October is recognized as Campus Sustainability Month, but in true Rebel fashion, UNLV broke the mold and started the festivities early.

In mid-September, students, faculty, staff, and community partners gathered at the Foundation Building to kick off the Rebel CAP, UNLV’s comprehensive climate action planning process. 

Campus leadership, members of the Sustainability Task Force, and consulting partners from Brailsford & Dunlavey shared an overview of what’s happened already and what’s to come as we work together to lay a roadmap for a sustainable future on our campuses. Here’s a breakdown. 

What is a Climate Action Plan?

A climate action plan establishes a framework for measuring, planning, and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in both the short and long term. The plans are flexible and allow us to seize opportunities and partnerships as they arise. Think of it as a Campus Master Plan with an emissions reduction focus. Because UNLV is in a desert, the plan will also include a focus on water reduction.  

The final Rebel CAP will provide actions we will take to become carbon neutral by UNLV’s 100th anniversary in 2057, with incremental goals along the way. It will touch on all aspects of campus life such as operations (e.g., procurement, building, transportation, technology, etc.), academics, and research. 

“Universities exist to graduate students so they can have prosperous and productive futures,” said Rebel Recycling Manager Tara Pike. “Climate change threatens this hope for our students. The Rebel CAP will help us alleviate this threat.”

How it began

In 2021, campus leadership reconvened the Sustainability Task Force (STF), a group of faculty, staff, and students who represent diverse areas of expertise. “Our task force’s goal is to identify what we need to do to create a more sustainable future and unite sustainability efforts across UNLV,” said Musa Pam, associate vice president of Facilities Management.

The task force agreed that their first step should be to create a comprehensive strategic plan to guide their decisions. 

Also noteworthy, in its 52nd legislative session, the Consolidated Students of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (CSUN) passed Senate Resolution 52-365, "An Act to Urge the Creation of a University Committee for Adoption of a University-Wide Climate Action Plan (CAP)."

The STF consulted with several peer institutions of higher education that had previously engaged in climate action planning to glean best practices. They selected a Rebel CAP Core team that includes Associate Vice President of Facilities Management Musa Pam, Recycling Manager Tara Pike, Community Garden Coordinator Andie Davis, and Brookings Mountain West & the Lincy Institute student researcher Zachary Billot. Ultimately, and with leadership support, they partnered with Washington, D.C.-based consultants Brailsford & Dunlavey to get the process started. 

What we've done so far

The planning process is meant to be collaborative and include input from as many groups as possible. This will help the team examine the plan through a diversity equity and inclusion (DEI) lens, explore all possibilities, and think through unintended consequences. Therefore, the first step was to seek feedback from the campus community through the Rebel CAP Ideas Assessment Survey. The survey asked participants to gauge the importance of various topics including renewable energy, transportation, education and culture change, waste management, systems and technology, and more. The team received more than 400 responses that they will use to inform priorities. 

Simultaneously, the Rebel CAP Core team has hosted partners from Brailsford & Dunlavey for site visits where they’ve worked together to measure our current state and implement new mechanisms for tracking our greenhouse gas output. 

What's next?

We’ve formed working groups focused on these seven core areas: 

• Academics and research
• Buildings and energy
• Green procurement and policies
• Stewardship and climate justice
• Sustainable transportation
• Waste management
• Water resource management

The working groups will hold regular meetings and conduct research over the next few months. Based on their research, they’ll generate ideas and the ones that rise to the top will become their recommendations for reducing carbon emissions in their respective topic area.

Recommendations will be brought to the STF for review and revision, then to executive leadership for approval and incorporation into the Rebel CAP. The working groups are composed of faculty, staff, and students who have expertise and are passionate about a specific topic area.

For example, Lisa Davis, executive director of Graduate Student Services, Lee Business School is leading the Academics and Research working group. She believes sustainability should be taught in all aspects of higher education and will challenge her group to think of all possible ways it can be incorporated into the academic experience. “Sustainability touches every part of our lives,” says Davis.

The goal is to have a final plan to share with the campus community in Spring 2024. 

How to get involved

“We need Rebels involved,” said Andie Davis, the UNLV Campus Community Garden coordinator and Rebel CAP Core team member. There are plenty of opportunities to do so: 

• The Rebel CAP website has information about how you can participate in the planning process.
• Student Sustainability Council (SSC) 
  • The Student Sustainability Council is the bridge between the Sustainability Task Force and the student body.  
• UNLVolunteers is a student-led organization whose mission is to encourage civic engagement and positive social change. 

Being sustainability-minded is not new to UNLV. Over the years, Rebels have produced an abundance of solutions to bring a culture of sustainability to our campuses. The article, “5 Changes Rebels Made Toward Sustainability” includes just a few projects that changed how Rebels live, work, and learn. The Rebel CAP will align all these initiatives under one strategic umbrella. 

Our faculty, students, and staff play a significant role in increasing sustainability, throughout campus and the greater community. “If we don’t address these issues, we won’t have universities,” said Christine Bergman, professor, College of Hospitality. That’s what makes this planning process so important. 

To learn more about sustainability on campus, visit the Sustainability webpage.