The subcommittee advances sustainability in many facets of the University’s physical plant and operations, resulting in measurable results on Grounds and accountability toward achieving UVA’s goal of being carbon neutral by 2030 and fossil fuel-free by 2050. In addition, ESS is focused on using Grounds as a means of learning and engagement for students on sustainability projects with impact. 

Co-Chairs

Mark Stanis, Director of Capital Construction and Renovation, Facilities Management
Jesse Warren, Assistant Director, Office for Sustainability

Get Involved

There are several Working Groups within the subcommittee across topic areas. Students, faculty, and staff are welcome to join any of the groups by reaching out to the contact listed for each or emailing [email protected]. 

Open each section below to learn more about the Working Group on that topic and how to get involved. 

Zero Waste Ambassadors

The Zero Waste Ambassadors program provides students a hands-on opportunity to contribute directly to UVA’s ambitious waste minimization goal. To expand publicly accessible composting, the Office for Sustainability works closely with the Zero Waste Ambassadors to monitor and sort various compost bins around Grounds. The Zero Waste Ambassadors also play a large role in education their peers through tabling, interactive games, and waste audits. 

Co-chairs are Lela Garner (staff) and Sam Solomon (student). 

Recent Progress: 

• The Spring 2022 Zero Waste Ambassadors cohort diverted just over 4,000 pounds of material from the landfill through composting at OHill, Newcomb and the Amphitheater.
• Five prior Zero Waste Ambassadors have interned with the Black Bear Composting team. 

Current Initiatives: 

• The Fall 2022 cohort worked closely with the UVA Landscaping team to procure new compost bins for the Amphitheater. All compost bins are now co-located with recycling and landfill bins.
• The cohort diverted 8,245 pounds of waste from the landfill between August 24 an October 31 and will continue sorting throughout the semester. 

Resources: 

• UVA’s Zero Waste Events page

 

Contact Lela Garner ([email protected]) for more information and to join the Zero Waste Ambassadors.

 

Materials & Waste

The Materials Working Group is dedicated to reducing material waste on Grounds to help the University achieve its waste reduction goals by 2030. This includes pursuing projects related to reusing, repurposing and recycling a variety of materials. This working group brings together students, staff, faculty and community members to implement change at UVA.

Chair is Katie Steele (staff)

Areas of Focus

• Reuse - Items that can be valuable elsewhere for their originally intended use
• Repurpose - Items that can be used again but in a different manner
• Reduce - Items that can be eliminated at the source for more low-waste alternatives

Current Projects

• Expanding ‘Hoos Reuse’ move-out collection drive to capture additional materials, especially larger items that do not fit in collection boxes
• Diverting salvageable small-project construction debris to be reused or repurposed
• Increasing awareness of the ROSE Program and accessibility for students to use this resource

 

Contact [email protected] with questions, ideas, or if you would like to join.

 

Clean Water

The student-led Clean Water group works to improve the quality and reduce the volume of stormwater at UVA through stewardship and education. Students are given the opportunity and resources to investigate, recommend and design stormwater management practices that help reduce the University’s impact on local streams, rivers and ultimately the Chesapeake Bay. The group hosts outreach events and activities throughout the year to educate students, faculty and staff on stormwater pollution prevention and the sustainable use of water.

Co-chairs are Alex Thorpe (student), Brittany Olenslager and Dawson Garrod (staff).

Recent Progress: 

• April 2022, hosted the Annual Beta Bridge Cleanup event with 40 participants
• May 2022, collaborated with Albemarle County public schools using RainWorks stencils to promote stormwater education 
• September 2022, conducted a stream cleanup of Pollocks Branch as part of the Annual Rivanna River Roundup hosted by the Rivanna Conservation Alliance.

Current Initiatives: 

• Host and support stream cleanup events on Grounds and in the community 
• Replace old, worn “Only Rain Down the Drain” storm drain stickers around Grounds 
• Host another storm drain stencil design contest

Resources: 

• UVA Clean Water Facebook page
• Hosting an outdoor event? Reserve an H20 2 GO station to reduce single-use plastic water bottles!

 

Contact [email protected] for more information and to join the Clean Water Working Group.

 

Green Athletics

Green Athletics is a group of student athlete leaders committed to advancing sustainability on Grounds. Under the guidance of the Office for Sustainability, the group promotes the University’s sustainability goals and initiatives, focusing on outreach and engagement. Each semester, Green Athletics plans and executes a range of projects and events with the aim to promote sustainable thought and practice among student athletes, coaches and administrators.

Chair is Cam Bentley (student).

