APPA

PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY Portland, Oregon Submitted by Jenny McNamara, Sustainability Manager PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY TRAVEL OFFSET PROGRAM At Portland State, business travel is responsible for approximately 6,009 metric tons of carbon emissions, or 1,265 cars on the road, each year. Acknowledging that travel is mission critical and is not likely to de- crease, PSU's Campus Sustainability Office created an offset program designed to mitigate this notoriously difficult source of emissions for universities. e voluntary travel offset program directly supports the goals of PSU's Climate Action Plan. It works by assessing a 2 percent fee to travel expenses for participat- ing departments. Contributions are then routed to the Green Revolving Fund, which finances campus energy efficiency projects, reducing our carbon footprint and offsetting travel impacts. Many organizations purchase third-party carbon offsets to address travel emissions, costing anywhere from $10 to $50 per ton of carbon emissions. ese prices are estimates of what it costs to reduce an equivalent amount of emissions through carbon reductions or sequestration elsewhere. e 2 percent in PSU's travel offset represents a charge of approximately $30 per ton, based on recent travel emissions. PSU's travel offset is an innovative, homegrown solution that further solidifies a commitment to climate action. Off- setting travel impacts is pivotal to reducing carbon emissions and creating a more resilient and sustainable PSU. PRINCETON UNIVERSITY Princeton, New Jersey Submitted by Caroline Savage, Campus as Lab Manager, Office of Sustainability CAMPUS AS LAB Students Ben Sorkin '17 and Kirk Robinson '17 knew that there had to be a more sustainable option for the Princeton University crew team's fleet of coach boats. Inspired by the auto industry's desire to reduce fossil fuel emis- sions through fleet electrification, Sorkin and Robinson tapped into Prince- ton's Campus as Lab program to seek funding and support for bringing their concept of a long-range electric motor boat to life. e student researchers have since produced a model that can achieve 47mph and is "performance capable, robust, low-maintenance, safe, and reliable," says Robinson. is project is one of many supported by Princeton's Campus as Lab program, which engages students, faculty, and staff in solving real-world sustainability problems using Princeton's physical campus as a learning tool. e Campus as a Living Lab approach is defined as the campus-based intersection of operational, educational, and research activities that result in the advancement of sustainability problem-solving. "How can we use the physical campus as a way to engage the academic commu- nity in research about big global problems?" asks Shana Weber, director of the Office of Sustainability. "Campus as Lab really shows us the difference between doing research for academia versus doing research for applications that can make a tangible difference in whatever environment in which you are working," said Sorkin. 22 MARCH/APRIL 2017 FACILITIES MANAGER

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