Tony Wilgus, associate professor of social work, center, and Dr. DeBow Freed, UF president, listen as a consultant makes recommendations for the Alumni Memorial Union.

The Findlay Green Campus Initiative (FGCI) began last academic year with a conversation between Michael Reed, Ph.D., professor of TESOL and bilingual education, and Dwight Moody, Ed.D., professor emeritus of biology.

The idea quickly attracted the attention of students, faculty and staff, and this fall, the group begins the new academic year with a 15-member advisory council and nine FGCI action groups: public relations/outreach, land/built environment, materials/waste management, energy, water, food, transportation, academic and endowments/investments/grants. “Many people were looking for an organization like this, and the time is right,” said Moody.

As a “trans-campus organization,” as Reed explained, anyone – student, faculty or staff – is welcome to volunteer or join an action group.

The group’s intention is not to take sole responsibility for creating an environmentally friendly campus but to be a catalyst and empower the UF community to adopt an environmentally conscious culture and improve sustainability practices.

The FGCI’s first goal is to develop a carbon footprint, which will indicate how much energy each building on campus is using. The process will likely take at least one year, and the results will measure everything from the amount of water and electricity being used to the amount of gas being consumed by those who drive to campus to attend class or work.

In June, two experts met with several FGCI members to review ways in which the Alumni Memorial Union could become more energy efficient. Some solutions are as simple as putting motion-sensored lights in the bathrooms and dimmer switches in the atrium to reduce the amount of electricity used every day.

“We need to think differently about how things are done, not necessarily expensively,” said Reed.

In the near future, the group plans to encourage on-campus recycling, working with the physical plant to place recycling bins for items such as plastic bottles and aluminum cans in easy-to-find locations around campus. Currently, the UF community has the opportunity to recycle on campus once each month when Litter Landing parks a recycling trailer at the end of College Street.

A Web site also is in the works, complete with links to free resources and suggestions for decreasing energy consumption.

As the FGCI continues to grow, ideas will be shared across campus to encourage a “greener” environment. “Think beyond what you do every day,” said Reed. “Everything you do affects the whole world.”

For more information about getting involved with the FGCI, e-mail Reed at reed@findlay.edu.