Commitment Implementation

On April 22, 2009 President William W. Destler signed the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). The commitment is a pledge by academic leaders to move their campuses toward more sustainable programs and practices. Accordingly, RIT has volunteered to take the following steps in pursuit of climate neutrality.

1. Initiate the development of a comprehensive plan to achieve climate neutrality as soon as possible.

1. Within two months of signing this document, create institutional structures to guide the development and implementation of the plan.
2. Within one year of signing this document, complete a comprehensive inventory of all greenhouse gas emissions (including emissions from electricity, heating, commuting, and air travel) and update the inventory every other year thereafter.
3. Within two years of signing this document, develop an institutional action plan for becoming climate neutral, which will include:
   1. A target date for achieving climate neutrality as soon as possible.
   2. Interim targets for goals and actions that will lead to climate neutrality.
   3. Actions to make climate neutrality and sustainability a part of the curriculum and other educational experience for all students.
   4. Actions to expand research or other efforts necessary to achieve climate neutrality.
   5. Mechanisms for tracking progress on goals and actions.

2. Initiate two or more tangible actions (see sidebar) to reduce greenhouse gases while the more comprehensive plan is being developed.
3. Make the action plan, inventory, and periodic progress reports publicly available by providing them to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) for posting and dissemination.

As part of this commitment, RIT has agreed to develop an institutional strategic Climate Action Plan (CAP) plan that addresses:

• reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas production
• developing a green building policy
• developing an energy-star procurement policy
• encouraging use of public transportation
• evaluating green power production and purchasing
• minimization of waste

The first step in pursuing carbon neutrality is conducting a greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory to quantify the emissions that are generated each year by the University’s facilities. This task will also identify the sources and volumes of green house gases emitted by University processes or generated by power producers to satisfy electrical needs of the campus. Once this information is known, decisions can be made to reduce the carbon footprint with modification of processes or introduction of projects and upgrades that have predictable outcomes improving sustainable use of University resources. When consolidated in a Climate Action Plan (CAP) , those actions will be methodically implemented to impact the University's trajectory of emissions from its current state to a defined by target year 'zero emission' state.

GHG Inventory Process

The inventory process begins with the collection of historical utility, operational, commuter, normalization and contextual data, for the facilities that will ultimately define the University’s carbon footprint.

The utility and operational data being collected include:

• fossil fuel used to heat the facilities
• electrical energy used for lighting, cooling, and plug loads
• fuels used in RIT-owned vehicles
• fuels used for business and commuter travel
• HFC, PFC and other sources of greenhouse gas emissions

These sources are assigned to three categories called Scopes — based on the ownership and control over the source of the emissions.

• Scope 1 source is owned and / or its operation is controlled by RIT. The natural gas boilers that heat the campus are Scope 1 emitters because the University controls their operation and used 100% of their output—heat.
• Scope 2 sources are neither owned nor operated by RIT, but their products are used in the operation of the University. Electrical generation plants are owned and operated by others but RIT purchases some of the electrical energy they produce so RIT assumes a portion of their carbon footprint.
• Scope 3 sources are neither owned nor operated by RIT but may be directly financed by the University as with Institute travel or otherwise linked to the University as with commuter travel emissions, waste hauling, outsourced transportation or similar functions.

Commitment Processing Status