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Lt. Governor Simon signs Dominican to Illinois Campus Sustainability Compact
When Illinois Lt. Governor Sheila Simon joined Dominican University August 25 in signing the Illinois Campus Sustainability Pact, it wasn’t just a recognition of the efforts the university has made to become more sustainable. It also outlined a vision for the university’s future environmental initiatives.

“I have seen firsthand the efforts universities and colleges are taking to create a greener Illinois,” Simon said. “I support the pledge Dominican University has made in signing this compact and look forward to working with them on building a greener Illinois.”

Dominican signed the Compact at the Silver Level, pledging to meet a number of environmental goals by 2015.

The Compact informs the university’s ongoing sustainability development plan, 4Rfuture, that will be the guiding force for campus operations, student initiatives, curriculum development and community outreach.

Stepping Stones

In 2002, when Dominican became the first university in the Midwest to install permeable pavers, saving more than 3.6 million gallons of rainwater from entering storm sewers each year, it was just an early step in its renewed focus on reducing its environmental footprint. The bioswale installed on the west side of Dominican’s newest building, Parmer Hall, contours much of that water around trees, filtering silt from the runoff water and nourishing mature and new plants.

Parmer was Dominican’s first building to follow LEED criteria in design and construction, and it includes many green features. Twenty-seven percent of the building material used was recycled content, and 73 percent of the materials were purchased locally, reducing the amount of fuel needed for transport. The construction waste management plan implemented for the Parmer project diverted up to 75 percent of construction waste from landfills.

Features such as renewable hardwood floors, heat-reflecting glass and occupancy sensors that automatically adjust heating, cooling and lighting continue to help the building run more efficiently. The building’s air conditioning system uses water collected in an existing cistern built in the 1920s. The cistern, which collects water from rainfall and building pumps, has reduced the amount of potable water purchased by 4-6 million gallons per year.

Growing Consciousness

When Anthony Cortese, founder of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, gave Dominican’s McGreal lecture to faculty on August 25, he noted the importance of sustainability efforts both to and for higher education institutions.

“Higher education must lead the way, because it educates society’s leaders and produces the most credible research as part of its core mission to society,” Cortese said. “It should use the campus as a living laboratory for sustainable living and connect that to classroom learning.”

The Dominican community continues to build on the foundation of sustainability laid out in its broad initiatives, integrating environmentally conscious practices in its everyday life.

A community garden maintained by staff and students at Dominican’s Priory Campus has yielded 50 pounds of fresh produce delivered to families at the Oak Park-River Forest food pantry, in addition to numerous meals for the garden’s volunteers. The BikeDU program, allowing students and faculty at both the Main and Priory campuses to check out a bike at any time, continues to grow in popularity.

Professors are also participating in an interdisciplinary, university-wide assessment project to better integrate global and environmental issues into their course curricula.

To read more about 4Rfuture and other sustainability efforts at Dominican, visit http://www.dom.edu/about/green/plan.html.