STUDENT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE
Friday, October 26th, 2012, 2:00-4:00 PM, Natural Resources Building, Room 101
Present: Marika Nell, McKenzie Beverage, Katie Kinley, Teresa Tousignant, Suharsh Suvakumar, Sean Sullivan,
Jordan Jessup, Emily Cross, Felicia Speranske, John Prince, Morgan Johnston, Betsy J. Liggett Boehm, Michelle
Wander, Olivia Webb,
1. Introductions and Welcome
2. Approval of the Last Meeting’s Minutes
a. Emily makes motion, Katie seconds, all in favor
3. Updates from AASHE Attendees
a. Discussion by attendees Emily, Katie and Marika
b. Four members got funding to go, great to see what other universities doing to increase
sustainability. Idea to label ‘trash’ as ‘landfill’. Presented on our RLF project that SSC put money
towards. People interested in our green fund, one of the largest. Took away what other
universities doing: ex: life cycle analysis in dining halls
c. Write up to come to document conference
4. Convening Ad Hoc Committees
a. Few issues have come up
b. Illini Union & SSC Relationship
i. No specification where contract starts, and duration is 3yrs
ii. There is documented data starting 2010, but McKenzie not here until 2011, and contract
only 3 yrs
c. Center for the Sustainable Environment & SSC Relationship
i. Marcus and Marika both on steering committee, but cannot speak on behalf of SSC,
although we would be impacted
ii. Decisions for center made at steering committee, but cannot actually speak on behalf of SSC
without representatives
d. Member Code of Conduct
i. Need to draft up a document that members recuse oneself if believe they will have a bias
e. Student Member Appointment Process
i. Took us 5 and half months to get members
ii. Want to work on speeding this up
> Illini Union & SSC Relationship
-Marika and Emily
- Teresa will be the Chair
> Center for the Sustainable Environment & SSC Relationship
-Katie, Suharsh, Emily
-Marika or Marcus will be the Chair
> Member Code of Conduct
-Olivia, Jordan, Sean
-Suharsh will be the Chair
> Student Member Appointment Process
-Marika, Teresa, Jordan, Felicia
-Sean will be the Chair
Morgan asks that: all advisors invited to come to all committees
Discussion made to have primary advisor assigned to each
5. Voting to Invite Final Proposals – do by working groups, project by project, discussion when chair gives
recommendation (state what proposal is, recommendation, then concerns, questions answered by
working group chair, motion, second, then vote (can include conditions/concerns/phrase how want)
Emily is proxy for Marcus
a. Water, Chair Marika
i. Water Conservation by Replacing Leaky Pipes- position not to recommend full proposal
because of tight budget, not quite as competitive and does not involved students and SSC
values as much as other projects
1. Fixes happen in long run regardless, we just speeding it up
2. Discussion: agree
3. Motion by Emily to not invite a full proposal
4. Suharsh second
5. Passes unanimously
b. Education, Chair Jordan
i. Energy Dashboard Education: change in Heartland, continue project funded previously,
to, working group want full proposal, some questions on costs, could cost be brought down
and still have effective project, question of direct impact on campus- community and other
campuses, not specific to impact on UIUC campus
1. McKenzie: Clarification on environmental change institute
2. Michelle comment
3. Concerns by Katie: $5,000 for faculty writing retreat
4. Emily: Engagement in members not specifically on campus
5. Katie Move to invite full proposal
6. Teresa second
7. Passes unanimously
ii. Green Observer: funding for publication, like the broad appeal/scope, want to ask if they
can include newsletter on SSC in paper
1. No questions/ comments
2. Motion Jordan, Olivia second, Emily abstaining,
3. passes unanimously
iii. Solar Decathlon: want to invite full proposal
1. Concerns: cost and impact on campus, lot of money and not clear of broad
educational impact, house building put in china so that not option to have it hear
