Water
Engineering group goes to Israel to study water recycling leader’s operations, research
Mar. 14, 2023—Engineering professors and students will spend their 2023 spring break in Israel to learn about the country’s water recycling programs and bring those lessons back to share with Sterling Ranch, a 21st century sustainable city south of Denver, Colorado, that has doubled as a training site and test bed for Vanderbilt students and professors since 2015. Sterling...
Vanderbilt to begin utility and infrastructure upgrades for campus growth
Jan. 27, 2023—Vanderbilt University is making extensive upgrades to its utilities and other infrastructure as it prepares for campus growth. The Central Utilities Initiative, scheduled to begin in February 2023, will provide enhancements to support various Vandy United projects, the Highland Quad Residential Colleges that will be built along 25th Avenue South, and other future projects. “The Central Utilities Initiative...
Tennessee flash floods are an example of climate change impacts to come
Sep. 15, 2021—The historic rain and flash flooding that swept central Tennessee on Saturday, Aug. 21, 2021, devastated the small city of Waverly, about 60 miles west of Nashville. A flash flood watch issued Friday quickly became a “flash flood emergency” Saturday. On Wednesday, Sept. 25, Humphreys County officials said 20 people died and all those missing had been accounted...
Annual report on campus sustainability efforts now available
Jan. 20, 2020—Vanderbilt University greenhouse gas emissions have dropped 7 percent per square foot compared to FY17-18, and 18.5 percent compared to CY16. The finding is among those showcased in the annual sustainability report released today by FutureVU Sustainability in the Division of Administration. “The achievements highlighted in this report reflect the work of hundreds of faculty, staff and students in...
E. Bronson Ingram College receives LEED Gold certification
Sep. 30, 2019—E. Bronson Ingram College (John Russell/Vanderbilt) Vanderbilt’s E. Bronson Ingram College has been awarded LEED Gold certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. The council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System is the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high-performance sustainable buildings. Organizations must apply for the certification, which is recognized...
University eliminates single-use plastic water and soda bottles in operations on campus
Aug. 28, 2019—As part of its ongoing sustainability efforts, Vanderbilt University announced today it will eliminate all single-use plastic water and soda bottles in its operations throughout dining facilities, markets and vending machines. The collaborative effort—which involved the student organizations Students Promoting Environmental Awareness and Responsibility (SPEAR) and Vanderbilt Student Government and will save more than 430,000 plastic...
Engineering and Science Building, Eskind Biomedical Library designated LEED Gold by USGBC
Jun. 26, 2019—by Jalen Blue Jun. 26, 2019, 9:36 AM U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) President and CEO Mahesh Ramanujam presented Vanderbilt with a plaque designating the university’s Engineering and Science Building and Eskind Biomedical Library with LEED Gold status at a community-wide gathering on Tuesday afternoon in the Engineering and Science Building lobby. “It is an honor for Vanderbilt to...
Petal project at Vanderbilt expands Living Building foothold in Southeast
Jun. 26, 2019—By Ken Edelstein on June 25, 2019 The second Living Building Challenge project on a college campus in the Southeast is well underway but still half a year from completion. The 88,000-square-foot rehabilitation and expansion of two century-old buildings at Vanderbilt University in Nashville is seeking Petal Certification, a track allowing partial fulfillment of the rigorous Living Building...
What’s On My Mind: Sustaining and scaling Vanderbilt’s environmental stewardship
Apr. 26, 2019—Earlier this week, Vanderbilt announced a long-term strategy that will shape our course, affect our daily lives and improve our collective future. We have pledged to power our campus entirely through renewable energy, and to be carbon neutral, by 2050. Better yet, we are committed to generating more renewable energy than we consume. Through the collaborative...
Vanderbilt outlines major plans to reduce environmental footprint
Apr. 22, 2019—University will power its campus entirely through renewable energy and commits to carbon neutrality by 2050 Vanderbilt University today unveiled a comprehensive long-term strategy to significantly reduce its environmental footprint in part by powering its campus entirely through renewable energy, putting the university on track to be carbon neutral by 2050. Chancellor Nicholas S. Zeppos (Daniel Dubois/Vanderbilt)...