Sustainability Committee

Mission

The Purpose of the UCI Sustainability Committee is to promote environmental stewardship, sustainable development, and greenhouse gas emission reductions at the University of California, Irvine.

The mission of the UCI Sustainability Committee is to:

• Engage various stakeholders in a joint effort to reduce UCI’s ecological footprint and its impact on the environment.
• Work with the campus community and others to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to preserve natural resources, and to integrate sustainability into existing educational, operational, research, and public service programs.
• Incorporate sustainability into long-range planning and design
• Oversee the development and implementation of a campus sustainability/climate neutral action plan.
• Provide a foundation for UCI’s support of systemwide efforts to meet the university’s climate-neutral goals.

Background

In 2007, the University of California adopted a Policy on Sustainable Practices and signed onto the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, articulating the University’s intentions to incorporate sustainability into operations, educational programs, research, and outreach activities.

To facilitate this integration, UCI created a Sustainability Committee that convened under the leadership of then Associate Chancellor for Sustainability, Wendell Brase, and Assistant Vice Chancellor of Campus Physical and Environmental Planning, Richard Demerjian. The committee convenes quarterly and champions campus activities that meet or exceed requirements established in the University of California’s comprehensive Sustainable Practices Policy.