California State University, Monterey Bay (CSUMB) has big plans in the coming years – complete campus sustainability by 2030.
On Thursday, Jan. 25, CSUMB’s Sustainable Events Working Group held a discussion on how to create a more sustainable campus. The event was hosted by Jeff Rensel, director of the Otter Student Union (OSU) and co-chair of the Sustainable Events Working Group in the OSU.
The university designates three “core goals” to be achieved by 2030:
Some 2,030 trees planted, 90 percent of waste diverted from landfills and carbon neutrality.
In addition to its core goals, CSUMB hopes to “enhance and develop a campus culture of sustainability,” according to the school’s 2020 Campus Sustainability Plan.
Thursday’s meeting focussed specifically on what students can do to plan sustainable events on campus and was an opportunity to “discuss actions [organizers] can take toward campus sustainability and to educate them about the opportunities to integrate sustainability into events,” said Rensel.
In line with creating a culture of sustainability on campus, according to Rensel, “when we talk about sustainability, collective action … is key.” Collective action refers to the necessity of participation by all parties in order to reach CSUMB’s sustainability goals. This includes the administration, faculty, staff and of course, students.
According to Rensel, the goal of the Sustainable Events Working Group is to “focus on making sure that people know they are able to do a sustainable event on campus and that we’re going to help them to do that.”
One resource available to students when organizing events for clubs or other organizations is the Sustainable Events Blueprint (SEB).
The SEB aims to “provide access to resources for anyone doing an event on campus to make it more sustainable and to help with the process of planning an event,” according to Rensel.
The checklist addresses many of the various aspects involved in planning events at CSUMB with recommendations on how to ensure the sustainability of the event. Categories addressed in the SEB include the marketing, energy usage, transportation, food and waste impacts resulting from an event.
Also included are guidelines promoting diversity and inclusion in events. The addition of these social dimensions reflect CSUMB’s recognition that “the impacts of environmental destruction and pollution disproportionately affect already marginalized communities,” as stated in its 2020 Inclusive Sustainability plan.
In addition, student organizers were encouraged to complete the Sustainability Pre-Event Checklist (SEB-C). The SEB-C is a 31-question assessment analyzing the sustainability of an event. Upon completing the assessment, the event will receive a rating of Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum, ranking its compliance with the SEB and certifying it as a sustainable event.
As of fall 2023, this questionnaire is embedded within the event planning process in 25 Live, however at this time there is no requirement to complete this checklist when planning the event.
Additionally, there is not yet a specific incentive for organizers to comply with the checklist, though they are encouraged to use their sustainable event designation as an advertising point.
According to Rensel, while the actions suggested in the SEB to make an event more sustainable are quite simple, “we need to make sure that everyone is aware [of these actions]… so that we can continue the efforts and meet our goals.”