Recent Progress: 

• Since 2019, Green Athletics has led the ACC Sustainable Athletes group, the first conference-wide student-athlete group focused on sports sustainability efforts.
• In 2022, the group focused on educating student athletes about plant-based nutrition. Each month, members prepared a plant-based snack and set up an outreach table in the athletic dining hall.
• Also in 2022, Green Athletics partnered with IM Rec to initiate Aces for Earth, that recycles and transforms unusable tennis balls into other products like tennis courts and horse footing. 

Current Initiatives: 

• Building on our “Green Game” success of several years to reduce waste at a designated home football game, all home games during the 2022-23 season have recycling and composting bins available throughout the venue. 
• We established a formal donation process between Virginia Athletics and Leveling the Playing Field, a nonprofit that collects and distributes athletic gear and equipment to community sports programs. 
• We are supporting Virginia Rowing in its efforts to install solar panels and purchase electric boating motors to help reduce the environmental footprint of the program.
• We’re reducing single-use plastics in locker rooms by transitioning from individually purchased shower products to team sponsored bulk products and refillable aluminum containers.

Resources:

• Virginia Green Athletics Instagram
• Green Athletics

 

Contact [email protected] for more information and to join the Green Athletics Working Group.

 

Green Dining

The Green Dining Working Group collaborates with UVA to reach its sustainability goals and educate and engage the UVA community around sustainable food systems. The group supports UVA Dine’s sustainability goals to increase responsibly and locally sourced foods, minimize waste and promote climate-friendly menus throughout dining locations on Grounds. In 2022, we celebrated 14 years of UVA’s composting program, as featured in a UVA Today article. 

Co-chairs are Caroline Baloga (staff) and Anna Jett (student).

Student interns promote the Green Dining program through these positions: 

• Green Dining Zero Waste Interns
• Green Dining Events & Outreach Interns
• Green Dining Babylon Intern 
• Green Dining Morven Kitchen Garden Intern 

 
Recent Progress: 

• Launched a Cool Food meal program, a Guide to Plant-Based Eating on Grounds, and a joint UVA Dine Green Dining and Health & Wellness newsletter 
• Installed a Babylon micro-farm at Fresh Food Co-Dining Hall 
• 850 pounds of produce from Morven Kitchen Garden was sold to UVA Dine 
• Led weekly “Weigh the Waste” events to bring awareness to post-consumer food waste in the dining halls.  
• Hosted two Cville Markets in the UVA Amphitheater, a Free Produce Stand with offerings grown at Morven Kitchen Garden, and a Swipe Drive where over 800 pounds of food was donated to the UVA Community Food Pantry 
• Hosted Battle of the Veggie Burgers event and a plant-based Pop-Up to celebrate World Vegan Day 
• Reintroduced reusable coffee cup incentive throughout coffee shops on Grounds
• Celebrated Earth Month with a Cville Market, Farm to Fork dinner, Veg Out meals, and a Sustainable Seafood Dinner

Current Initiatives:  

• Cool Food Meals
• Local Sourcing Program 
• Morven Kitchen Garden/UVA Dine Sourcing Program 
• Composting and reusable programs 
• Weigh the Waste 
• Babylon Micro-Farms
• Local Taste Cart 
• Cville Markets 
• Green Dining / Health & Wellness Newsletter 

 Resources: 

• UVA Green Dining  
• UVA Dining Sustainability 
• UVA Sustainable Food Collaborative 
   

 

Contact Caroline Baloga at [email protected] for more information and to join the Green Dining Working Group. 

 

Transportation

The Transportation Working Group promotes a sustainable, resilient, multi-modal transportation network at UVA that supports the University’s greenhouse gas reduction goals and enhances accessibility to and around Grounds. 

Co-chairs are Patrick Clark (staff) and Becca White (staff).

Recent Progress:

• In a major step toward electrifying UVA’s fleet, UVA purchased four battery electric buses in May 2022. Replacing four existing diesel buses will cut tailpipe emissions by about 400 metric tons annually. The new buses will arrive on Grounds in the fall of 2023.
• UVA Parking & Transportation offers a “Commute Concierge” service to help commuters identify more sustainable, cost-effective and convenient options.

Current Initiatives: 

• Investigate EV charging stations and their possible implementation in commuter parking areas to facilitate the use of more sustainable, battery-electric vehicles.
• Overhaul UVA’s vanpool program to make it a more desirable commuting option for individuals from outlying communities when compared to driving solo.

Resources: 

• Parking & Transportation Department 
• More on the battery electric buses
   

Contact Patrick Clark ([email protected]) for more information and to join the Transportation Working Group.

 

Energy

The Energy Working Group collaborates with students, faculty and staff from across disciplines and departments to promote energy efficiency, climate action and decarbonization practices on Grounds. 

