Environmentally Friendly Practices at Kalamazoo College

Abstract

With the rising importance of sustainability due to an increasing scientific understanding of the impact of humanity on the planet, Kalamazoo College has a very large task at hand to successfully become more environmentally friendly. Two years ago, little was known about the campus' use of resources and how and where within individual buildings consumption was taking place. Since then there has been progress, pioneered by Rob Connor (K '07) and Paul Manstrom with his conscientious facilities management staff. Rob's SIP developed a great foundation for the type of analysis which needs to be done on campus, revealing that there strong incentives, environmentally as well as economically, to monitoring the electricity flow to every building (Connor 8). The focus of this SIP is to learn more about and to further develop Kalamazoo College's environmental practices. To summarize, I studied the following: The College's efforts to develop sustainable practices as a newfound member of the American College and University President's Climate Commitment(ACUPCC); The renovation of the Hicks Center and its participation in the LEED building program; The envelope of college buildings using a newly acquired infrared camera; The carbon footprint of the school from heating and powering the campus as well as College related commuting; The initial developments of heat and condensate metering on campus.