Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 50.27
Liaison Caitlin Steele
Submission Date Feb. 15, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

San Francisco State University
EN-3: Student Life

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.00 / 2.00 Nick Kordesch
Sustainability Coordinator
Office of Sustainability
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Does the institution have one or more active student groups focused on sustainability?:
Yes

A brief description of active student groups focused on sustainability:

ECO Students

ECO students is an environmental action student group. It is open to all students from any major. The group works on a variety of environmental issues on and off campus. Email sfsuecostudents@gmail.com or check out the Eco Students Facebook page.

The Green Initative Fund

The Green Initiative Fund (TGIF) aims to establish a fund to finance student-led sustianability improvements at SF State and create paid internships for students. Visit the TGIF Facebook Page.

ASI Environmental Resource Center
ASI Environmental Resource Center coordinates sustainability efforts in the Student Center Auxillary and hosts numerous events. ASI Sustainable Initiatives Website.

Fossil-Free SFSU

This club leads a campaign to divest from fossil fuels. Their campaign is a part of a global movement to shift power away from fossil fuels to more sustainable and eco-friendly industries. Fossil Free SFSU Facebook page.

Real Food Challenge

The mission of the Real Food Challenge (RFC) is to harness the power of youth and universities to build a healthy, fair, and green food economy. They work towards shifting food purchases away from industrial agriculture towards local, sustainable, and fair sources. RFC Facebook page.

Bicycle Advisory Group

SF State's Bicycle Advisory Group is a committee of students, faculty, staff and administrators that work together to encourage bicycling to campus. The group has helped install new bike racks on campus and completed a bike path that connects the campus to University Park North Housing and to the city of San Francisco's bike routes. Contact sustain@sfsu.edu.

Friends of the Greenhouse

Friends of the Greenhouse sponsors horticultural and botanical activities for students, staff, and local community members. The group seeks volunteers to keep its 2,000 plants happy and healthy. Friends of the Greenhouse also has a plant sale of greenhouse overstock once a semester. Please contact fotgh@sfsu.edu or their word press for more information.
Wildlife Society, SFSU Student Chapter

If you are interested in conducting research or planning a career in wildlife conservation and management AND would like to be part of a student organization that connects you to opportunities to present your research, offers pre-professional support, and provides networking and training opportunities, then join the Wildlife Society! They hold meetings every other Thursday. Graduate and undergraduate students welcomed. For more information, email wildlifesfsu@gmail.com.


The website URL where information about the student groups is available (optional):
Does the institution have gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects where students are able to gain experience in organic agriculture and sustainable food systems?:
Yes

A brief description of the gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects:

The ECO Students group maintains an on-campus vegetable garden that is used to educate other students about urban farming techniques. Vegetables from the garden are used in the annual Farm to Fork lunch, which is open to the entire university. The project is conducted in partnership with the SF State Dining department.

SF State's Housing Department also maintains a Fruit Orchard in partnership with the ECO Students and the non-profit Friends of the Urban Forest.

Associated Students hosts a weekly Farmers Market on campus.


The website URL where information about the gardens, farms or agriculture projects is available (optional):
Does the institution have student-run enterprises that include sustainability as part of their mission statements or stated purposes (e.g. cafés through which students gain sustainable business skills)?:
No

A brief description of the student-run enterprises:
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The website URL where information about the student-run enterprises is available (optional):
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Does the institution have sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives through which students can develop socially, environmentally and fiscally responsible investment and financial skills?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives:

Fossil Fuel Divestment: San Francisco State has committed to divesting its $51 million endowment from tar sands and coal. This was started as a student initiative and an academic project and has been executed by the University's Foundation board. The foundation board is exploring a carbon calculator for new investments.


The website URL where information about the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives is available (optional):
Does the institution have conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience?:
Yes

A brief description of the conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability:

San Franciso State hosted the 2015 California Higher Education Sustainability Conference (CHESC). Sustainability representatives from CSU and UC campuses, private colleges, and community colleges from all over California attended.


The website URL where information about the conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability is available (optional):
Does the institution have cultural arts events, installations or performances related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience?:
Yes

A brief description of the cultural arts events, installations or performances related to sustainability:

Associated Students hosts art exhibits that focus on sustainability. A recent exhibition called "Sweet Ride" focused on art related to bicycle subcultures in the San Francisco Bay Area, including Critical Mass, Scraper Bikes, the SF State Cycling team and more. http://goldengatexpress.org/2014/04/21/sweet-ride-exhibit-students-bike-campus/

SF State is an annual participant in the national PARK(ing) Day, which repurposes car parking spaces as art installations to question assumptions about the use of public space in San Francisco. http://goldengatexpress.org/2013/09/10/parking-day-sustainability/


The website URL where information about the cultural arts events, installations or performances is available (optional):
Does the institution have wilderness or outdoors programs (e.g. that organize hiking, backpacking, kayaking, or other outings for students) that follow Leave No Trace principles?:
Yes

A brief description of the wilderness or outdoors programs that follow Leave No Trace principles:

SF State's Osher Lifelong Learning Institute has a hiking groupm which is is a cooperative whereby all members pitch in and share responsibilities for leading walks/hikes in the beautiful Bay Area, and take turns with the ongoing management tasks. They currently hold a walk a month. The walk/hike leader determines the route of the walk, what time it starts and ends, its pace, length and elevation change. It is the responsibility of the leader to familiarize her/himself with the trail, begin and end the walk on time, and make sure that there are sufficient restrooms. The team leader will send out a description of the walk/hike at least two weeks in advance. The club follows Leave no trace principles.


The website URL where information about the wilderness or outdoors programs is available (optional):
Does the institution have sustainability-related themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences (e.g. choosing a sustainability-related book for common reading)?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability-related themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences:

Sustainability Overlay requirement: SF State has enacted a sustainability overlay which students can use as a breadth requirement for graduation. Courses approved for the Environmental Sustainability requirement must examine some aspect of environmental sustainability. The perspective can be from any area of the university curriculum, such as social sciences, natural sciences, arts, humanities, business, or engineering


The website URL where information about the sustainability-related themes is available (optional):
Does the institution have programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills?:
Yes

A brief description of the programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills:

SF State housing offers an Eco-themed community for residents who are interested in sustainable living. The University Park North (UPN) Sustainable Theme Community is open to second-year students and beyond (including transfer and graduate students) in any major. The goal of the UPN Sustainable SF Community is to help residents acquire the knowledge and practical skills necessary to prosper in a world that faces unprecedented threats to environmental and economic well-being, while contributing to the development of resilient communities and a sustainable society.
Building/Floor(s): University Park North
Class: Second Year and beyond


The website URL where information about the sustainable life skills programs is available (optional):
Does the institution offer sustainability-focused student employment opportunities?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability-focused student employment opportunities offered by the institution:

The Office of Sustainability, Campus Dining, and Associated students offer student internships that focus on improving campus sustainability, from implementing recycling education, to reducing food waste in the dining hall, to bike commuter education. There are typically 15 students employed in sustainability internships at any given point.

There is also an internship class within the Environmental Studies major which requires students to hold a sustainability-focused internship on campus or elsewhere.


The website URL where information about the student employment opportunities is available:
Does the institution have graduation pledges through which students pledge to consider social and environmental responsibility in future job and other decisions?:
No

A brief description of the graduation pledges:
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The website URL where information about the graduation pledges is available (optional):
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Does the institution have other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives?:
No

A brief description of the other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives:
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The website URL where information about other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives is available (optional):
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Estimated percentage of students (full-time and part-time) that participate annually in sustainability-focused co-curricular education and outreach programs (0-100):
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.