Co-chairs are Sophia Phillips (staff), River Robins (student) and Ethan Heil (staff).

Recent Progress: 

• Hosted a climate action workshop on a fossil fuel free UVA, with a presentation by Paul Zmick, Director of Energy and Utilities, focused on laying out the University’s plans to decarbonize its energy supply.
• Hosted a Demystify Solar Demo + Roof Solar Tour as part of Earth Day Every Day 2022 celebrations. Actual-scale components of a residential solar system were demonstrated to the audience, and Satish Anabathula from UVA Energy and Utilities gave an overview of the different set up on Grounds.

Current Initiatives:

• Climate Action Workshop Part 2 is planned for 2023 Earth Day celebrations.
• A Green Career Fair is in the works, aiming to provide employment opportunities for students interested in working in clean energy and energy efficiency industries.

 

Contact Sophia Phillips ([email protected]) or Ethan Heil ([email protected]) for more information and to join the Energy Working Group.

 

Green Labs

The Green Labs Working Group aims to support the sustainability journeys of our laboratory researchers at UVA. By connecting stakeholders from across Grounds, this group is able to identify opportunities, develop resources, and support conversations pertaining to lab sustainability issues as an interdisciplinary group.

Co-chairs: Fiona Hogan (staff) and Olivia Regehr (student).

Recent Progress:

• Recognizing the large energy footprint of cold storage units on Grounds, the group developed a "decision tree" tool to help researchers identify and discard unneeded samples safely and responsibly. The tool was presented at the International Institute of Sustainable Laboratories Conference in October 2022.
• We drove engagement with the International Freezer Challenge in 2022, leading UVA to win the Top Academic Organization award for saving 441 kilowatt hours per day.

Current Initiatives:

• Inventory Resources: We are identifying critical resources for researchers’ inventory management systems with the goal of supporting more efficient resource sharing and space efficiency. 
• Collaboration:  We work closely with other organizations such as the Graduate Biosciences Society and Graduate Biomedical Engineering Society, which share updates during the monthly Green Las Working Group meetings. 

Resources:

• UVA Green Labs Program
• Subscribe to our listserv! Email [email protected] 

 

Contact [email protected] for more information and to join the Green Labs Working Group.
 

Procurement

The Procurement Working Group engages faculty and staff on sustainable purchasing and waste minimization and strives to make sustainable products readily available to University-wide purchasers. Currently, the group represents a partnership between the Office for Sustainability and Procurement and Supplier Diversity Services. 

Chair: Shannon Sahs (staff)

Recent Progress: 

• Worked with America to Go to expand the Zero Waste Caterer program, and with The Supply Room to create a remanufactured toner program.
• Worked with UVA Green Labs to increase visibility of the ACT (Accountability, Consistency, and Transparency) label.
• As of Spring 2023, UVA joined the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council (SPLC), a coalition of corporations, higher education institutions, government and non-profit entities with the joint mission of “driving positive impact through the power of procurement.” All students, faculty and staff are invited to join the SPLC for access to:
  • Case studies
  • Webinars and presentations
  • Peer learning circles
  • Industry and organizational guidance and resources
  • Community discussion
  • Sample contract language
  • Reporting tools and more

Join today!

Current Initiatives:

• We are focused on reducing the purchase of single-use plastics and adding sustainable alternatives to vendor catalogs on the UVA Marketplace. 
• The working group aims to engage suppliers and encourage them to sell sustainable products, to promote these products, and to make these items widely available to purchasers across Grounds. 

Resources: 

• UVA Sourcing New & Diverse Suppliers 

 

Contact Shannon Sahs ([email protected]) for more information and to join the Procurement Working Group.
 

 

IT

The Sustainable IT Working Group aims to minimize technology’s environmental footprint while maximizing its benefits. Efforts include reducing electronic waste, optimizing computer power settings, using advanced data analysis and other measures. The working group also educates the broader UVA community about best sustainable IT practices. 

Co-chairs are Chris Smeds (staff), Aidan Hijazi-Klop (student), Christine Duong (student) and Surya Shanmugaselvam (staff).

Recent Progress: 

• Created a resource guide for faculty and staff to reduce computing energy use
• Worked with the ReUse Store to standardize e-waste disposal
• Facilitated the donation of eight laptops that would otherwise have been thrown away to the Uganda Heart and Neuroscience Institute
• Collaborated with HooHacks to sponsor a sustainability track in HooHacks’ annual hackathon

Current Initiatives: 

• Increase computing efficiency
• Create a sustainable workplace
• Standardize positive e-waste practices
• Promote net positive technological utilization
• Increase education and engagement

Resources: 

• Sustainable IT at UVA

 

Contact [email protected] for more information and to join the Sustainable IT Working Group.
 

