Green Umbrella Meetings: McKoy et al., 7 April 2006, 3:00 PM, 635 West 115th St, 1st Floor.

Minutes by Six Silberman.

Meeting attendance: Wil McKoy, Herman Matte, Anjana Sharma, Scott Cardiff, Coogan Brennan, Neal Parry, Claire Jouseau, Alisha Goldstein, Six Silberman.

I. Environmental Stewardship Website Comments

Scott: Consider adding "What CU is Planning on Doing" to the "What CU is Doing" section. Also consider adding environmental details for new construction projects and information on environmental aspects of Manhattanville expansion. Finally, can we have some information about the EPA Clean Air Act fines a few years back?

Wil: On the first point: Maybe. But Kasdin doesn't want to make statements until after things have been accomplished. On Manhattanville: The topic is too sensitive for even me to get in on the meetings. On the EPA fines: I think there were relevant self-audits after the citations, but I'll look into it some more.

II. Building Collaboration & Awareness

A. Environmental Town Hall Meeting

Let's do it this semester (before finals!), outreach to SGB & other governing boards, and include a questionnaire.

B. GEO/Orientation Week Activities/NSOP Collaboration

GEO may do something at check-in this year. Integration of environmental panels, speakers, or events will wait until Fall 2007.

Note that the Guide to Living is printed on 100% post-consumer waste fiber (PCW).

Consider electronically publishing a "green guide to moving in"--a list of things not to bring. Anjana may work with Herman or Wil over the summer in an internship capacity to compile this, based on work at the Univ of Michigan.

For speaker event arrangements in NSOP, contact Robert Taylor, the administrator in change of the program.

Consider expanding to multimedia outreach, including video interviews (faculty/staff/students) or podcasts.

C. Flyer Reduction & Web-Based Communication Efforts

This is a long-term collaboration. Wil will talk to the people at the University Events Calendar. Six will continue talking to programmers in student government and CUIT about existing structures and possible expanded development.

D. Internships

Wil will ask the department representatives in the ESTF if they could benefit from student interns, and report to the GU. To create a useful internship, we hope to be able to answer beforehand: What is the purpose of the internship? What will the students do? What will they learn?

III. GU Structure & Sustainability

The GU will appoint a person, on a monthly or bimonthly rotation, to respond to administrator emails after sufficient discussion has taken place among members. Additionally, at the end of each semester the GU will indicate to Wil & Scott (or other administrators) which members will remain active the following semester. All other formal structure will be minimized.

IV. Project Process

Generally speaking, project submission to the GU & Department of Administrative Planning & Financial Management should be informal. Students with ideas should feel free to float them individually to Wil, Scott, Herman, or any student in the GU, or to come to a meeting and discuss them. If the idea or project is generally acknowledged as sound, the GU will help the initiating student or group to build a project team, to include relevant faculty, staff, department officials, and other stakeholders, and present this idea to Kasdin and the ESTF at large for endorsement, support, and funding.

V. Ongoing Projects

A. We should float the NASA GISS Green Roof research around and begin a (slow) dialogue on the subject among faculty, students, and administrators. This slow process should be repeated for all large-scale or heavily technical projects.

B. Eco-Reps will begin more active recruiting and high-profile activity in the fall.

C. We should take care to photograph and document all environmental projects and events, and to communicate properly the achievements of each effort.