Our mission is to grow a sustainable, equitable, and inclusive future for all by implementing transformational sustainability practices into the university’s facilities, planning processes, operations, natural environment, and culture.
What is sustainability?
There are different concepts, models, and definitions of sustainability. Below are a few of the most cited definitions of sustainability.
Brundtland Comission Report
- The 1987 U.N. Brundtland Report ‘Our Common Future’ defines sustainable development as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
The Environmental Protection Agency
- "In 1969, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) made sustainable development an ongoing policy priority of the federal government, with the goal to 'create and maintain conditions under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony, that permit fulfilling the social, economic and other requirements of present and future generations.'"- EPA
The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education
A popular respresentation of sustainability indicates the relationship between the "three pillars of sustainability" that shows the interdependence of three dimensions: economy existing within society and society existing within the environment.
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
- In 2015, the United Nations published "Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development", a "plan of action for people, planet and prosperity". There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDSGs) outlined and 169 targets, which "are an urgent call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership."