View larger image — This aerial photo shows the rows of photovoltaic (PV) panels installed atop Appalachian’s Leon Levine Hall of Health Sciences. Photo by Marie Freeman

App State creates ‘roadmap to climate neutrality’

“Our commitment to climate neutrality is solid, rooted in history and tradition, and steadfast.”

Dr. Lee F. Ball, Appalachian’s chief sustainability officer

By Jan Todd

Posted Dec. 20, 2019 at 4:30 p.m.

BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University’s new Climate Action Plan will be released April 22, 2020 — the 50th anniversary of Earth Day.

The plan, authored by Appalachian’s Sustainability Council — comprising faculty, staff and students from across campus — updates initiatives from the original climate neutrality plan written in 2010 (PDF).

“Our commitment to climate neutrality is solid, rooted in history and tradition, and steadfast.”

Dr. Lee F. Ball, Appalachian’s chief sustainability officer

Dr. Lee F. Ball, Appalachian’s chief sustainability officer and chair of the council, explained that both the original and the new plan are “living documents,” designed to evolve along with advances in technology and research.

Ball said the first few years of Appalachian’s original climate neutrality plan concentrated on raising awareness and identifying actions to take. “Now we are in the aggressive implementation phase,” he said.

“The UNC System goal is to achieve climate neutrality by 2050," Ball continued. "Our Faculty Senate set a goal of 2035, and our Student Government Association set the goal as 2025. We will hit some targets by 2025. We’ve already made many efficiency improvements. Other elements of the plan will take longer, but our commitment as an institution is solid, rooted in history and tradition, and steadfast.”

The university’s Office of Sustainability acts as a catalyst, Ball said, developing sustainability guidelines and policies, educating the community, measuring and evaluating progress and engaging stakeholders from throughout the Appalachian Community in the planning and implementation of climate action initiatives.

“If you’re expecting someone else to fix the climate problem for you, you don’t understand the problem.”

Jim Dees, data and assessment specialist in Appalachian’s Office of Sustainability, on the importance of individuals’ responsibility to support climate action.

Appalachian stakeholders — including the Office of Sustainability, Facilities Operations, Faculty Senate, Staff Senate and others — are focusing on elements of the Climate Action Plan related to their working groups’ areas of responsibility. The groups will assess the impact of each area as it relates to the carbon footprint of the university and offer mitigation strategies, as well as recommend lower carbon alternatives.

“If you’re expecting someone else to fix the climate problem for you, you don’t understand the problem.”

Jim Dees, data and assessment specialist in Appalachian’s Office of Sustainability, on the importance of individuals’ responsibility to support climate action.

Of Appalachian’s total carbon footprint — the amount of greenhouse gases emitted from use of fossil fuels, contributing to climate change — about 43% is from purchased electricity, 28% is from transportation and 26% is from the generation of steam heat. “Those are the big three,” said Jim Dees, data and assessment specialist in Appalachian’s Office of Sustainability.

Dees said the Climate Action Plan will include recommended mitigations for each of these categories.

Timeline of Appalachian climate action

This timeline details actions Appalachian has taken since 1997 on its path toward climate neutrality. The university’s inventory of greenhouse gas emissions began in 2005. Image courtesy of Appalachian’s Office of Sustainability

Milestones

1997: Appalachian signs Tallories Declaration
2007: Appalachian creates Sustainability Council
2008: Appalachian signs Second Nature’s ACUPCC
2009: Appalachian creates Office of Sustainability
2010: Appalachian develops first iteration of Climate Action Plan
2012: Appalachian presents first annual Appalachian Energy Summit
2012: Appalachian develops first campus Energy/Water Management Plan
2013: Appalachian develops second campus Energy/Water Management Plan
2014: Appalachian announces 2014–19 strategic plan: “The Appalachian Experience: Envisioning a just and sustainable future”
2014: Appalachian develops Carbon Neutral Commuter program
2015: Appalachian signs the White House Climate Pledge
2016: Appalachian signs Second Nature Climate Commitment
2017: Appalachian develops third campus Energy/Water Management Plan
2018: Appalachian signs We’re Still In pledge
2019: Appalachian develops fourth campus Energy/Water Management Plan
2019: Appalachian begins writing new Climate Action Plan

