The University of New Mexico has announced the release of its first comprehensive Sustainability Plan, outlining steps to reduce the university’s environmental impact and foster a culture of sustainability throughout its campus.
The five-year plan was developed over the course of a year by the Office of Sustainability. The process included collecting feedback from students, faculty, and staff through interviews, focus groups, surveys, and town hall meetings. An Executive Steering Committee provided guidance for the effort, which also involved research into best practices and setting baseline metrics.
The plan is structured around two main areas: transforming campus operations and building sustainability engagement and culture. Operational goals address buildings and greenhouse gas emissions, water and land use, waste management, transportation, as well as food and dining services. Engagement initiatives focus on applied learning and research opportunities, training sessions, events, communications strategies, outreach efforts, and institutional governance.
To oversee implementation, UNM will establish a Sustainability Council to coordinate activities across the university. In addition, a Sustainability Corps will involve undergraduate students as peer educators and project leaders in sustainability projects on campus.
President Garnett S. Stokes stated: “We at The University of New Mexico are proud of our institutional culture that has long valued sustainability and the need to cultivate and protect all of the resources—human, financial, and physical—that make our university succeed. We believe in it so strongly, in fact, that we’ve put it in writing, as Goal Four of our UNM 2040 long-term strategic framework. This five-year Sustainability Plan reflects our commitment to doing the work necessary to ensure the long-term success not only of our university, but our community and our planet.”
Teresa Costantinidis, executive vice president for Finance and Administration at UNM said: “UNM has a long history of undertaking a commitment to environmental sustainability in its facilities, operations, academics, and research. This plan formalizes much of this work and sets goals to push the University even further in its commitment. There are many benefits for the campus community associated with this plan, including financial and climate resilience, conservation of resources, student success and institutional excellence.”
The new plan supports “UNM 2040: Opportunity Defined,” which is the institution’s long-term strategic framework that includes sustainability among its primary goals. Recent data collection efforts by the Office of Sustainability contributed to this planning process; these include earning a STARS Silver designation from the Sustainability Tracking Assessment & Rating System (STARS) program as well as compiling UNM’s first Greenhouse Gas Inventory report in ten years.
“As we move into implementation, success of the UNM Sustainability Plan will depend on collaboration across every part of the university,” said Costantinidis. “The plan sets the direction, but it’s the collective work of students, faculty, staff, and community partners that will bring these commitments to life across campus.”
More information about the plan can be found at UNM Sustainability Plan.
