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Campus Sustainability Council

 

Background

In January 2012, President Tony Monaco first convened the Campus Sustainability Council.  The group focused on advancing work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, waste, energy and water use.  The Council established goals and monitored achievements in these areas via several working groups, and released a report in 2013 to share their findings.

Second Nature Climate Commitment

Acknowledging deep concerns about the potential impact of climate change on our institution and community, President Monaco signed the Second Nature Climate Commitment in April 2016, making Tufts one of 93 charter signatories. The commitment requires higher education institutions to set targets, report on progress publicly, and collaborate with their surrounding community, while integrating sustainability across the curriculum.

Council for the Sustainability of Campus Operations

In February 2017, President Monaco convened a new Council for the Sustainability of Campus Operations to help meet the ambitious demands of this commitment.  The council provides leadership and oversight for developing and executing a plan for Tufts to reach carbon neutrality. The council will prescribe strategies to engage the full Tufts community in actions to conserve energy use, and recommend development of capital projects and operational approaches that minimize the use of fossil fuels. These strategies include metering individual buildings, power generation, energy procurement and expanding a revolving greenfund to support these efforts.

View the list of Current Council Members or Past Council Members (2012).

Summary of Meetings

  • Meeting 1: March 6, 2017
    • Presentation on Status of Tufts’ Use of Energy and Emissions
  • Meeting 2: April 26, 2017
    • Presentation on Financing Options
  • Meeting 3: Oct 11, 2017
    • Presentations on green labs projects in Prof. Kenny’s lab, Jaharis Project and the Central Energy Plant (CEP)
  • Meeting 4: Jan 10, 2018
    • Presentation on Facilities sustainability efforts, Request for Proposal (RFP) for Carbon neutrality consultant, Green Fund update, community engagement discussion
  • Meeting 5: May 30, 2018
    • Presentations on Boston Cogen, return on investment protocol for sustainability projects
    • Updates on Green Fund, campus resiliency workshop, RFP for carbon neutrality plan and CEP
  • Meeting 6: Oct 12, 2018
    • Updates on Green Fund and carbon neutrality plan
    • Presentation on energy related projects in Operations, CEP data, and balancing carbon reduction and thermal comfort/HVAC
    • Student letter/presentation on need for Tufts to obtain 100% clean, renewable energy
  • Meeting 7: Mar 14, 2019 (report)
    • Introduction of student representative on Council
    • Discussion on sustainability across the curriculum
    • Update on carbon neutrality planning
    • Update from Operations
    • Update on Green Fund
    • Sustainability Progress Report
    • Resiliency Assessment discussion
    • EV Charging Station update
  • ~ Change of Leadership ~
  • Meeting 8: Nov 21, 2019
    • Sustainability across the curriculum – CELT update
    • Carbon Neutrality planning update
    • Green Fund update
    • Boston Community Resilience building workshop planned for January 2020
  • Spring 2020 meeting cancelled due to COVID-19
  • Meeting 9: Nov 18, 2020
    • Peer Review results
  • Meeting 10: Feb 22, 2021
    • Updates
      • Board of Trustees Buildings and Grounds committee presentation
      • RIAG
    • Next steps for council, based on Peer Review results
  • Meeting 11: May 3, 2021 (notes & slides)
    • Decarbonization plan for M/S campus
    • Wrap-up of this iteration of the council

Sustainability Council Achievements Since the Second Nature Commitment Was Signed

  • The Council was educated on sustainability efforts at Tufts including the Medford central energy plant (CEP)
  • 3 Financing mechanisms were formalized ($40K annual Green Fund for community proposals (new), Energy Revolving Fund (new revenue recovery model created to ensure it is maintained and grows), and debt funding (no change))
  • Carbon Neutrality date determined to be 2050
  • Resilience assessments were completed on the Medford/Somerville campus and the Boston campus(es)
  • Consultants were engaged to create a plan to achieve carbon neutrality for Tufts largest source of emissions: the Medford/Somerville heating and cooling load. This plan was completed in July of 2020.
  • Discussions around sustainability in the curriculum