the UW Sustainability blog
Reducing water usage for a building the size of the UW Tower is no easy task. It took the Tower's operations staff nearly a year to replace every toilet and urinal in the tower with new, low-flush units, but it was well worth it. The project is estimated to save up to 37 million gallons of water over the next 15 years.
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.
Thank you to all the folks who nominated their colleagues, supervisors or peers for a Husky Green Award! The Husky Green Awards recognize people who support UW's commitment to sustainability. The award "recognizes an exemplary achievement of an individual or team from the UW community, demonstrating leadership, initiative and dedication to campus sustainability."
The UW Sustainability team is honored to have been nominated for a 2016 UW Distinguished Staff Award. We recently took part in the annual reception honoring all nominees, and came away very inspired by all the great work happening on campus.
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.
All entries for this year's Alaska Airlines Environmental Innovation Challenge must be submitted by midnight on Sunday, Feb. 21. No late entries will be accepted. To enter, upload your 5-7 page executive summary to the EIC registration website.
Get your nominations in for this year's Husky Green Awards!
We need your help in identifying the University of Washington's sustainability superstars, and by submitting a nomination before the deadline on March 1, 2016, you'll be entered to win one of our prize packs featuring Husky Grind coffee and a reusable mug!
UW's Climate Change video contest is back! The School of Environmental and Forest Sciences wants you to create a short (3 minutes or less) video showing what climate change means to you.
Grab your camera, phone or tablet and show the world how you feel about climate change - your vision, your voice. Are you confused, angry, powerless or scared? Or hopeful and inspired to take action?
Suzanne Zitzer is committed to sustainability! She was one of the driving forces (along with a former colleague) behind getting the College of the Environment Dean's Office certifed as a Green Office back in 2013 and has been focusing on green office practices ever since.
The UW Tower Data Center has been ENERGY STAR certified for the third year in a row - one of just 14 data centers in the country to have been certified each of the last three years.