In Our Nature

The University of Washington recently joined two membership organizations focused on climate change and carbon reduction.  The UW is now a signatory to CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project) and a member of CERES' Investor Network on Climate Risk.

These memberships are part of the UW Treasury Office&'s Global Climate Change Initiatives, approved by the Board of Regents in November 2013. Treasury's Climate Change Initiatives include an initiative to explore opportunities for shareholder advocacy on climate change.

CDP works with companies and cities to disclose their...

Update 4/18: The Salvage Wood Program was named one of the seven 2016 Husky Green Award winners.

The Salvage Wood Program at the University of Washington is working to make sure any trees which need to be removed on campus can have a second life.

The program, run by Grounds Management and made possible by a Campus Sustainability Fund grant and help from the UW chapter of Engineers Without Borders, turns those removed trees into lumber for projects on campus such as benches and tables.

Check out the...

The EcoReps student group has been working on several campus projects to further sustainability at UW.

The UW EcoReps clothing swap will be held on Friday, April 8, in Red Square from 2-5 p.m. This project helps address the current issue of textile waste in the United States. In order to promote a change in social norms surrounding textile consumption, we are offering a fun, sustainable event for students to come together and exchange their gently used clothing. 

Another project EcoReps is focusing on is the Environmental Stewardship...

The Green Office Certification Program encourages and recognizes environmentally-friendly behavior in UW office spaces. It also exists to facilitate sharing of best practices between offices. The main goal of the program, however, is to simply get office members thinking more frequently about their environmental impact.

This quarter, we had great participation in the program, with offices throughout campus applying. In fact, 14 offices either certified for the first time or re-certified. On average, offices scored 77% overall on the Green Office...

The UW Future of Ice Initiative is hosting the university's first Polar Day, a day of talks by faculty and students who work in the polar regions, with time for questions and discussions. 

The event starts at 9:15 a.m. at the UW Club's Yukon Pacific Room, but attendees are welcome to arrive starting at 8:30 a.m. for coffee and pastries. The first 50 people to arrive will receive a free lunch.

The UW Polar Day Schedule is below:

ENV H 439: One Health: Human and Animal Health in a Changing Environment is open to all students who have taken biology 180 or an equivalent course. If you have not taken biology 180 but are still interested in the course, email Trina Sterry at tsterry@uw.edu

In this class,

• Students will explore the One Health concept, through a case based approach.
• Topics include emerging zoonotic infectious diseases transmitted between humans...

ENV H 205: Environmental Health in Media is open to all students in all majors. Watch popular films that explore environmental health topics then discuss the ethical, legal, social and scientific issues they raise.

In this class,

• Students will explore how perspective of filmmakers and documentaries can influence the public's interpretation of environmental health issues.
• Students will also examine the science and cultural norms that support both sides of...

ENV H 311: Introduction to Environmental Health is open to all students in all majors and has no prerequisites.

The learning objectives for this class are for students to:

ESRM 320: Marketing & Human Resources from a Sustainability Perspective

The learning objectives for this class are:

Shout out to Schindler-Limnology Lab, Berg Lab, Shendure Lab, Keil Lab, and Olmstead Lab for becoming our newest certified Green Labs!

The Schindler-Limnology Lab placed at the Gold level of certification, scoring highest in the communication and education category. With about six staff and graduate students, the lab does research on water quality, fish biology, nutrient cycling, and all things inland water.

The...