Making progress

According to Ball, net emissions for fiscal year 2019 were down 10.5% from the base measurement year of 2009, a time period in which the university’s square footage increased by 14%. Some of the initiatives responsible for the improvements included the following:

Reprogramming of computer software systems for heating and air conditioning systems.
LEED certifications on several buildings.
Appalachian’s Strategic Water and Energy Management Plan (PDF).

Appalachian has been recognized and awarded for sustainability and climate actions, including the following:

A pilot and charter participant in the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System™ (STARS), achieving a prestigious Gold rating for each of the three measurement periods.
Bee Campus USA, recognizing Appalachian’s focus on providing safe habitats for pollinators and education about the pivotal role bees play in the ecosystem.
Second Nature’s 2015 Climate Leadership Award, in recognition of Appalachian’s innovation and leadership in climate action.
A 2018 signatory of the We Are Still In pledge, a declaration to continue to support climate action that meets the Paris Agreement.
Chancellor Sheri Everts’ joining of Second Nature’s Climate Leadership Steering Committee in 2018. The committee leads the Climate Leadership Network, which is committed to accelerating global climate action, reducing carbon pollution and increasing institutional and community resilience to climate hazards.

“The greenest kilowatt is one we don’t use at all. As an example, it is cheaper to turn the lights off than to use LED lights. We need to be mindful and focus on efficiency.”

Jim Dees, data and assessment specialist in Appalachian’s Office of Sustainability

In 2012, Appalachian initiated and hosted the first Appalachian Energy Summit for the University of North Carolina System, providing a platform through which UNC campuses together with industry partners have avoided more than $924 million in utility costs. By 2025, the total energy costs avoided are expected to reach $2 billion.

“The greenest kilowatt is one we don’t use at all. As an example, it is cheaper to turn the lights off than to use LED lights. We need to be mindful and focus on efficiency.”

Jim Dees, data and assessment specialist in Appalachian’s Office of Sustainability

Ball said the annual summits build awareness and engagement about the significance of sustainable practices among campus leadership, faculty, students and industry partners.

Appalachian’s carbon footprint

Sources of greenhouse gas emissions

43% purchased electricity
28% transportation
26% steam heat
3% other

Beyond the numbers

“The biggest impact we can have as a university is in the education piece,” Dees said. “If we are not teaching our students the importance of climate action, and how to make a difference, all of our efforts are in vain.”

Appalachian was the first university to offer renewable energy and sustainable development degree programs in the U.S., and almost 900 of Appalachian’s academic courses incorporate sustainability into the course curriculum.

“Over the past 10 years, Appalachian has amassed an impressive portfolio of renewable energy systems, including photovoltaic, wind and solar thermal systems,” Dees said.

Far beyond the climate impact on Appalachian’s campus is the educational value of these systems — each is used as a living laboratory to prepare students to go out into the world and be climate change leaders, Ball noted.

From the Chancellor

Comments from Chancellor Sheri Everts

“Carbon neutrality and resilience are extremely high-priority areas of action at Appalachian; indeed, they should be for all institutions of higher education,” said Everts, referencing the Second Nature Climate Leadership Statement (PDF) she signed in 2016.

In her June 2016 newsletter, Everts said, “In the time our students are with us, it is our top priority to educate them about the three E’s that must coexist in a sustainable world: environmental protection and resource conservation, economic prosperity and continuity and social well-being and equity.”

In the “Letter from the Chancellor” in Appalachian’s 2025 Master Plan, Everts said, “We develop our campus in ways that protect and broaden its beauty and live up to our core value of sustainability.”

