News
University saves more than $200,000; Commons Center is Energy Bowl winner
Jan. 26, 2014—[Originally posted by MyVU] Energy conservation measures taken on the Vanderbilt campus during December’s Energy Bowl Challenge resulted in more than $200,000 in energy savings, according to Vanderbilt Plant Operations and the Sustainability and Environmental Management Office. The Commons Center at The Martha Rivers Ingram Commons was the campus winner, with an impressive 31 percent...
Pharmacology lab named VUMC “Go Green for the Holidays” contest winner
Jan. 21, 2014—[Originally posted by MyVUMC] Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Plant Services and the Sustainability and Environmental Management Office (SEMO) announced that energy conservation measures taken during the VUMC Go Green for the Holidays and the VU campus Energy Bowl contest resulted in more than $200,000 in energy savings. The Pharmacology laboratory on the 4th floor of...
Vanderbilt alum, co-founder of Ubiquitous Energy, named to “Forbes” 30 under 30
Jan. 16, 2014—Vanderbilt University School of Engineering alum, Miles Barr, is one of five VU alums to be named to Forbes magazine’s “30 Under 30.” The list highlights the brightest stars under the age of 30 who are making waves in categories such as finance, technology, education and energy. Barr, who received a bachelor of engineering degree from...
2014 Basketball Athletics Sustainability Competition Going on Now!
Jan. 6, 2014—Are YOU the greenest group on campus? VU Athletics, the Vanderbilt Sustainability and Environmental Management Office (SEMO) and Waste Management, Inc. are looking for the greenest group on campus during this year’s Basketball Athletics Sustainability competition. Your group could win a catered, in-game VIP hospitality event, tickets for 20 people, a signed premium item, and...
Reminder to University staff: Take the Energy Bowl Challenge to conserve energy (and win pizza!)
Dec. 20, 2013—[Originally posted by MyVU] Note: The Medical Center is going green for the holidays a little differently. VUMC employees, please refer to this story for more details. Last week, Plant Operations implemented several intensive energy-conservation measures throughout University Central for the three weeks of winter break and invited faculty, staff and students remaining on campus...
Third environmental engineering professor is certified by U.S. academy
Dec. 16, 2013—[Originally posted by Vanderbilt School of Engineering] Eugene LeBoeuf, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Vanderbilt, is the third Vanderbilt environmental engineering faculty member in two years to be accepted into the American Academy of Environmental Engineers and Scientists as a board certified environmental engineering member. LeBoeuf’s research interests focus on developing improved...
Amp would increase alternative transportation options to and from campus
Dec. 16, 2013—[Originally posted by MyVU] The Vanderbilt community may soon have a new transit option for traveling to and from campus. The proposed bus rapid transit (BRT) system, called the Amp, would increase the number of alternative transportation modes already available to staff, faculty and students. By 2016, the number of cars that travel on the...
VUMC Staff: Labs encouraged to power down over holidays
Dec. 12, 2013—Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Plant Services and Sustainability and Environmental Management Office (SEMO) are hosting “Go Green for the Holidays,” an energy conservation contest open to research labs during the final two weeks of December. This year, because the University’s official Christmas and New Year’s holidays fall mid-week, the number of people present on the...
Use water at ‘comfortable’ temperature to wash hands and fight global warming
Dec. 11, 2013—[Originally posted by Research News at Vanderbilt] Signs in many bathrooms across the country recommend washing hands in hot or warm water. In fact, if Americans could be persuaded en masse to use a comfortable water temperature when washing their hands, it could prevent the annual greenhouse gas emissions totaling the equivalent of the United...
Local foods on the Vanderbilt campus
Nov. 20, 2013—[Originally published by the Vanderbilt Hustler and InsideVandy] If you’ve ever been curious about where some of the food on campus comes from, look no farther than several miles down the road. Three of the largest suppliers of local food at Vanderbilt come from family farms fewer than 50 miles away. These suppliers include Delvin...
New device stores electricity on silicon chips
Nov. 20, 2013—[Originally posted by Research News at Vanderbilt] Solar cells that produce electricity 24/7, not just when the sun is shining. Mobile phones with built-in power cells that recharge in seconds and work for weeks between charges. These are just two of the possibilities raised by a novel supercapacitor design invented by material scientists at Vanderbilt...
Campus Dining Wins Annual Greenest Group on Campus Contest
Nov. 18, 2013—[Click here for MyVU story] Vanderbilt Campus Dining was the grand-prize winner Oct. 19 in the Game Day Recycling Challenge before the Vanderbilt vs. Georgia football game. Campus Dining won 25 tickets to the upcoming Kentucky football game, a catered tailgate by Whole Foods and will participate in an award presentation on the field at...
Volunteers Make Move-In and Game Day Challenge Recycling Successful
Oct. 31, 2013—VU Collects 1.26 Tons of Recycling at EPA Game Day Recycling Challenge 18 volunteers, including members of SPEAR and Deputy Dores, assisted with the EPA Game Day Recycling Challenge after the October 19 game against Georgia to collect recycling within the stadium seating area. These volunteers collected 2,507 pounds, or 1.26 tons of recycling (cardboard,...
Vanderbilt Green Fund Applications Now Being Accepted
Oct. 30, 2013—The Vanderbilt Green Fund was established in the spring of 2011 as a way of connecting student sustainability ideas with the means to implement them. The final deadline for applications is December 3 at midnight. Apply here. For more information about the Green Fund please contact Sommers Kline (sommers.s.kline@Vanderbilt.Edu).
November SustainVU Newsletter Now Available!
Oct. 30, 2013—Check out what’s going on this month in the November SustainVU newsletter! In this month’s issue, we are excited to announce that Vanderbilt’s greenhouse gas emissions are now 19% less than in 2008! Wow! Since greenhouse gas emissions are directly tied to utility consumption and commuter behavior, a big pat on the back to everyone...