2008 Woodie Awards
Environmental club pushes sustainability fee
Matt Larvey
Issue date: 5/27/08 Section: News
WISE 37, a De Anza College environmental group, is working to give full-time De Anza students the option to vote for a mandatory sustainability fee to be paid every quarter with registration fees. WISE 37's goal is to have the initiative on the ballot by next spring.
The "green fee" would be added onto quarterly registration fees to help fund sustainability efforts around the campus. There is lack of funds for sustainability needs at De Anza College, said Seema Rupani, president of WISE 37.
A group of De Anza faculty members, the College Environmental Advisory Group, is outlining plans for sustainability management around the campus. Improved recycling, efficient landscaping, increased usage of renewable energy sources and use of natural sunlight in classrooms are some of the many projects that would help De Anza decrease the impact on its own environment and the environment around it.
WISE 37 has not yet decided on an exact figure for the proposed fee, but has been conducting surveys around campus to gauge the student vote based on various amounts. Students would be willing to pay between $1 and $3 per quarter, a WISE 37 representative said.
Considering that roughly 8,000 full-time students attend De Anza every quarter, a $3 fee would raise as much as $24,000 in one academic year for sustainability efforts.
Several colleges across the nation have already integrated sustainability fees into registration with their students' approval, including UC Berkeley and UCLA.
UCLA approved the fee on May 8 with 76 percent of the student vote - by far the highest margin of victory for any initiative at the school this past year. The fee at UCLA is $4, to be paid each quarter by full-time students, and will bring in an estimated $300,000 per year.
Lately, De Anza has been taking significant steps towards achieving environmental sustainability. It is the first community college in the U.S. to maintain three Green Building Council-approved buildings: the Kirsch Center, the Student and Community Services Building, and the Visual and Performing Arts Center. GBC approval is a nationally accepted recognition of the design, construction and operation of high performance and environmentally friendly buildings.
"Our overall goal is to minimize the footprint we leave on the land," said Jeanine Hawk, vice president of Finance and College Services and CEAG member. "More than funding though, we need many people to get interested and involved, students and faculty."
WISE 37 contributed to getting locally grown organic food and biodegradable dining utensils in the De Anza cafeteria, and is also planning to institute a full-time or part-time sustainability coordinator to organize campus projects with students.
For additional information or to contact WISE 37 go to their website at http://www.wise37.com or look into the sustainability project at http://deanza.edu/sustainability.
Matthew Larvey is a staff reporter for La Voz. Contact him at mattlarvey@lavozdeanza.com.
The "green fee" would be added onto quarterly registration fees to help fund sustainability efforts around the campus. There is lack of funds for sustainability needs at De Anza College, said Seema Rupani, president of WISE 37.
A group of De Anza faculty members, the College Environmental Advisory Group, is outlining plans for sustainability management around the campus. Improved recycling, efficient landscaping, increased usage of renewable energy sources and use of natural sunlight in classrooms are some of the many projects that would help De Anza decrease the impact on its own environment and the environment around it.
WISE 37 has not yet decided on an exact figure for the proposed fee, but has been conducting surveys around campus to gauge the student vote based on various amounts. Students would be willing to pay between $1 and $3 per quarter, a WISE 37 representative said.
Considering that roughly 8,000 full-time students attend De Anza every quarter, a $3 fee would raise as much as $24,000 in one academic year for sustainability efforts.
Several colleges across the nation have already integrated sustainability fees into registration with their students' approval, including UC Berkeley and UCLA.
UCLA approved the fee on May 8 with 76 percent of the student vote - by far the highest margin of victory for any initiative at the school this past year. The fee at UCLA is $4, to be paid each quarter by full-time students, and will bring in an estimated $300,000 per year.
Lately, De Anza has been taking significant steps towards achieving environmental sustainability. It is the first community college in the U.S. to maintain three Green Building Council-approved buildings: the Kirsch Center, the Student and Community Services Building, and the Visual and Performing Arts Center. GBC approval is a nationally accepted recognition of the design, construction and operation of high performance and environmentally friendly buildings.
"Our overall goal is to minimize the footprint we leave on the land," said Jeanine Hawk, vice president of Finance and College Services and CEAG member. "More than funding though, we need many people to get interested and involved, students and faculty."
WISE 37 contributed to getting locally grown organic food and biodegradable dining utensils in the De Anza cafeteria, and is also planning to institute a full-time or part-time sustainability coordinator to organize campus projects with students.
For additional information or to contact WISE 37 go to their website at http://www.wise37.com or look into the sustainability project at http://deanza.edu/sustainability.
Matthew Larvey is a staff reporter for La Voz. Contact him at mattlarvey@lavozdeanza.com.
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