[Seac] Daily Princetonian Article: Redefining our environmental mission

["Steve Barney" <barnes99@uwosh.edu>]

The article below from The Daily Princetonian
has been sent to you by Steve Barney <barnes99@uwosh.edu>

Here are some ideas which we might consider for UWO.
-SB


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Redefining our environmental mission
By Thomas Bohnett
http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/archives/2004/12/08/opinion/11705.shtml

    In a recent conversation with University Treasurer Chris McCrudden,
I learned that if current prices hold, Princeton's annual energy
expenditures will increase by $7 million over the course of the four-
year period from 2002 until 2006. To say the least, our fossil fuel
addiction is costly.

    I set out to learn how the University planned to address this
increase in energy costs. At a time when alternative energy production
methods and energy conservation practices are proven both
technologically and as cost-saving measures, it seemed to me that the
moment would be ripe for the enthusiastic adoption of such sustainable
principles. Where did the University stand on this issue?

    As it turned out, I found that Vice President for Administration
Mark Burstein and Vice President for Facilities Mike McKay are quietly
leading a thorough evaluation of Princeton University's environmental
footprint.

    Due to the hyper-awareness of the potential budgetary impacts of
energy conservation, the University is looking for opportunities to
improve the energy efficiency of current structures and incorporate
green design principles into new construction.

    Burstein and McKay's brand of environmentalism, as expressed in the
initiatives described to me by them, seemed to me to be reflective of
the institution itself: moderate and pragmatic. Burstein and McKay are
inheritors of a legacy that includes, among other things, an energy
inefficient physical plant and a campus planned without regard for
sustainable development principles. Right now, they essentially play
catchup for the generations of Princeton planners and architects unaware
of or unconcerned with the possibilities of smart building design.

    Not too long from now, though, Burstein and McKay will win their
battle against the draftiness of gothic dormitories and the
inefficiencies of outdated sciences laboratories -- they will have
eliminated the most glaring energy inefficiencies of our existing
structures. Once they finish this phase, they, the administration and
the trustees will have to consider questions about our sustainability
profile that are historically new to Princeton. The opportunity to stand
as a model of environmental stewardship was not within our reach before.
How will we respond when it is?

    Let us answer emphatically that we believe acting as a true steward
of the earth must be incorporated into the educational mission of this
University. Further, let us declare that the pursuit of environmental
sustainability must not end when payback times for sustainability
improvements stretch to a decade or even more. If we only do the right
thing when it is most cost-effective, are we setting any kind of example
at all?

    Our generation of Princeton students, cruelly dealt Al Gore as its
iconic environmentalist, is desperate for leadership on environmental
issues. While I will never abandon hope that one day our federal
government will grab the reins of the great American growth machine and
steer the nation towards sustainability, it is time to look elsewhere
for guidance.

    I challenge Mark Burstein, Mike McKay and President Tilghman to
exceed conventional goals, to throw out the University's current
environmental mission statement -- which guides us to "strike a proper
balance between environmental stewardship and economic expense" -- and
to adopt a vision in which Princeton University adds the pursuit of
environmental sustainability to the categories in which it seeks to best
all of its peers.

    This vision will cost money. Who will pay for it?

    To succeed as an inspirational and pedagogical tool, the adoption of
a sustainability agenda should be contingent on shared sacrifice for the
greater goal. It should hurt a little bit. Since it is for the sake of
the students, let us share in the burden.

    Take away FristFests, Dean's Date Theater, a few study breaks and a
couple of other frills, and use the proceeds to put up the Class of 2007
Solar Panel on the roof of Whitman College. Add a panel every year. In
time, the savings reaped could contribute to a fund dedicated to pushing
the envelope of sustainability practices at Princeton.

    And when will we have gone far enough? When all graduating seniors
can look Tilghman in the eye and tell her that they have learned from
Princeton University, at Princeton University, what it means to be a
good steward of the earth.

Thomas Bohnett is a sophomore from Princeton Junction. He can be reached
at tbohnett@princeton.edu.