6 Terps Who Changed Sustainability at UMD

From the lush plant wall in McKeldin Library to the teal and black VEO scooters tooling across campus, expressions of our shared sustainability culture are all around the University of Maryland.

Over the last century, Terp students, staff and faculty have woven sustainability into the campus fabric through advocacy, collaboration and action. For example, in 1972, the Black Student Union launched the services that would become the Shuttle-UM program, provided over 1.1 million rides in 2023, preventing greenhouse gas emissions from individual vehicles.

In 2007, the Student Government Association advocated for a mandatory student sustainability fee, which has since supported over $4.2 million awarded for sustainable projects. Many units, departments, offices and student groups continue to create initiatives and maintain programming that drive innovation and meet the evolving needs and interests of the campus community.

This Earth Day, the Office of Sustainability celebrates six inspiring Terps who have had a hand in many of these projects, and made a lasting impact on our campus.

Lisa Alexander, the Department of Resident Life’s program manager for sustainability programs and initiatives, established both the Green Terp program and the Terp to Terp Campus ReUse Store—influential programs for engaging students with sustainability.

Green Terp, launched in collaboration with the Office of Sustainability in 2016, evolved from a checklist of sustainable actions, such as turning off the lights and taking short showers into a program to encourage them to connect green behaviors throughout their college careers. She modeled the Terp to Terp Campus ReUse Store after a program at Penn State, her alma mater.

Established in 2021, it collects donations of gently used clothing, dorm essentials and small appliances, allowing students to schedule appointments to take what they need. The program also uses its social media presence to promote waste prevention.

“I’m hoping it’s creating a culture of social responsibility, where people can think about how their involvement with the world works, what they purchase and buy, and what that then looks like in the process of waste,” she said.

Joanna Goger, principal lecturer in the environmental science and policy program and the co-director of the sustainability studies minor, has helped evolve the minor has helped evolve the minor in alignment with global changes. “We continue to have new areas of challenge in sustainability,” she said, alluding to energy transitions, water scarcity and food security as examples. “I think the goal of the minor is to be able to keep up with that.” Goger and Thomas Hilde, co-director of the minor, seek out and approve new academic opportunities, ranging from study abroad programs to traditional classes relevant to sustainability.

The minor currently has students from 80 majors, who Groger are provided with a sustainability lens and knowledge of principles that they can apply to their future career.

“Almost every course on campus has some aspects of sustainability, so we really want to make sure that our minor is up to date and addressing the needs of students,” Goger said.

Bruce James launched the sustainability studies minor in 2012 as a way for students of any major to integrate sustainability into their curriculum. “We really mean any major, not just a STEM program like engineering or some science major, but someone in English, somebody in art, psychology—you could do it,” said the environmental science and technology professor emeritus.

James was director of the environmental science and policy program when two students in the department approached him with the idea, saying, “We want this minor, and you can’t give us no for an answer.” After the students pitched the idea to university leadership, James began working on developing the minor, and put together the required introductory sustainability course in about a month. The program gained traction fast, with about 150 students signing up in a week; collaboration with other departments and positive student reviews followed.

James said his intention with the course was to marshal environmental science, economics, cultural and social issues to show students that sustainability was “not just recycling,” while providing an academic credential students could carry forward into their job searches.

Scott Lupin established the Office of Sustainability in 2007, kickstarting UMD students’ connection to the sustainability of the campus and furthering environmental initiatives. A year earlier, the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education had challenged universities to commit to carbon neutrality and develop a Climate Action Plan. UMD was among the first 100 signatories, Lupin soon opened the office that he has directed since.

Lupin and his work group developed methods for measuring the university’s greenhouse gas footprint and created a Climate Action Plan, both of which were firsts for UMD. Not only does the office support achieving the university’s goal of carbon neutrality, but it also provides students with educational experience in the field of sustainability, said Lupin, who also serves as associate director of the Department of Environmental Safety, Sustainability, and Risk.

Sustainability has expanded at the university over the years, ranging from expanded learning opportunities for students to dedicated positions within departments, Lupin said. “I think we’ve had a much broader, deeper impact than anyone ever anticipated when the office was established,” he said.

Karen Petroff, director of landscape and special services, worked to found and accredit the UMD Arboretum and Botanical Garden, which covers the 1,347 acres of UMD’s campus and cares for the approximately 17,000 trees on campus.

Petroff and administrators had already changed the management structure and goals of the university landscape before the Arboretum was founded in 2008 by focusing on education and using the plants as teaching tools; the Arboretum became nationally accredited in 2019. Petroff and her team also obtained accreditation from Tree Campus Higher Education, which awards universities who engage the campus community in arbor-related activities. UMD was one of 25 founding members of the program.

Students, including many Fraternity and Sorority Life and professional organizations, actively engage with the arboretum, Petroff said. Accreditation provides the arboretum and the campus with both a sustainability benchmark and a third-party endorsement, which helps when applying to grants, she said.

Colleen Wright-Riva arrived at UMD in 2007 as director of Dining Services and was surprised to find virtually no composting taking place, unlike the campus-wide composting at Cornell University, where she’d previously been a dining services director.

“If we could do it at Cornell, why couldn’t we do it here?” she wondered. First, Wright-Riva trained the dish room and kitchen staff, and then the program was strengthened with the help of a graduate assistant and Dining Services. Education about composting directed toward students, faculty and staff streamlined the process, as well as connections she nurtured with the Residence Hall Association and the Student Government Association.

Now assistant vice president for the Division of Student Affairs, Wright-Riva credits the “symbiotic” collaboration of the Office of Sustainability, Facilities Management and Dining Services for the success of the composting program, which has resulted in more than 8,000 tons of waste being used, mostly at Terp Farm, since 2009.

Aside from her composting program, Wright-Riva has advanced sustainability on campus through the creation of the Farmers Market, the opening of the Campus Pantry and the establishment of the first sustainability position in Dining Services.