Dear Emerson community,
Jen (Campus Sustainability Manager) here! As promised, here is an update on the Sustainability Action Plan process so far.
Over the past couple of months, about 40 members of the community have come together to form six working groups to develop plans for the future of sustainability at Emerson. Each working group has a facilitator who will work with me to make the most of the time we have with these volunteers and turn our big ideas into manageable strategies. The six working groups are:
- Emissions and offsets
- Resilience
- Equity and justice
- Waste
- Curriculum and research
- Finance
In addition to the working groups, I have been working to form an informal advisory council of College leaders, trustees, and alums who will provide feedback on the planning process at two key points during the spring semester.
On September 27 and 29, I hosted two listening sessions on Zoom for anyone who wanted to join. I appreciate those who took the time to come participate in those conversations! The takeaways have been summarized for the working groups and will be brought forward in our planning.
This Tuesday, October 4, we held a kickoff meeting for all working group members and any advisory council members who could make it. We spent the time introducing ourselves to the rest of the group (what an amazing experience to hear so many members of our community express why they have chosen to give their time to this effort!) and dive into some details about our current sustainability strengths and areas for improvement.
The working groups will start meeting next month and will first be tasked with developing and refining our 2030 goals. They will then shift to developing specific strategies to implement that will help us achieve those goals.
Wish you were involved? Here are a few ways to participate:
- Throughout the entire fall semester, we will keep open this virtual suggestion box. You can submit an idea, a concern, a suggestion, or a question any time and as many times as you’d like!
- If you meant to join a working group and didn’t get to it, just reach out to sustainability@emerson.edu and we’ll chat. If you just want to attend a working group here and there, please also reach out to sustainability@emerson.edu and we’ll get you an invitation to the meeting you want to join.
- There will be more opportunities to provide feedback on specific draft plans in the spring. Stay tuned here on the blog!
Thank you all again for your interest in this process. Here’s to 2030 and the journey ahead!
Sincerely,
Jen Lamy, Campus Sustainability Manager