
creativity hubs and change agents in our
societies, we welcome universities on board
the CN Net and hope that they will bring
their vast libraries of knowledge to the
Network and use it to accelerate the global
transition to a low-carbon, resource-efficient
future."
From using renewable
sources of energy such as wind, sun and
biomass to developing fuel cell vehicles
to encouraging neighbouring communities
to take on the low carbon challenge, the
new CN Net participants are taking leadership
on the issue of climate change at the local,
national and international levels.
In the United States
alone, 645 colleges and universities are
moving towards climate neutrality as part
of the American College & University
Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC),
and many of these schools are perfect candidates
for the CN Net.
"Colleges and universities
are arguably the most important institutions
to address climate disruption because they
can model climate neutrality on their campuses,
and they can teach their students the skills
and knowledge they need to address the climate
crisis," said Anthony D. Cortese, coordinator
of the ACUPCC and president of Second Nature
- a nonprofit organization working to help
colleges and universities make the principles
of sustainability fundamental to every aspect
of higher education.
The first universities
that have joined the Climate Neutral Network
are:
College of the Atlantic,
Maine (USA): The College was founded in
1969 on the premise that education should
go beyond understanding the world as it
is, to enabling students to actively shape
its future. It has pioneered a special interdisciplinary
approach to undergraduate education - human
ecology - with the view to developing the
types of leaders needed by all sectors of
society in addressing the compelling and
growing human needs of our world. College
of the Atlantic has been carbon neutral
since December 19, 2007. It achieved this
by reducing and avoiding its greenhouse
gases emissions, and by carefully calculating
all other emissions (including that of visitors
to campus), which are offset. All electricity
is now purchased from a low-impact hydroelectric
generator in Maine, and a wind turbine powers
the farmhouse on the college's outlying
organic farm (which supplies some of the
produce to the college's dining hall). The
college has completed an energy audit, established
a bicycle plan, encourages telecommuting
when possible and has switched all possible
incandescent light bulbs to compact fluorescent
bulbs.
Evergreen State College,
Washington (USA): The Evergreen State College
has established a national reputation for
leadership in developing innovative interdisciplinary
academic programs. Evergreen has been a
leader in environmental education from the
beginning, and in recent years, the College
has advanced its commitment to sustainability.
Evergreen is engaging the local, regional
and global community to demonstrate and
enact clear policies to address the world-changing
challenges of climate change. The College
has set a goal of reaching carbon neutrality
by 2020 and currently purchases 16 million
kilowatt-hours (kWh) from renewable energy
sources, representing 100 percent of the
school's annual electricity usage. The US
Environmental Protection Agency estimates
that Evergreen State College's purchase
of more than 16 million kilowatt-hours of
green power is the equivalent amount of
electricity needed to power more than 1,600
average American homes each year or has
the equivalent impact of reducing the CO2
emissions of more than 2,100 passenger cars
annually. Furthermore, Evergreen's most
recent energy savings and conservation plan
will reduce carbon output by 500 tonnes
and save $73,000 per year.
Malaga University (Spain):
Malaga University (UMA) is a public institution
which promotes outstanding research and
teaching within the European Higher Education
Area. With a university community of just
over 40,000 people, over the last decade
UMA has sought to promote the internationalization
of its teaching. UMA offers an extensive
catalogue of specialized teaching and postgraduate
study with particular focus on urban biodiversity.
In the sustainability field, Malaga University
has created a solar thermal surface of 2000
m2 for a renewable energy heating source.
The University is also in the process of
building a solar photovoltaic panel surface
of 8000 m2 with a production capacity of
1 megawatt with plans to eventually use
geothermal energy with a tri-generation
plant on the campus. In the year 2012, Malaga
University will finish subway transportation
between the Central City and the University
City. In addition, the university plans
to introduce more sustainable transportation
(bicycles, hybrid vehicles) and create 264.905
m2 of urban forest and green zones.
