Green Committee
The Green Committee promotes Department policies and activities aimed at reducing the environmental impact of our office space and work habits.
Meetings and Membership
The Green Committee meets once a month in Classroom 6704 after the faculty meeting, about 1:00 PM. Lunch is provided.
All DEB employees and others who share our office space (at any location) are invited to join! Please feel free to attend the meetings.
Our leadership serves on a volunteer basis:
- Tom Newman, Chair
- Emily Kenyon, Vice-Chair
- Maria Rivera, Secretary
Contact the Green Committee.
Other members include Susan Averbach, Peter Bacchetti, Laura Bettencourt, Gwenn Craig, Julie Deardorff, Jim Diehl, Meg Farrell, Robert Garcia, Hava Glick-Landes, Tom Hall, Lynn Harvey, Kathleen Hogan, Steve Hulley, Gail Kennedy, Mark Litchman, Erin Madden, Michael Martin, Sally Mead, Cynthia Piontkowski, Susan Rubin, Clark Sealy, Hilary Spindler, Dave Swanson, and Shirley Yuen.
Presentations
We plan to make educational presentations about environmental issues a regular feature of monthly faculty meetings and quarterly staff meetings.
- April 4, 2008 DEB Seminar
Kirk R. Smith MPH, PhD, Professor of Global Environmental Health, UC Berkeley: Climate Change and Health: Adapting, Mitigating, and Suffering: How Much of Each? - April 4, 2008 Faculty Meeting
Randy Valdez of CBL: Building Green Plans - November 2, 2007 Faculty Meeting
Mark Pletcher, Clinical Epidemiology: Video Conferencing - October 5, 2007 Faculty Meeting
Peter Bacchetti, Biostatistics: Carbon Offsets
Resource Conservation
Recycling CBL custodians now collect paper, bottles and cans from blue bins for recycling. When the Green Committee was first organized, there was just one paper-only recycling receptacle for all of Suite 5700 — progress!
Tips
- Check the signs posted on the kitchen recycling bins to determine which types of plastic are accepted.
- Plastic grocery bags can be recycled — collection bin in the mailroom. Clark Sealy will deliver the bags to Safeway for recycling.
- Place broken-down cardboard boxes in the Utility Closet, Room #5718, next to the grey bin.
- If you collect paper for recycling in your office, transfer it to a blue bin regularly.
Paper use DEB is currently ordering 100% post-consumer recycled paper for copiers and printers. Even so, the more we minimize resource use, the smaller our ecological footprint will be.
Tips
- Transmit documents electronically when possible. The Mykonos (5720) and Katmandu (Admin Alley) printers are also scanners.
- Many of our printers are capable of printing on both sides of the page. You can also print several sheets per page. See detailed instructions.
- Before recycling unwanted printouts, use the unprinted side. Make sure no confidential info is included.
- Place unwanted printouts in collection trays near printers for use as scrap paper. (Because of maintenance issues, we shouldn't use them for manual feed printing or copying.)
- Make handcrafted notepads. If you don't have time, check the mailroom for a supply of notepads manufactured by Hava Glick-Landes — thanks Hava!
- Donate to schools.
Transportation This is the area that makes the biggest difference in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. For on-the-job local travel, the Department provides two bicycles and one Muni Fast Pass that may be checked out at CBL Reception.
Tips
- Commute by foot, bicycle, or public transportation.
- If you must drive to work, talk to your supervisor about the possibility of telecommuting. UCSF Telecommuting Guidelines
- Airplane travel is a huge contributor to greenhouse gases. Many of us must fly occasionally as part of our professional activities; when you can't avoid it, consider purchasing carbon offsets along with your airfare. See the links below for more information.
Electricity We're looking into installing motion-detector light switches in some locations. Here are some everyday strategies:
Tips
- Turn off your computer monitor at the end of the day. (The CPU needs to be left on to make sure your system is backed up and updated when needed, but it's fine to switch off the monitor.)
- After using a copy machine, push the "Energy Saver" button.
- Unplug recharging devices for portable electronics when not in use — those "wall warts" draw current even when inactive.
- Turn off unneeded lights, of course. Contact Clark Sealy to have excess ceiling fixtures disconnected.
Waste Reduction/Salvage Reusing existing materials instead of buying new items saves a variety of resources.
Tips
- Bring your own dishes and utensils so you won't need disposables. We're looking into the feasibility of installing energy and water-efficient dishwashers in the kitchens; stay tuned!
- Cloth towels for drying dishes are now available in our kitchens. Thanks to Tom Newman for providing and washing the towels, and to Clark Sealy for installing the towel rings.
- For furniture or equipment, check out the UCSF Surplus Store.
Diet Did you know that livestock are a major contributor to global warming? According to a study by University of Chicago geographers, the contribution to global warming from eating a typical American diet is similar to that of driving a sport utility vehicle. If the only meat you eat is poultry and fish, and you eat eggs and dairy products, it is more like driving a regular sedan. But if you want your diet to be like a Prius, you need to be a vegan (no animal products at all). The Department is not ready to go vegan yet, but we have stopped serving beef, lamb and pork at departmental lunches, because of their environmental effects!
Other Activities
Green Survey The Committee is currently polling employees to find out more about the choices they make in relevant areas, and what the Department can do to encourage green behavior. Email instructions for completing the survey were distributed in December 2007 — please give us your input. Survey results will be publicized early in 2008. View Survey Form and Results.
Advocacy Hava Glick-Landes has written to OfficeMax and UCSF Finance in an effort to persuade Office Max to offer sustainable office and break-room supplies. View email to Office Max View email to UCSF Finance
Campus-wide committees
- Tom Newman will represent the Academic Senate on the Chancellor's Advisory Committee on Sustainability.
- Steve Hulley and Peter Bacchetti will attend monthly meetings of the UCSF Environmental Sustainability Committee and report back on those discussions.
Sustainable buildings Because most of the Department's office space is leased, we are limited in what we can do in this area. Committee members are working with UCSF Real Estate Services to encourage CBL building management to adopt green practices.
Links
- Higher Education
- Toward a Sustainable Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics
(Tom Newman) - UCSF Environmental Sustainability Committee
- UCSF Medical Center Sustainable Operations News
- UC Sustainability Policies and Best Practices
- Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education
- Harvard Green Campus Initiative
- Focus the Nation Teach-In (national)
- Focus the Nation Teach-In (UCSF)
- Carbon Offsets
- Reducing Your Carbon Footprint (Tom Newman)
- Carbon Offsets Demystified (Co-op America)
- Carbon-Free and Nuclear-Free: A Roadmap for U.S. Energy Policy (Arjun Makhijani for IEER)
- Carbon Calculators
- Calculate Your Impact (An Inconvenient Truth)
- My Carbon Footprint
- Stop Global Warming
- Offset Providers
- Native Energy Provides offsets that will not be resold
- SustainableTravel.com Offers projects designed to have side benefits in developing countries
- TerraPass An independently verified offset provider
- EcoBusinessLinks Provider directory
- A Consumers' Guide to Retail Carbon Offset Providers
- Voluntary Offsets For Air-Travel Carbon Emissions: Evaluations and Recommendations of Thirteen Offset Companies (Tufts)
- Other
- Green Zebra Local guides for sustainable living
- Matter of Trust Advocates sustainable lifestyle
- San Francisco Bicycle Coalition Biking resources