Sustainability

“The University of San Diego prepares students to be enlightened, engaged and ecological citizens.”

James T. Harris III,                      President, University of San Diego

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USD Sustainability Map

Commitment to Care For Our Common Home

Our world faces increasingly complex and urgent challenges that affect our collective environmental, social and economic well-being. Responding to these challenges in a holistic manner is the essence of sustainability, and the University of San Diego recognizes its responsibility to be a part of the response. We seek to create a university culture that embraces environmentally and socially responsible practices and processes through student action, faculty research, curricula, and daily operations, resulting in lasting change for both USD and society.

When USD adopted Pope Francis’ Care for Our Common Home philosophy as one of the six Pathways to achieve its mission, it was a catalyst for this cultural change. The USD Office of Sustainability has launched several initiatives to support this effort. In 2016, USD published a Climate Action Plan which set goals for reducing the university's carbon footprint; this will be updated in 2020 as we rise to meet the new challenge established by President Harris to achieve climate neutrality by 2035. The Office has created programs to educate students and employees on ways to make their daily work and living practices more sustainable, and led projects to reduce USD’s greenhouse gas emissions. Finally, the university offers nearly 400 courses containing sustainability concepts. 

We hope you will get involved in these and other sustainability initiatives on campus. We are here to offer resources to support your efforts and look forward to partnering with you to help address climate change and other urgent challenges of the 21st century.

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@usdsustain on Instagram

Here are some tips and resources on finding a Green Career! If you have any others, be sure to leave a comment! #sustainableliving #sustainablelifestyle #ecofriendlyliving #ecoliving #ecolifestyle #ecofriendly #sustainability #climatechange #climateeducation #climatecrisis #climateaction #environmentalaction #climateactivism #sustainablechoices #fortheplanet #savetheplanet #USDsustain
Searching for jobs in sustainability can feel challenging because there are so many different titles and positions! Here's a list of some of the many different environment-related career titles and industries to help you refine your search. There are SO many more... Any others you know of? Drop them below! #sustainableliving #sustainablelifestyle #ecofriendlyliving #ecoliving #ecolifestyle #ecofriendly #sustainability #climatechange #climateeducation #climatecrisis #climateaction #environmentalaction #climateactivism #sustainablechoices #fortheplanet #savetheplanet #USDsustain
Consumer power is real! As you work towards removing single-use plastics from your life and encouraging others to do the same, make sure you also advocate for single-use plastic bans, corporate accountability, and government action on plastic pollution. #sustainableliving #sustainablelifestyle #ecofriendlyliving #ecoliving #ecolifestyle #ecofriendly #sustainability #climatechange #climateeducation #climatecrisis #climateaction #environmentalaction #climateactivism #sustainablechoices #fortheplanet #savetheplanet #USDsustain
You've heard it, you've seen it, you've lived it... But plastic pollution isn't the only problem with water bottles. In fact, bottled water is driving climate change, it's incredibly expensive, and it's impacting public health in more ways than one. So in other words, it's worse than you think. BUT stay tuned for some action items and hopeful initiatives later this week!
Wouldn't it be nice if there was a site that was transparent about different brands' sustainability commitments? Surprise, there is! Good On You has rated thousands of brands based on their ethical (or not-so-ethical) business practices. Explore their site and look up some of your favorite brands to see how they stack up, and get recommendations for better brands to shop from. #sustainableshopping #goodonyou #ecofriendlyshopping #ecoliving #sustainablelifestyle #sustainableliving #ecofriendlyliving
Have you been tricked by greenwashing? You aren't alone! Check out these tips for seeing past "green" marketing schemes so you can shop at ACTUAL sustainable brands. #greenwashing #sustainableliving #ecofriendlyliving #ecofriendlyproducts #goodonyou #stopgreenwashing #ecofriendlyshopping #sustainablepurchasing #sustainablefashion
Join the Environmental Integration Lab and Changemaker Hub for a final Earth Day event, a Design Thinking Workshop! This workshop provides students the opportunity to share their concerns and ideas about sustainable practices on campus and creates space for creative problem solving. USD students of all majors are encouraged to attend and will have the chance to win a prize through a raffle of those attending. The design thinking workshop is an amazing tool to practice effective collaborative brainstorming and examining how to implement ideals in an effective way, and is a great skill to carry into every career path. Compass & Passport points will be awarded for attending!
Don't let Earth Day be a one-off celebration! It's time to get involved every day of the year. Here are USD and San Diego's leading climate orgs. Join clubs, sign up for newsletters, volunteer, and TAKE ACTION!
HAPPY EARTH DAY! From the tiniest microorganisms, to each leaf on every plant, to the grandest mountain views, every single component of our natural world should be celebrated. Enjoy these images of this breathtaking planet that we get to call home. We hope your day is full of gratitude for the Earth, beautiful nature views, and climate action.
The Climate Leaders Summit starts TOMORROW! This is a BIG DEAL! 40 world leaders will cover a wide range of extremely important topics tomorrow and Friday. The Leaders Summit will be a great opportunity to learn about what different countries around the world are doing to combat climate change, and how governments are working to come together in order to protect the Earth. You won't want to miss this! #leadersummit #climateaction #USclimateaction #climatechange #earthday #worldleaders #bidenclimateplan