The petition
The Stanford Climate Change Campaign asks the University to commit itself to the fight against global warming with the following steps:
1) Adopt an official stance on climate change by creating a unified policy and emissions reduction plan for the university
2) Reduce total greenhouse gas emissions by 10% from 1990 levels by 2020
3) Complete the formal climate inventory, currently underway, no later than the end of academic year 2006-2007
4) Maintain active student, faculty, and staff involvement throughout the process
5) Take measurable strides in implementing on-campus renewable energy generation by the beginning of academic year 2007-2008 (solar hot water systems installed, photovoltaic systems installed, wind turbines constructed)
6) Develop a long-term plan for climate neutrality
As an institution of higher learning and a global citizen, Stanford University has the responsibility to demonstrate leadership by cutting its own greenhouse gas emissions. This would signal that institutions of higher learning care about this issue and are willing to take concrete steps to deal with it.
Indeed, other leading universities have already adopted progressive policies to cut their emissions and “green” their campuses: Yale University has set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 10% below 1990 levels by 2020 and established an Office of Sustainability to oversee the effort. The Harvard Green Campus Initiative improves campus sustainability by looking at building design, waste, emissions, and transportation.
The University of California Board of Regents unanimously approved the policy on reducing emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and to 80% below 1990 levels by 2050.
A progressive climate policy would benefit Stanford’s world-class research programs and enhance the quality of our education. An initiative to pursue GHG emission cuts could provide valuable opportunities for researchers to apply their findings firsthand and gain new results or test experimental prototypes and new building systems. The ongoing Green Dorm/Lotus Living Laboratory provides one model for how such projects present opportunities for student participation. Furthermore, the results have the potential to be widely exported and applied elsewhere.
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