Nitrogen

The Nitrogen Working Group works to reduce nitrogen pollution across Grounds by 30% below 2010 levels by 2030, in alignment with UVA’s 2030 Sustainability Plan.  Nitrogen pollution, which comes from the energy and food sectors, is a significant greenhouse gas contributing to climate change. It causes other harmful effects, such as smog, acid rain, coastal dead zones, biodiversity loss and more.

Co-chairs are Jim Galloway (staff), Libby Dukes (staff) and Andrew DiSanto (staff). 

Recent Progress:

• Phosphorous damage costs framework established
• UVA nitrogen footprint tabulated for 2018 and 2019; energy scenarios run for 2030 Nitrogen Action Plan
• UVA-Charlottesville database extended to include Albemarle County, agriculture, septic systems and airports
• Collaboration with UV Sustainable Food Collaborative, Housing & Residence Life, and Office for Sustainability’s Eco-Leaders program

Current Initiatives:

• Ongoing tracking of UVA nitrogen footprint
• Development of 2030 Nitrogen Action Plan
• Development of Integrated Environmental Footprint Tool
• Deepen sustainable dining outreach and communication

Resources:

• UVA Nitrogen Working Group Projects 
• Nitrogen Working Group Linktree
   

Contact Jim Galloway ([email protected]) for more information and to join the Nitrogen Working Group.
 

Food

Formed in 2015, the Sustainable Food Collaborative (SFC) works to advance food justice, food sustainability and food equity on Grounds and in Charlottesville. As a policy, advocacy and action workgroup, it includes a broad interdisciplinary representation of UVA faculty, staff, students and community partners, making it unique among U.S. colleges and universities. The SFC has made tremendous strides and continues to grow. 
  
Members of the SFC’s core team which leads the organization are Tanya Denckla Cobb, (faculty) Paul Freedman (faculty) Andrea Trimble (staff) and student project managers.  

Recent Progress: 

• Released SFC’s 2021-2030 Action Plan with ambitious goals that include everything from sustainable and equitable sourcing of food and addressing food security on Grounds to increasing composting of food and biodegradable waste. 
• Helped UVA Dine and UVA Health, which serves the UVA hospital, establish baselines for the amount spent on sustainable food and beverages (33% and 19% respectively) to better monitor progress over time and to support reaching a University-wide goal of a 50% by 2030. 
• Relaunched the reusable to-go program (after Covid) in spring 2021 with about 15% of student meal plan holders participating. 

Current Initiatives: 

• Launching the SFC’s first mini-grant program for individual students, students teams, and student organizations to support advancing the goals of the SFC Action Plan. 
• Establishing a fund to increase purchasing from BIPOC farmers in the region and strengthen the long-term sustainability and viability of a robust, equitable regional food ecosystem. 
• Starting an internal campaign to increase awareness among students and the greater UVA community of the SFC and its role in advancing food justice and sustainability. 

Resources:

• SFC’s annual report 2020-2021 (pdf)

 

Contact Em Mortimer ([email protected]) for more information and to join the Sustainable Food Collaborative. 

 

UVA Health

The UVA Health Sustainability Committee supports the sustainability mission of UVA Health to continue to deliver exceptional patient care while reducing operating costs, waste, and environmental impact. 

Co-chairs are Kevin Fox and Dr. Matthew Meyer (staff).

Recent Progress: 

• Staff recycled outdated X-rays, recovering the silver and diverting almost 350,000 pounds of waste from the landfill and recouping at least $142,000 in the process. 
• A 2022 survey of Health System workers found that 94% are interested in sustainability, and most want to see and act on sustainability initiatives in the workplace.
• The Department of Radiology reduced single-use plastics, installing water-filtration systems to replace water cooler jugs and distributing 600 reusable steel water bottles to staff. 

Current Initiatives:

• The Greening the OR working group, formed in 2022, focuses on material waste and unoccupied energy consumption. Working with key stakeholders representing HSPP, Infection Control, Facilities, Office for Sustainability, clinicians and others to pursue energy reduction opportunity of reducing ORs’ air exchange rates during unoccupied nights and weekends in the Children’s Hospital and Orthopedics Center.
• Developing and posting new Sustainability Vision and Our Efforts for Sustainability pages for the UVA Health website to promote the sustainability goals and work of UVA Health. 
• Leveraging Practice Greenhealth resources and cohorts to learn best practices from peers and pursue new sustainability efforts. 
   

Contact [email protected] for more information and to join the Health System Sustainability Committee.