Personal change, global change

In a 2018 campuswide survey, about 75% of students reported Appalachian’s reputation for sustainability influenced their decision to attend the university.

Through the Office of Sustainability, a number of initiatives are designed to educate and heighten awareness about personal responsibility for sustainable practices. A few examples:

Carbon Neutral Commuter program — provides faculty, staff and students the opportunity to purchase carbon offsets with annual parking pass.
Ridesharing — resource to find carpool partners.
Zero Waste — reduction of landfill waste by increased recycling, thoughtful purchase decisions, residence hall composting and education in environmental stewardship.
Green Workplace and Residence Hall certifications — education and recognition of greening on-campus spaces and lowering daily impact.
Overall education regarding the concept of the 3E’s — equitable, economic and environmental sustainability. The Office of Sustainability conducted 150 climate education events during the fall 2019 semester, with over 5,500 interactions with Appalachian Community members.

Key terms

Carbon neutrality — achieved when emissions of carbon dioxide released from burning fossil fuels such as oil, coal and gas are balanced by methods of removing warming gases from the atmosphere.

Climate neutrality — similar to carbon neutrality, but extending to greenhouse gases beyond carbon dioxide, including methane, nitrous oxide and others.

Carbon footprint — the amount of carbon dioxide and other carbon compounds emitted from the use of fossil fuels by a particular person or group.

Appalachian stakeholders in climate neutrality

Chancellor’s Cabinet.
Office of Sustainability.
Facilities Operations.
Campus Services.
Faculty Senate.
Staff Senate.
Student Government Association (SGA).
Research Institute for Environmental, Energy and Economics (RIEEE).
Renewable Energy Initiative.
Climate Stories Collaborative, a community group.

Climate Action Plan working groups

The Sustainability Council has organized 13 working groups to focus on the 2020 Climate Action Plan through the lens of their respective topics. The groups, which include experts in each area, plus representatives from Appalachian stakeholders, are as follows:

Climate Action Plan Writing Working Group: Focus — drafting the 2020 Climate Action Plan.
Campus Heating: Focus — identifying and evaluating carbon reduction strategies for campus-based heating.
Campus Electricity: Focus — identifying and evaluating carbon reduction strategies for campus-based electricity.
University Transportation: Focus — identifying and evaluating carbon reduction strategies for university-based transportation.
Academic Integration: Focus — identifying and evaluating curricular opportunities to support climate action.
Education and Outreach: Focus — developing a communication and marketing plan.
Climate Justice: Focus — identifying and evaluating social and ethical ramifications of proposed mitigation strategies.
Natural Environment: Focus — identifying and evaluating environmental ramifications of proposed mitigation strategies.
Climate Resiliency: Focus — long-term localized ability to adapt to change.
Embodied Carbon: Focus — identifying and evaluating unaccounted-for carbon impacts of purchased goods.
University Purchasing: Focus — identifying and evaluating environmentally preferable purchasing guidelines.
University Food Systems: Focus — identifying and evaluating carbon associated with university food systems services.
Zero Waste: Focus — identifying and evaluating campus waste diversion and reduction opportunities.

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About Sustainability at Appalachian

Appalachian State University’s leadership in sustainability is known nationally. The university’s holistic, three-branched approach considers sustainability economically, environmentally and equitably in relationship to the planet’s co-inhabitants. The university is an active steward of the state’s interconnected financial, cultural and natural resources and challenges students and others think critically and creatively about sustainability and what it means from the smallest individual action to the most broad-based applications. The university offers both undergraduate and graduate academic degree programs that focus on sustainability. In addition, 100 percent of Appalachian’s academic departments offer at least one sustainability course or course that includes sustainability, and all students graduate from programs that have adopted at least one sustainability learning outcome. Learn more at https://appstate.edu/sustainability.

About Appalachian State University

As the premier public undergraduate institution in the Southeast, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, affordable education for all. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.