University of California, Berkeley
IN-48: Innovation B

Established in 2003, the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability (CACS) promotes environmental management and sustainable development on campus. Membership is drawn from faculty, staff, students and alumni and meetings are open to everyone.

The Committee is charged with advising the Chancellor on matters pertaining to the environment and sustainability as it directly relates to the University of California, Berkeley. To fulfill this obligation, CACS draws strength from its diverse composition of faculty, staff, students and alumni.

The mission of the Committee is composed of three central goals:
1) To engage the campus in an ongoing dialogue about reaching environmental sustainability
2) To integrate environmental sustainability with existing campus programs in education, research, operations, and public service
3) To instill a culture of sustainable long-range planning and forward-thinking design

CACS has two signature annual initiatives: Earth Month's anchor event-the Annual Sustainability Summit, and the Annual Sustainability Awards program.

In 2019, CACS established a Working Group on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Sustainability. The mission of this Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability (CACS) Working Group on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Sustainability is to identify and recommend policies, practices and strategies that elevate and integrate an intersectional approach towards diversity, equity, and inclusivity in campus sustainability initiatives. The group seeks to strengthen the diversity, equity, and inclusion of the UC Berkeley undergraduate, graduate and professional student, faculty, and staff populations contributing to sustainable practices. We will develop recommendations, cultivate a sense of belonging in sustainability spaces, and situate environmental and social justice as central pillars of campus sustainability efforts, including in operations/administration, co-curricular learning activities, and physical planning.

The working group includes representatives from the UC Berkeley Office of Sustainability, Parking & Transportation, Student Environmental Resource Center, Basic Needs Center, Rausser College of Natural Resources, African American Student Development Office, Students of Color Environmental Collective, and Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability.

Objective areas for the working group include Community Engagement; Academics; Campus Departments; Implementing goals and strategies of campus Sustainability Plan related to DEI and environmental justice; and Engaging CACS in on-going initiative.

https://sustainability.berkeley.edu/office-sustainability/cacs/cacs-working-group-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-sustainability

History of CACS
The move toward more sustainable practices and environmental stewardship at UC Berkeley has grown markedly since the turn of the century. Berkeley’s early efforts inspired campuses across the state to develop sustainability programs, influenced the UC Regents to make policy changes at the system-wide level.

In 2003, then Chancellor Berdahl created the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability (CACS). During the committee’s first year, CACS hosted the first annual UC Berkeley Sustainability Summit where it secured funding to conduct a Campus Sustainability Assessment and established the Chancellor's Green Campus Fund. Green Fund Grants are awarded annually.

In 2008, CACS participated in establishing the Office of Sustainability on campus and the hiring of the first Director of Sustainability. CACS in collaboration with the new office released the 2008 Campus Sustainability Assessment.

Since its inception, CACS has lead numerous outreach and educational initiatives, hosted annual summits, authored reports on campus water usage and climate initiatives, published water sustainability plans, hired student interns when feasible, hosted an annual summit, and bestowed awards to individuals, groups, and projects that further sustainability at Berkeley.