Tuesday, April 16, 2002

4:00 to 5:00 p.m.

Frist Center, Class of 1952 Room

Attendees

Mary Banfield, Jenn Brudno, Ilya Fischhoff, Janet Gruschow, Mary Margaret Halsey, Robin Izzo, Kelsey Jack, Bill Jordan, Chad Klaus, Emmanuel Kreike,  Michael McKay, Tom Nyquist, Todd Parsons, Leila Shahbender

The first meeting of the Princeton University Environmental Oversight Committee was held on Tuesday, April 16^th.  The Committee, which includes administrators, departmental staff, faculty, and students, will consider new environmental issues, practices  and policies with respect to the University’s operations, prioritize them, and deliver recommendations to the Administration.  The creation of the Environmental Committee was a major recommendation of the 2000 Environmental Audit.  President Shirley Tilghman was approached by Brooke Kelsey Jack, ’03,  with respect to formation of such a committee and agreed to explore the idea.  A draft charter and membership list for the committee was created by Brooke, Janet Gruschow (PEI) and Michael McKay (Facilities) and approved by President Tilghman as a starting point.   

Charter Review

The Committee made some minor modifications to the original draft charter and approved the following: 

Purpose:  To monitor the University’s relationship with the environment and to encourage improvements in that relationship by:

• Providing a mechanism for cross-fertilization of ideas and coordination of efforts within the institution to improve and preserve the environment, and for identifying best practices at other institutions that may be applied at Princeton.
  

• Creating a forum for faculty, students, and administrators to bring their very different perspectives to bear on our relationship with the environment.
  

• Encouraging the implementation of these ideas when appropriate.
  

• Establishing economic and environmental goals for improving Princeton’s relationship with the environment.
  

• Recommending and justifying to the administration those policies and practices that can only be implemented by mandate. 

Membership

• Facilities Department General Manager

• Executive Director, Princeton Environmental Institute

• Two Faculty Members

• Department of Environmental Health and Safety

• Purchasing Department

• Students – One Graduate Student and Two Undergraduate Students appointed by PEI

• Two Members-at-Large representing the University Community

Committee Membership

Those present agreed that the following individuals would serve as Committee members:

Faculty
Andy Dobson, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Emmanuel Kreike, Assistant Professor of History

Princeton Environmental Institute
Janet Gruschow, Executive Director, Princeton Environmental Institute

Department of Environmental Health and Safety
Robin Izzo

Facilties
Michael McKay, General Manager of Plant & Services

Members-at-Large
Tom Nyquist, Director of Engineering
Leila Shahbender, Support Services, OIT 

Purchasing Department
Don Weston, Director of Purchasing

Undergraduate Students
Jenn Brudno ‘02
Kelsey Jack ‘03

Graduate Student
Bill Jordan

(It was agreed that Jenn and Kelsey would report their membership on the Committee to the USG and offer to serve as liaisons for the USG to the Committee. Bill Jordan agreed to approach the GSG for the same purpose.)

Selection of Chairperson

Michael E. McKay was nominated and unanimously selected to be the Chairperson for the Committee.

Committee Procedures

The Committee discussed possible format(s) to be used for reporting environmental recommendations to the Administration and the Campus Community, i.e., web site, letters.  The Committee agreed that the 2000 Environmental Audit should serve as a means to  identify environmental issues. It is anticipated that additional  issues should  also come from members of the community.  The Committee agreed that issues should be considered in terms of how they affect the larger ‘environment’, in addition to  considering local impacts.   Projects will be prioritized by the Committee, which will be reported to President Tilghman until a decision is reached regarding to whom the Committee should directly report.  Those present agreed that one of the Committee’s main functions would be to prioritize ideas and establish smaller groups which would then pursue them in greater detail.

Next Steps

• A web site, with a link to the 2000 Environmental Audit of Princeton University, will be developed and maintained in the Vice President for Facilities Office.  Leila Shahbender will make the arrangements for server space.  Bill Jordan and Robin Izzo will help with the design of the web site.  The Facilities Department will keep the web site updated.
  

• The 2000 Environmental Audit will be updated every two years under the sponsorship of PEI and will be posted on the Web site.
  

• Ilya Fischhoff, Graduate Student, will contact representatives from Rutgers University who are presently working on environmental issues and invite them to attend a future meeting.

Discussion of Specific Projects/Programs

Jenn Brudno ’02 and Kelsey Jack ’03 will identify issues and feasible projects in the 2000 Environmental Audit that the group can start to address at the next meeting.  This information is to be sent to the Chair for dissemination to the Committee prior to the next meeting. 

Next Meeting Time

The Committee agreed to meet again mid May, date to be determined. Notice will be provided to the community and all interested parties will be invited to attend.

Submitted By:  Michael E. McKay, General Manager of Plant and Services