UC3 Dispatch | October 2020 | Inaugural Edition

UC3 Dispatch | October 2020

Inaugural Edition

Welcome to the inaugural University Climate Change Coalition's (UC3) Dispatch! Similar to other Second Nature newsletters, the Dispatch is an opportunity for UC3 members to share how they are accelerating climate action on campuses, in communities, and at a global scale. The Dispatch is also a chance for UC3 to highlight both the individual and collaborative actions that members are taking to implement the goals and strategies included in the 2020-2025 UC3 Strategic Plan. Please read on to see what UC3 has been up to recently!

UPCOMING EVENTS

Photo Credit: Second Nature

Reminder for UC3 Presidents/Chancellors: Upcoming Presidents' Roundtable

On Wednesday, November 9th, University of British Columbia President Santa J. Ono will be hosting a roundtable discussion for UC3 presidents, chancellors, and rectors to discuss UC3’s priority strategic actions and to plan for key milestone activities over the next year.

Virtually Attend the Midwest Climate Summit

Washington University in St. Louis kicked off the Midwest Climate Summit on Friday, October 2nd.

The Summit is in partnership with over twenty leading Midwestern higher education institutions, non-profits (including Second Nature), local governments, and businesses, and fellow UC3 members The Ohio State University and the University of Michigan. The goal of the Summit is to deepen expertise, accelerate climate action, and develop a Midwestern response to the climate crisis. Upcoming Think Tank sessions will take place virtually at 10AM (CT) tomorrow (October 23rd) and on Friday, November 6th and November 20th. More information...

Image Credit: Midwest Climate Summit

Rutgers Climate Symposium 2020: Public Universities and Transformative Climate Action for A Just Recovery

Image Credit: Rutgers Climate Institute/Symposium

On October 23rd (tomorrow), the Rutgers Climate Symposium will welcome students, faculty and staff from academic and research institutions throughout the US, Canada and Mexico, as well as members of the public, to a virtual symposium. The focus will be on the role of public universities in transformative climate action for a just recovery. Featured speakers include members from four other UC3 member schools: University of Washington, University of Michigan, University of Maryland, and The Ohio State University. More information...

NEWS

UC3 Operational Liaison Discussion: Responding to COVID-19 pandemic & advancing climate action on campus

Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, many universities were prioritizing and accelerating efforts to implement the goals and targets of their climate action plans, especially those related to campus operations.

Now, in the wake of COVID-19, campus operations staff have been scrambling to find additional bandwidth and muster the energy to respond to the pandemic, while also advancing climate action. Recognizing that they cannot afford to put either effort on hold, Mick Dalrymple (Arizona State University), Heidi VanGenderen (University of Colorado Boulder), and John Madden (University of British Columbia) kickstarted a facilitated dialogue with over 35 operational liaisons and colleagues from across UC3 on September 10th.

The goal of the initial dialogue was to discuss the ways UC3 universities have responded to the pandemic and how these efforts intersect with longer-term climate action work on campus. Outcomes were presented at the Global Conference on Sustainability in Higher Education on Wednesday, October 21st and will be shared more widely with UC3 members soon.

Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash

UC Davis Global Energy Managers Workshop

Image Credit: University of California, Davis

On Energy Efficiency Day (October 7th), UC Davis hosted the second Global Energy Managers Workshop, where over 150 facility managers, students, and faculty from around the world met to share and learn about energy-saving, cost management, and carbon reduction strategies. Presentation slides and video recordings of each session are available on the workshop’s website.

UBC, UC announce University Climate Change Coalition Leadership Transition

This past summer, The University of British Columbia President Santa J. Ono assumed the role of UC3 leadership lead from University of California President Janet Napolitano, following the announcement of her departure from the presidency of the University of California. More Information...

Photo Credit: The University of British Columbia

Tools & Resources

Guide for Hosting Cross-Sector Climate Forums

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

The Guide for Hosting Cross-Sector Climate Forums was launched on September 9th developed in collaboration with UC3 members to provide guidance to campus climate leaders on how to plan for and host a cross-sector climate forum. UC3 members interested in contributing to the ongoing development of this resource should contact Alex Maxwell at amaxwell@secondnature.org.

COVID-19 & Climate Resources Page

Illustration by Daniel Barreto on Unsplash

Since March, UC3 member schools have been pulling together and sharing research, tools, and resources related to the COVID-19 pandemic and climate action to share with other higher education institutions. More information...

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