Middlebury College,
Vermont (USA): Middlebury is ranked as one
of the top liberal arts colleges in the
United States. It offers its students a
broad curriculum embracing the arts, humanities,
literature, foreign languages, social sciences,
and natural sciences. Middlebury is an institution
with a long-standing international focus,
a place where education reflects a sense
of looking outward. Indeed, the college
claims that the central purpose of a Middlebury
education is precisely to transcend oneself
and one's own concerns-for some through
the study of the environment. Middlebury
College has set a goal of carbon neutrality
by 2016. The implementation strategy adopted
by the College relies on a switch of the
fuels it uses for heating, cooling and cooking
from fossil based to renewables. Toward
that end, the College recently built a $12
million biomass gasification system which
uses wood chips from nearby forests and
mills. This has cut Middlebury College's
carbon footprint by 40%, or 12,500 metric
tonnes, cut fuel costs by $1000,000/yr.
and has put $800,000 new money into the
local economy.
Tongji University, Shanghai
(China): Tongji University was established
in 1907 and is one of the oldest leading
universities in China, operating under the
State Ministry of Education. It offers degree
programs both at undergraduate and postgraduate
levels, including a School of Environmental
Science and Engineering and an Institute
of Environment for Sustainable Development,
which was created in partnership with UNEP.
The name Tongji signifies "cooperating
by riding the same boat." Tongji University
certainly understands that we are all part
of a global "boat" that needs
to deal with the rising tide of climate
change and Tongji has begun developing green
technologies. The Tongji Fuel Cell Vehicle
Engineering Center helped develop fuel cell
vehicles, which are now being tested in
a six-month road testing in California.
Principals of Tongji Fuel Cell Vehicle Engineering
Center have expressed that this was the
first time for China's fuel cell vehicles
to participate in international demonstrations.
These fuel cell-powered sedans can reach
150 miles per hour and cover up to 300 miles
after one Hydrogen charging. Tongji University
also uses solar energy, reuses water, and
has energy-saving technologies. In the Wenyuan
Building, the university does not only maintain
the historical features of the building,
but also builds the concept of eco-building
by using technologies such as geo-heat pumps,
thermal insulation systems, rainwater collection
and recycling systems.
University of the West
of England, Bristol (UK): The University
is committed to a range of actions that
address climate change through its Sustainability
Strategy for 2008 to 2012, including clear
reductions of greenhouse gas emissions.
The University developed a carbon management
plan in partnership with the Carbon Trust
that aims to progressively reduce dependency
on fossil fuels and contribute to achieving
the UK target of an 80% reduction in carbon
dioxide emissions by 2050. From 2006 to
2007, the University reduced its carbon
emissions by more than 23%. Some aspects
of their strategy involve calculating the
University's carbon commitment, reducing
energy use in buildings, encouraging public
transportation, and implementing an energy
awareness campaign. The University is also
a founding member of the West of England
Carbon Challenge, an innovative project
that is challenging all businesses, public
and third sector bodies in the Bristol city-region
to commit to making an annual cut in emissions
for four years to reach a cumulative total
of at least 10% by 2012.
Quotes from some of
the new CN Net members:
"We are pleased
to have this opportunity to join with a
global effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions."
- Scott Morgan, Office of Sustainability,
Evergreen State College
"Middlebury College
has set a goal of achieving carbon neutrality
by 2016 for several important reasons. We
recognized early on that the threats of
climate change are serious and that they
can only be addressed through coordinated
local and international efforts by all sectors
of society. By taking leadership on this
issue we are expressing that concern and
showing that there are solutions that make
sense from a sustainability perspective
- solutions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions,
improve the local economy, and strengthen
the vitality and health of surrounding communities.
We joined CN Net because it provides a means
for adding our voice and our examples of
leadership to a growing international movement
to take substantive, effective action to
address the challenge of climate change."
- Jack Byrne, Director, Sustainability Integration
Office, Middlebury College
"The University
of the West of England, Bristol is delighted
to support the UN's Climate Neutral Network.
We look forward to actively participating,
learning from the successes of fellow members
and sharing the outcomes of the actions
that we have taken to reduce our own carbon
dependency. Joining this new Network is
further evidence of the University's strong
commitment to sustainability. The University
is already taking vigorous action to reduce
the carbon footprint of its operations -
we cut gas consumption by 46% between 2006
and 2007 - and we seek to ensure that our
students - the leaders and thinkers of tomorrow
- are aware of the challenges and opportunities
of creating a sustainable and low-carbon
future. We also carry out key research into
climate change issues through an Institute
dedicated to sustainability. In addition
we are responding strategically to the challenges
of sustainability and climate change via
a Sustainability Board, chaired by the Deputy
Vice Chancellor." - Professor James
Longhurst, Associate Dean and Professor
of Environmental Science, University of
the West of England, Bristol