The University of Michigan furthered its commitment to climate action during fiscal year 2024 through a variety of efforts to support universitywide carbon neutrality and a shared culture of sustainability, according to an annual report on sustainability and climate action.

Prominent developments included the continued construction of geo-exchange heating and cooling systems and campus solar installations, expanded central leadership in sustainability, an emphasis on climate action within Campus Plan 2050 and Vision 2034, and new sustainability programs at U-M Health.

These projects, among others, are chronicled in the third annual Sustainability and Climate Action at the University of Michigan report, which covers environmental resilience work across the Ann Arbor, Dearborn and Flint campuses, Michigan Medicine and Athletics.

“Society’s greatest challenges require a communitywide response,” President Santa J. Ono wrote in an introduction to the report. “This is precisely why the University of Michigan is poised to lead in responding to the climate emergency and building social and environmental resilience. Because U-M is foremost a community; where students, staff, faculty, alumni and others join together to cultivate multidisciplinary solutions.”

Priorities and progress

The report includes high-level data related to sustainable operations and campus involvement, and overviews of various initiatives and next steps. New to this year’s report are sections on waste reduction and sustainability initiatives at U-M Health, Michigan Medicine’s clinical enterprise.

At the conclusion of FY ’24, U-M noted an approximately 8% year-over-year decrease in total quantified greenhouse gas emissions, including an approximately 4% reduction in Scope 1 emissions, which come from direct campus emissions. Sustainability staff expect to finalize an agreement to procure 100% of purchased electricity from renewables during FY ’25, which will lead to markedly decreased Scope 2 emissions that are derived from purchased electricity.

Since 2010, the university has reduced its total greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 34% despite an approximately 14% increase in total building area.

U-M’s carbon neutrality commitments include:

• Eliminating direct campus emissions by 2040.
• Reducing greenhouse gas emissions from purchased electricity to net zero by 2025.
• Establishing goals for a wide range of indirect emission sources by 2025.
• Achieving a net zero carbon footprint for the university’s endowment by 2050.
• Fostering a universitywide culture of sustainability, with justice as a core principle.

Actions over the past year to support these goals include:

• Progress toward constructing on-campus solar power installations with a capacity of 25 megawatts across the university. In May, U-M announced it hired Radial Power, a Houston-based distributed energy and sustainability solutions firm, to design and build the installations. Equity and community engagement are key priorities in the process ahead and construction is slated to begin in early 2025.
• Expanded central leadership, with the hiring of Shana S. Weber as associate vice president for campus sustainability in September 2023, and Shalanda H. Baker as the university’s vice provost for sustainability and climate action in September 2024.
• The culmination of two long-term planning efforts, Vision 2034 and Campus Plan 2050, both of which include sustainability, carbon neutrality and environmental justice as central values.
• Initiatives to decarbonize health care, including a program that reduced emissions from inhaled anesthesia by 88% without compromising patient safety or comfort.
• The arrival of four more electric buses for the Ann Arbor campus as a step toward decarbonizing the university vehicle fleet. Logistics, Transportation & Parking now boasts 56 EVs in its broader fleet, which can utilize a total of 169 charging stations across campus.
• $7.3 million from a central revolving energy fund to units throughout the university pursuing energy efficiency projects during FY ’24. Projects consisted primarily of LED and HVAC system upgrades.

Universitywide collaboration

The report also covers progress in student initiatives, campus engagement, sustainable investing and institutional partnerships.

Over the course of the 2023-24 academic year, the Planet Blue Student Innovation Fund and the Social and Environmental Sustainability grant program collectively awarded more than $120,000 to 27 unique sustainability projects, including a grant for transforming polylactic acid waste into 3D printing filament and setting up polylactic acid collection sites around the Ann Arbor campus, as well as a grant for the creation of a campus sawmill and solar drying kiln.

Various university units have brought on sustainability-specific staff, including Student Life Sustainability, which hired a campus-as-lab manager and a communications and engagement specialist, and U-M Health, which hired a health sustainability officer.

In addition, the Planet Blue at U-M Health program built upon long-standing environmental stewardship initiatives in building design and standards, waste reduction and recycling, and energy conservation.

As carbon neutrality and sustainability efforts move forward, U-M will continue to share updates, milestones, and progress-tracking tools for public awareness and input on the Planet Blue website.

Tags:

• Campus Plan 2050
• carbon neutrality
• Planet Blue
• Sustainability Progress Report
• Vision 2034