Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 66.13
Liaison Brandon Trelstad
Submission Date Jan. 31, 2011
Executive Letter Download

STARS v1.0

Oregon State University
Tier2-2: Local Offsets Program

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 0.25 / 0.25 Brandon Trelstad
Sustainability Coordinator
Sustainability Office
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Does the institution have a local offsets program through which the institution seeks to offset its greenhouse gas emissions by implementing projects that reduce GHG emissions in the local community?:
Yes

A brief description of the program:

The annual Campus Carbon Challenge encourages community members, students, faculty, and staff to change behaviors to reduce carbon emissions in their personal lives. Polls indicate many people are aware of activities that result in carbon emissions, and they are also aware these emissions contribute to global climate change, so this project is focused on translating knowledge into action in participants’ personal lives.

During the challenge month, participants make pledges to change at least three behaviors, many specific to their income level and living arrangements. For instance, if a participant is on a tight budget, they can select low or no cost changes. Pledges are made through an online survey and at the end of the challenge month another survey is administered to gauge participation level and acquire more understanding about the barriers (economic, logistical, etc.) participants encounter when attempting change. Many of the changes are simple, such as riding a bike to work or school, eating a vegetarian meal, or setting the thermostat lower during winter.

The challenge coordinator works with groups of students who conduct marketing, outreach and event planning. Students put up posters and send out descriptive emails through department and group listservs, visit fifty classes with an environmental focus, offer a prize drawing from local businesses, and host campus wide events. Ideas for events include an energy reduction workshop for those who live in apartments, a clothing swap (reusing items to reduce carbon), and a movie screening.

The first annual Campus Carbon Challenge was run by an OSU grad student who now works for the Corvallis Environmental Center. The former student and her colleagues are now analyzing the results of the Challenge, as it is also part of a larger research project.


The website URL where information about the program is available:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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