Through Murky Waters: Profs practice what they preach
The greening of JMU, part two
By Alex Sirney, senior writer
Posted on December 7, 2006

Student groups often grab center stage at JMU — they’re visible, loud, and carry a strong message. When a message is heard, or the university decides to make changes on its own, the groups who are ultimately responsible are often behind the scenes.

This is the case for the faculty workgroup investigating how to make JMU a more ecologically sustainable university community. The group was formed in October and is a reassuring sign that the administration is preparing to change the way it looks at the local environment.

Ecological sustainability refers to the ability of the university to minimize its impact on the environment to the extent that, ideally, all the resources it uses are replenished and no damage is done. This may seem an impossible goal but, by using energy-saving building practices, landscaping correctly, using organic and locally grown food and many other strategies, it would be possible for the university to limit its ecological footprint.

Of course, these strategies may be a long way off — the work group is still in the process of determining how it will measure JMU’s current ecological footprint. By the end of the school year, however, it plans on having a list of recommendations for the university on how to improve sustainability.

The group is primarily comprised of ISAT professors and facilities management personnel but also includes other college, student, residence life, dining services and Harrisonburg city representatives.

“We all seem to be on the same page about the value of sustainability,” Maria Papadakis, co-chair of the workgroup, said.

It was formed at the direction of Doug Brown, JMU provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, in October and has met three times since then.

“It’s a mind-set and it’s leading by example,” ISAT professor Christine-Joy Brodrick, a workgroup member, said. “We started riding our bicycles.”

JMU would become a national leader and an example by moving toward sustainability. There is no doubt about the positive effects of sustainability on the local environment — not only would it limit air pollution through more reasonable energy consumption, but it could also affect the local farming community, local air quality and water quality from here to the Chesapeake Bay.

One highly visible area of water quality is Newman Lake, which serves to prevent some pollutants from getting downstream, ISAT professor Tom Benzing, another workgroup member, said. “We inherit some problems from our upstream neighbors.” He and his students are working on several different projects addressing water quality, and he is optimistic for student involvement in the workgroup.

“Whatever we do is going to involve students,” he said.

The end of every idealistic discussion must come to the bottom line — how much it will cost the university to “go green.” There is generally an up-front cost associated with sustainability — the buildings are more expensive and renovation and landscaping costs money. When contacted, however, the provost’s office said that the long-term costs would be far more costly than any initial investment.

The university is on the right path if this is the stance it is willing to take, although time will tell if the administration is willing to bite the bullet. One advantage JMU has over many other universities is that its administration generally has long careers at the university.

“We’ve got presidents who come and stay,” Ryan Powanda, a leader in the student Clean Energy Coalition, said. “They’re not here to promote their own agendas.”

This is not the first time JMU has made a commitment to sustainability, however — in 1990, University Leaders for a Sustainable Future passed the Talloires Declaration, which called for university presidents to, among other things, “Create an institutional culture of sustainability,” “Practice institutional ecology,” and create a steering committee to maintain the movement. JMU was the 32nd U.S.-based institution to sign the declaration.

Steps were taken in the intervening years, including the biodiesel JMU fleet, but JMU also approved plans for two buildings — the new performing arts center and the new library on the east side of campus — that were not designed with sustainability in mind.

The university is better late than never, however, in establishing this workgroup to take the first serious look at a sustainable campus, and deserves optimism and support from students, administration and the community.

Alex Sirney is a senior anthropology/SMAD major.