University of San Diego Students Join National Climate Change Teach-In

SAN DIEGO, Jan. 29, 2008 - Blue is the color normally associated with Torero Pride, but the University of San Diego (USD) is adding a little green.

The university will take part in the “Focus the Nation” campaign, a national teach-in observed around the country on Jan. 31. The event focuses on global warming solutions and is aimed to create a dialogue at more than 1,000 colleges, universities, high schools, middle schools, places of worship, civic organizations and businesses. The university will mark the day with on-campus programs and activities, including a 7 p.m. presentation on global warming by Residential Life. USD will also kick-off two contests to bring awareness to climate change.

The “Recyclemania” program will challenge students to reduce waste on campus. The goal is to collect the largest amount of recyclables, the least amount of trash per capita, or have the highest recycling rate. Across campus students will be encouraged to recycle bottles, turn off lights and conserve energy to do their part. The hall with the most sustainable environment will win a prize. The contest ends on Earth Day, April 22.

Students can also take part in “The Greenest Residence” competition. This is a campus-wide essay program where residents are encouraged to write an essay describing what they are doing on a daily basis to be sustainable. Winners will also be announced on Earth Day.

The university’s stance on “going green” extends beyond a day, a week, or even a month. There are ongoing programs and initiatives in place to continually promote protection of our planet. From the classroom, to the student center, sustainability is a shared concept.

“Academic efforts to teach about sustainability and climate change range from science courses to philosophy to graduate efforts in environmental law and peace studies,” said Michel Boudrias, chair of USD’s Sustainability Task Force. “Several faculty members have ongoing research activities focused on climate change."

The campus workforce includes almost 2,000 full-time and part-time employees and faculty members. In addition, nearly 7,500 students are enrolled in undergraduate, graduate and law programs.

In the dorms, office buildings and kitchens across campus, mixed-paper, cardboard, plastics, aluminum and electronic waste are collected for recycling on a routine or daily basis, as well as batteries, ink cartridges, florescent lights, antifreeze, oil and cooking grease. About 90 percent of cut vegetation from around campus is collected for processing into mulch at the City of San Diego landfill. In addition, old furniture from the university is donated for rehabilitation and reuse for a school in Mexicali.

USD received a “Green Innovation Award,” from Assemblymember Lori Saldana for these efforts.

The University of San Diego is a Catholic institution of higher learning chartered in 1949; the school enrolls approximately 7,500 students and is known for its commitment to teaching, the liberal arts, the formation of values and community service. The inauguration of the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies brings the university’s total number of schools and colleges to six. Other academic divisions include the College of Arts and Sciences and the schools of Business Administration, Law, Leadership and Education Sciences, and Nursing and Health Science.

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About the University of San Diego

Strengthened by the Catholic intellectual tradition, we confront humanity’s challenges by fostering peace, working for justice and leading with love. With more than 8,000 students from 75 countries and 44 states, USD is the youngest independent institution on the U.S. News & World Report list of top 100 universities in the United States. USD’s eight academic divisions include the College of Arts and Sciences, the Knauss School of Business, the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering, the School of Law, the School of Leadership and Education Sciences, the Hahn School of Nursing and Health Science, the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies, and the Division of Professional and Continuing Education. In 2021, USD was named a “Laudato Si’ University” by the Vatican with a seven-year commitment to address humanity’s urgent challenges by working together to take care of our common home.