Office of the Dean
College of Earth and Mineral Sciences
The Pennsylvania State University
116 Deike Building
University Park, PA 16802-2710
814-865-6546
Fax: 814-863-7708
www.ems.psu.edu
May 1, 2014
STARS Submission Committee
The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA 16802
RE: Letter of Affirmation for STARS Innovation Credit IN-4: Unit-level Sustainability
Strategic Planning
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing in strong support of Penn State's approach to embedding sustainability into
all aspects of the University's mission and operations. I have spent time benchmarking
Penn State’s holistic philosophy toward sustainability against other similar-size and
mission universities and found that the philosophy appears to be quite unique. In
addition to creating an institution-wide Sustainability Strategic Plan with input from
multiple stakeholder groups, the University is asking planning units (which include
colleges, and academic and administrative support units) to incorporate sustainability into
their own strategic plans. This guidance was articulated in planning guidelines issued by
the Provost at the beginning of the process.
To support the inclusion of sustainability planning goals, staff members from Penn State's
Sustainability Institute have produced an array of online and printed materials, including
the "Sustainability Planning Guidebook for Teams". They also have offered advice and
facilitation services to units who request it, and are especially interested in working with
units that have a strong connection to sustainability in their curriculum, research, or
operations. My college - the College of Earth & Mineral Sciences - has benefited from
their input. The college has invited a staff member from the Sustainability Institute to
participate in its strategic planning process. The resulting strategic plan will likely
incorporate several sustainability-related goals, including curriculum adjustments to
encompass fundamental principles of sustainability in course material and reframing
research currently underway funded by the NSF sustainability networks program to
become a major information source for long-term climate change problems related to
future sustainability.
An Equal Opportunity University
I am optimistic that this approach will lead to creative sustainability goals embedded
throughout the strategic plans of Penn State's colleges and support units and, ultimately,
to a strengthened role of sustainability in our teaching, research, and outreach mission
and campus operations. Our vision for the colleges and the university as a whole is for
Penn State to be a world leader in demonstrating to the practical and intellectual value of
a successful transition to a sustainable society.
Sincerely,
William E. Easterling
Dean