University of Southern California

College Sustainability Report Card 2007

The faculty-, staff-, and student-led USC Green Campus Initiative has taken preliminary steps by initiating various educational campaigns. However, the strongest institutional commitment to sustainability exists in academic and research programs. USC has not yet established a sustainability coordinator position or a sustainability committee.

USC employs a full time Director of Energy Services to manage energy programs which include lighting retrofits, equipment upgrades, and a recent retrofit of chillers, cooling towers, and pumps throughout the University, including a three-million-gallon centralized thermal energy storage tank installed below ground. A long-term energy contract with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power provides renewable energy currently accounting for about 6 percent of the University's total power. The Future Fuels and Energy Initiative also fosters collaborative research to reduce global reliance on fossil fuels.

Among the monthly averages of waste recycled primarily from food service operations are 1.04 tons of aluminum cans, 16.81 tons of cardboard, and 1.68 tons of glass and plastic. However, it appears that the University does not address sustainable food issues beyond a recycling program.

Although USC has not sought external certification, the University actively incorporates energy saving and water conservation methods in new construction projects and buildling retrofits. Features such as energy saving appliances, water saving fixtures, occupancy sensors and updated HVAC systems are commonplace in new projects on campus.

The University has made no public statements about making endowment holdings or shareholder voting records available. Therefore, there is no known ability to access this information.

The University prioritizes investing to maximize profit and has not made any public statements about investigating or investing in renewable energy funds or community development loan funds.

The University has not made any public statements about active ownership or a proxy voting policy.