SustainAbilities: Practical Steps to a Sustainable SocietyTyler Nielsen ‘13, Andi Gomoll ‘13, Lauren Kramer ’13

Background

• In 2011, 94% of incoming St. Olaf students agreed; “At a place like St. Olaf, I expect to learn how to live sustainably in the residence halls.”• SustainAbilities provides co-curricular sustainability education with a blend of information, skill development and practical applications.• Common understanding of “sustainability” (Brundtland Report, 1987) • Leadership from 11 SustainAbility representatives • Our work: Researching co-curricular sustainability education across the US, and designing more inclusive and extensive alternatives• Researched what other schools are doing using AASHE databases• Attended the UMACS Conference • Read and applied several Community Based Social Marketing texts• Designed learning outcomes, experiences, projects, and reading guides

• Informal Survey: Current perspectives and barriers with the environmental movement

• Annotations across campus: Prompts for behavior change

• Framing the launch of SustainAbilities

• Mind Mapping Activity: Class of 2016 Week One• SustainAbilities website design and

user interface: A central hub for making sustainability part of everyday student life

Building a Base: Summer 2012

Resources for Representatives

Future Vision

• Ecological citizenship• Global to local perspectives• Student ownership of SustainAbilities• Sustainable approach to sustainability education• Content and skill development spanning four years• Civic engagement integration• Shared responsibility for the future• Critical hope• Green dorm 2013-2014• SustainAbilities as an example for other institutions• Ongoing collaboration with faculty• Changing norms on campus

AcknowledgmentsDan Beech, Webmaster at St. OlafCampus Ecology ’12CURI ’12Randy Clay, Board Manager Bon Appetit, St. OlafProfessor James Farrell, Environmental Catalyst, St. OlafJim Fisher, Grounds Managerr, St. Olaf Dan Franklin, Director of Admissions CampusPrograms & ServicesKloeck-Jensen EndowmentPatricia Lamas, ’12Leaders for Social Change House 2012Kris MacPherson, Reference Librarian, St. Olaf Pamela McDowell, Director of Residential Life, St. Olaf Pete Sandberg, Director of Facilities, St Olaf Derek Waller & Grace Atkins, Student Reference Librarians,St. OlafWayne Wolf, Director of Blue Cup Creative

Acknowledgements and References

Research and Inspiration

• SustainAbilities Project Binder• Orientation planning• Space for discussion and feedback • Duties of representatives in their first year• Sustainability-related articles and texts• Green Room Certification• SustainAbilities Pledge

Image by: Britta Schroeder

Image by: Andi Gomoll

Mind Mapping

Annotations

ReferencesAASHE, (2012). Case study database. In General Resources for Campus Sustainability. Retrieved from http://www.aashe.org/resources/case-studiesDuhigg, C. (2012). The power of habit: Why we do what we do in life and business. New York: Random House.Farrell, J.J. (2010). The nature of college: How a new understanding of campus life can change the world. Minneapolis: Milkweed Editions.McKenzie-Mohr, D., Lee, N.R., Schultz, P.W., & Kotler, P. (2008). Fostering sustainable behavior: An introduction to community-based social marketing (2nd ed.). Gabriola Island: New Society Publishers. McKenzie-Mohr, D. (2011). Fostering sustainable behavior: An introduction to community-based social marketing (3rd ed.). Gabriola Island: New Society Publishers. McKenzie-Mohr, D., (2012). Social marketing to protect the environment: What works. Thousand Oaks, Sage Publications, Inc.Rosenberg, T. (2011). Join the club: How peer pressure can transform the world. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc. United Nations. (1987). Our common future. Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development.Acknowledgements

SustainAbilities helps students to see the environmental politics of everyday life, develop transition skills from college to what comes next, learn from inevitable failures, and understand the importance of communication and collaboration for social change.