2. Teresa: built here or there?
3. Answer: Built in China, mock built here
4. Teresa: travel and software license concerns
5. Marika: same amount for previous years when actually building it here and sending
to DC, now same amount and not even building here
6. Olivia: travel scholarship not appropriate, yet at same time with student
involvement funding is crucial
7. Emily: ask for full proposal without travel scholarship, no value of it being here, can
value the solar decathlon, more engagement in
8. MOTION Emily: invite full proposal, funding inquiry not including travel
scholarships and reorient scope to include campus
9. Second: Katie
10. Vote unanimously
iv. Educating Future Teachers About Sustainability- Part 1: one credit education course,
only directly impacts a few students (campus project and teaching future teachers how to
teach sustainable issues), relatively small amounts of money
1. Emily: teachers oriented towards larger impact on campus
2. Teresa: great, encourage this,
3. Morgan: This professor participated in prairie project and that is where she found
inspiration for this proposal
v. Educating Future Teachers About Sustainability- Part 2
1. Developing course material for student teaches
2. Create teacher manual
3. Motion by Jordan both Part 1 and Part 2,
4. Second by Katie,
5. passes unanimously
66,000 dollars in funding up till now
c. Transportation- Chair Sean
i. Allerton Bridge/LINC – build bridge at Allerton to promote cycling on park, going to use
form of invasive species of trees (cut them down for materials)- engineering 315 course to
designing and planning, professional engineers, Allerton staff and LINC staff
1. Good project because of student involvement
2. Concerns: independent engineering source to see if bridge sound, who gain
ownership and have maintenance of bridge? Allerton would
3. Teresa- bridge location? Separate from car bridge, further down just as shared use
path, this will connect and make big circle
4. Morgan: f & s concern: classes making structurally sound bridges, if something go
wrong the university is liable
5. Info by Sean: Professional engineer will guide process
6. Jordan: sustainable idea using invasive plants? Decrease car/vehicle impact and
improve bikes… Morgan answer: getting people out into nature
7. John: bridge like this put in before for similar purpose
8. Betsy: 404 permit when bridge over waterway, concerns for need of certified
engineer and extra costs with that
9. McKenzie, proposal but look
10. Motion by Sean: proposal but look into costs
11. Second: Jordan
12. Passes
$75,000 used by now
d. Food & Waste, Chair Olivia
i. Perennial Polyculture Research Site– 5 acres of permaculture research, already started
and planted in May, want funding for research and farming equipment and intern
1. Working group want to invite proposal, like resource for research, worried about
visibility, and link with dining halls (take many years to produce food), this
primarily graduate work and not sure if we should fund because personal research
2. McKenzie: list of guidelines
3. Katie: want to see specific budget
4. Marika: item-ized
5. Michelle: some infrastructure needed to make this a permanent site, education,
capital
6. Emily: related to student farm
7. Teresa: specify what related to his research and not, want to see broad education
8. Olivia: classes have shown interest in field days
9. Motion by Olivia: full proposal, clarify which aspects of the funding is going towards
research and which going to broad education and others to dining hall/production
10. Second Suharsh
11. Passes
ii. Sustainable Agricultural Food System
1. Equipment needed to get food and package and give to dining
2. Student involvement same as with previous farm involvement
3. Yes: farm more integrated into campus, concerned: opportunity to be innovated and
want to make sure they using this opportunity, not just fastest way to get this put in
place
4. Not much packaging equipment, good to see how this goes for future packaging
5. Concerns Suharsh: sustainable packaging? Olivia answer: no
6. Concerns with equipment, and if practices actually more sustainable, not that they
‘want’ to be
7. Emily: ask for them to come back next semester with actual sustainable equipment $150,000 for design not okay
8. Motion by Olivia: not invite a proposal, offer to work with groups involved to help
make system more sustainable and understand where SSC funding play into that
and invite funding inquiry for next semester
9. Second: Emily
10. Passes
11. Opposed Marcus and Katie
iii. UIUC Biodiesel Initiative – amount requested changed to $50,000
1. Soap to sell to dining halls as dish soap
2. Production rather than research group so must leave lab by January, looking for new
place to go
3. Group recommend to invite: student involvement high, visibility at dining halls with
soap
4. Concern: place not picked out yet, money use is vague
5. Money used to get ready for place with bioreactor
6. Morgan: concerns with cost, not seem enough, yet should support so that they have
money to go somewhere
@ $600,000
7. Suharsh: Where go and exactly how much cost?
8. Motion: Emily: full proposal to answer questions or retro fitting
9. Second: Katie
10. Passes
11. Recuse oneself: Olivia and Marika
iv. Architecture Annex Gardens, Use of Waste and other Renovations
1. Waste/scrap would to make rain gardens with landscaping businesses
2. Recommend: yes because like collaboration of departments to make something
sustainable
3. Questions: other resources need to use rather than just scrap gotten
1. Fire proof? One time thing, where as waste stream continuous
4. Teresa: lots of students walk through there, relaxing, this place probably not best
place for all the wood saw dust
5. Morgan: concern: this location going to be around a construction zone
6. Olivia: opposed: one time thing, never produce food
7. Motion: not invite a proposal
8. Second: Sean
9. Passes
10. Opposed/ do want: Marcus, Katie
e. Land –Emily proxy for Chair Marcus
i. LAR/Allen Hall Gardens- courtyard that uses lots of energy to maintain, want to build
permaculture for dining and as educational tool for 12000 students that come
1. $25,000 – garden, food, reduces carbon, outreach, education, etc
2. Concerns: use permaculture plants actually
3. Olivia: like visibility
4. Teresa: concerns of maintenance
5. Emily- by ground crews, and actually reduction of maintenance
6. Jordan: concerns: logistics, species used, etc and use of courtyard not high, why?
1. – Where is data and research coming from?
