Portland State University, OR Declaration of Support for Sustainability
Portland State University,
OR,
US
Type: Policy
Status: Adopted
Source File: https://stage.www.pdx.edu/media/s/u/sus_declaration_of_support.pdf
Description:
We, the students, faculty, staff, and administration of Portland State University hereby commit to helping create a more sustainable world. We believe we must act now to address interconnected environmental, social and economic problems in this region, the nation, and abroad. Through collaboration with partners in business, government, and other organizations, we aim to discover innovative solutions that improve the quality of life for all today and for future generations. Portland State University recognizes its public responsibility to lead by mobilizing university and external resources to create educational, research, and operations programs that are demonstration models. As such, we pledge to undertake the following actions:
ACTION #1 Infuse sustainability into all colleges, schools and programs. We will be an internationally recognized university known for excellence in student learning, innovative research and community engagement that helps simultaneously achieve economic vitality, environmental health, strong families and communities, and stakeholder involvement in open processes.
ACTION #2 Develop a sustainable physical campus that is an example to other institutions. PSU will ‘walk its talk’ by developing and implementing leading-edge sustainable practices in its operations, on campus, and in its purchasing. Initiatives in energy conservation, transportation, green building, native landscaping, recycling and waste reduction, and storm water management are underway. We intend to build significantly upon these efforts to develop innovative approaches for all areas of operations.
ACTION #3 Make Portland State University a demonstration model of sustainable processes and practices. Working closely with the university’s many collaborators, we will devote our energies to multidisciplinary research, instruction, inclusive discussion, and operational practices to create a more sustainable way of life. PSU will become a leading academic laboratory for the testing and evaluation of sustainable process and practices that apply to both the public and the private sectors.
ACTION #4 Develop core multidisciplinary research competencies in key sustainability areas related to pressing real world problems. Initial priorities include:
- Intelligent Transportation Systems
- Integrated Water Resource Management
- Sustainable Urban Design
- Sustainable Business Processes and Practices
- Green Science and Technology Development
We plan to build upon our emergent capacity in other areas of high importance, such as community food systems. Each area of developed research competency will contain integrated environmental, social and economic components to promote a full understanding of sustainable development challenges and opportunities.
In all actions, PSU will expand its community partnerships with business, government, and non-profi t organizations that share our passion for furthering sustainable development. We also will partner with leading research institutions in the U.S. and abroad. The collaborations will bring our partners’ expertise together with PSU’s intellectual resources to develop and implement sustainable processes and practices that foster real world problem-solving.
We believe that these actions are a natural extension of PSU’s core mission and values, and hereby declare our commitment to the challenge of creating a more sustainable world.