University adding more green to the orange and black

Environmentally sustainable initiatives are under way

By: Hilary Parker
   Princeton University’s official colors may be orange and black, but more and more they’re tinged with green by the environmentally sustainable initiatives under way at the Ivy League school.
   Some of the efforts — such as the creation of a sustainability manager position in the Facilities Department and a student-initiated seminar "Towards an Ethical CO2 Emissions Trajectory for Princeton" — are brand new. Others, like the university’s cogeneration plant, have been in place for years. Completed in 1996, the plant allows Princeton to generate steam, cold water for air-conditioning and cooling, and electricity — thereby lowering both its energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions.
   Whatever their age, sustainable principles and practices are increasingly taking root throughout the campus community.
   Shana Weber, the university’s newly appointed sustainability manager, will be a key player in the continued growth of sustainable initiatives that link the different departments and populations at Princeton. With a bachelor’s degree in zoology, a master’s degree in cultural studies and a doctorate in environmental science, Ms. Weber comes to the university with recent experience at Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, Calif., as the Environmental Studies Institute director for campus and community programs.
   Though her position is in facilities, the ecologist in Ms. Weber is apparent as she discusses how her job will address sustainability throughout the university.
   "I’m able to bring a perspective to how the facilities department looks at sustainability that’s a little different," she said.
   Her work will complement what the department is already doing to improve energy efficiency and reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, she said, as it simultaneously supports Princeton’s infrastructure.
   "My job is to help the university as a whole be environmentally sustainable," she explained. "Working with facilities is a perfect partnership; they allow me to get into the nitty-gritty of the university infrastructure. I’m not an engineer or an architect, but I’m able to bring to the table an awareness of the broader issues."
   Then, through work with students, faculty and employees in departments throughout the university, she said she will address other pieces of the puzzle. These collaborations will include everything from work with Dining Services to enhance its existing practices — which include a longstanding relationship with a pig farmer to recycle food scraps — to an ongoing relationship with the Office of Purchasing in efforts to encourage the purchase of "green" products and services.
   Having experience at other universities on the West Coast, Ms. Weber said she hopes to bring some of the practices she put in place out west to Princeton. If successful, they will join the chickens and rabbits that also accompanied her across the country with her husband, Kevin Scully, a biology teacher at The Hun School of Princeton.
   "One of the things that I would like to see is a comprehensive plan for university sustainability applied here at Princeton, some sort of institutional statement made that empowers every aspect of university operations to search out sustainable ways of doing things," she said. "The process is really fun. When you start thinking about creative solutions to reduce paper waste or reduce carbon emissions, or figure out how to switch from gas- to electric-powered university vehicles, there’s so much available in the market now that it becomes a really fun process. Having a policy like that gives everyone permission to explore those creative possibilities."
   Though unrelated to Ms. Weber’s appointment, students, faculty and alumni of the university’s School of Engineering and Applied Science will soon tap into their own creativity in an attempt to improve solar panel technology. Pending approval from Princeton Borough, solar panels will be placed on top of the Engineering Quadrangle in a collaboration between the engineering school and Princeton Power Systems, a company founded by members of the Princeton Class of 2001. The project will be funded by a $529,626 grant from the New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology.
   "This is more of a forward-looking project," said Professor of Electrical Engineering Sanjeev Kulkarni. "It has real potential to make solar panels more efficient and thereby have savings once solar energy becomes more widespread in terms of usage."
   With an eye toward investigating how to improve panel efficiency under different conditions, such as when shaded by trees or clouds, Professor Kulkarni said those involved in the project will work to optimize the energy gained from the solar panels.
   "The project arose because of a need and an interest," he said, rather than as a byproduct of any university-wide efforts. Regardless, he said it fits in with Princeton’s focus on sustainability. "It’s great that it does contribute," he said.