7. Michelle: committee not care about native, this a worry? Worries about plants
working well
8. Olivia: link between this and food and waste related project
9. Concerns Marika: time line, could propose this next semester
10. Emily: could propose this for next year, why this semester? Still invite full proposal
11. Motion Emily: full proposal with list of proposed plants to use and break down of
cost. And that maintenance knows how to maintain these plans, how integrate
education and visibility by students
12. Suharsh second
13. Passes
ii. ISR Gardens- renovation of dining hall, asking for funding for educating students on
alternate methods of food production, located on their grounds and they could see, and
students would eat their production $100,000
1. Design start now, but landscaping not till 2015
2. Concerns: what planting, why $100,000, education?
3. Suharsh, is $50,000 for design? Not okay
4. Marika: in general to any projects with high amounts, if they can provide us with
other options, this is what we really need, we can modify costs of proposal
5. Michelle: can apply for other part next semester for funding
6. Motion Emily- full proposal by ISR with consideration to what planting,
maintenance issues, what categories of funding we could create, clarify necessary
construction
7. Second Katie
8. Passes
iii. SSF/Fresh Press Papermaking Studio and Classroom Extensions
1. Want proposal, questionable on space to be used
2. How papermaking better than conventional, are they sustainable?
3. Need to make request more specific
4. Emily: how engage not just people researching, this place for SSC to fund research;
need campus community to be involved, what doing with paper?
5. Research more sustainable
6. Michelle: many non clarified issues, need clarity
7. Motion by Emily: working group can work with fresh press and answer questions
have, list out everything
8. Second: Jordan
9. Passes
iv. Native Prairie Plantings
1. From SECS and red bison, to have location to start plants that students work on for
native landscaping sites on campus, aka greenhouse space
2. Tiny amount of money
3. Recommendation: proposal and want to see this expanded (aka student employees
hired)
4. Concern Katie: funding with transportation to and from Allerton- not sure if support
5. Motion: Katie: to invite full proposal and increase budget with possibility of student
employees
6. Suharsh second
7. Emily and Felicia recuse oneself
8. Passes
300,000 funding at this point
f. Energy- Chair Teresa
i. SDRP Lighting: two parts
1. Recommend: full proposal, like reprogramming,
2. Exceptions: exit signs
3. Motion by Teresa: full proposal
4. Second: Suharsh
5. Passes
ii. ARC Solar thermal panels – 24 panel
1. Preheat water for swimming pools
2. Short pay back, high visibility, incorporation into campus tours
3. Motion by Teresa:
4. Emily Second
5. Passes
iii. LED Adaptive Lighting Technology for Parking
1. Dimming technology, at only 50%, and off when people not there
2. Full proposal: cover difference of normal lights and these new lights, when do lights
turn on (comfortable with darkness)
3. Motion by Teresa:
4. Sean Second
5. Passes
6. Opposed: Suharsh
iv. College of Fine and Applied Arts Electric Car/LINC
v.
Amount requested from $98,000 $50,000
1. Retrofit vehicle to electric
2. Students in classes setting up design
3. 1st shuttle golf cart IT around and 2 charging stations
4. Motion by Teresa for full proposal, request if can run off grid and
5. Second: Katie
6. Passes
7. Opposed: Jordan, Sean
8. Abstain: Marcus
vi. Sustainable Student Farm Electric Vehicle/LINC
1. Amount requested changed $50,000 25,000 s
2. Retrofit student farm vehicle to electric
3. No discussion
4. Motion by Teresa for full proposal
5. Second: Suharsh
6. Passes
7. Oppose: Jordan
@ $668,183 total now invited
vii. Solar Farm
1. Engage a vendor to have solar farm
2. Recommendation: full proposal- want to see address:
3. Alternative, land use, visibility, environmental impacts, etc.
4. Costs put into perspective
5. Grid?
6. Discussion:
7. Motion: Emily
8. Second: Katie
9. Passes
6. Solar Farm Straw Poll
a. Marika: if positive then write a letter to Jack Dempsey
b. Teresa: only goal: iCAP
i. No educational incorporation
1. Access to data wanted
c. Negotiations on the contract (about price of the power, which we have covered already):
d. Now a review of the contract: meeting on Monday: if take to board then moves forward and Board
of Trustees will give us permission to sign contract to buy the energy
e. No destruction of barn- move or preserve
i. Preference
ii. Not moved: Emily, Teresa
f. Not demolished; preference not moved
g. Suharsh: not should be put in way of sustainability
h. Teresa: opportunity to restore and potential future research
i. Emily: funding hung up on the barn?
j. Move: Emily: yes on straw poll pending the 6 caveats, 1 mil $50,000, and after 20yrs SSC could not
have been no more
i. $350,000 every 3yrs
7. Public Comments (if time remaining)
a. Scott Wilembrock, Professor of Physics: Wording of “should be in the same location”
8. Adjournment