OXFORD, Miss. – The University of Mississippi takes pride
in being “a great American public university.” Now, UM is
working to add “green” to that description.
Chancellor Robert Khayat has signed the American College &
University Presidents’ Climate Commitment. Sponsored by the
Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher
Education, the agreement challenges colleges and
universities to identify their greenhouse gas output, then
develop a plan to reduce those emissions over the next five
years.
“The Ole Miss Creed is based upon the value of respect, and
that includes the environment,” Khayat said. “As a
community, we are committed to being good stewards of the
Earth. It is important that the educational experience of
our students includes a keen awareness of the
responsibilities of each of us to protect, preserve and
enhance our world.”
The first university in Mississippi to sign the commitment,
UM joins more than 500 member institutions in the movement
nationwide. The next phases of the university’s plan
involve establishing a Green Advisory Council, launching a
Web site and developing communications strategies for both
on- and off-campus efforts.
The movement toward environmental responsibility has been
simmering on campus for years, with students, faculty and
staff independently spearheading recycling programs,
organizations and awareness campaigns. But with this
commitment, the university fully embraces its role in
caring for the planet, for current and future generations.
“The Ole Miss Green Initiative presents a wonderful
educational opportunity for all of us to focus on reducing
our dependence on fossil fuels,” said Larry Sparks, vice
chancellor for administration and finance. “By signing this
document, we are pledging to neutralize campus greenhouse
gas emissions in a reasonable time frame.”
The university’s approach to reducing its carbon footprint
involves reviewing virtually every aspect of what happens
on campus, with an eye toward doing more with less, interim
Provost Morris Stocks said.
“We hope to use the efficiency and sustainability policies
that come out of this initiative as teaching tools for
future generations,” Stocks said.
Momentum is already building:
- New buildings, such as the new law school and
residential colleges, are being designed for energy
efficiency. - Plans are under way to expand on-campus recycling for
paper, aluminum and plastic. - The Physical Plant Department received great feedback
from employees during an internal focus group on energy
conservation. Additional focus groups are planned across
campus. - In January, UM launched a new seminar course on climate
change, taught jointly by 19 faculty members from across
the academic spectrum, including biology, chemistry,
engineering, philosophy and religion.
“The immediate goal of our activities is to raise awareness
of the global warming issue,” said Wei-Yin Chen, professor
of chemical engineering who leads the seminar course.
“Global warming is an issue that has been put on the
low-priority list long enough. Hopefully by collaborating
with other researchers in the U.S., Europe and China, we
can proceed with finding solutions to the problem posed by
greenhouse agents.”
The goal is to reach a critical mass, where being
environmentally responsible is as natural as breathing
fresh air and drinking tasteless water.
“What’s needed is a change in culture,” University
Architect Ian Banner said. “The key is to get us all
thinking differently about the little things. Installing a
compact fluorescent bulb certainly helps, but the next
question to ask yourself is whether you need to turn on a
light switch at all. That’s the level of awareness we need
to create on this campus among students, faculty and
staff.”
For more information about the UM Green Initiative, contact
the campus sustainability coordinator, Jim Morrison, at
jwmorris@olemiss.edu or 662-915-1678.