Good news from the University of Colorado.

I would like to respond to the Note From a Worldwatcher, "Did You Hear the Big News?" [May/June], which rightfully laments the types of issues that get major media attention. As an example, you cite the University of Colorado football scandal, and question whether anyone knows what else is happening at the university.

Well, I'd like to answer that question. University of Colorado-Boulder students have a history of ground-breaking initiatives in campus sustainability, and they are continuing this proud tradition.

Most recently, the University of Colorado Student Union took final action on a new fee for capital construction for academic buildings. Because the state of Colorado is in a fiscal crisis and has cut off all capital funding for higher education, the university asked the students to consider raising their own fees to pay for new buildings. By a 15-2 margin, the student government voted to increase fees by $400 a year. In the next few years, these funds will be used to build four new academic buildings--one each for the law school, business school, engineering, and fine arts.

The students also took this opportunity to require a new level of environmental responsibility by including the following green building requirements in the legislation authorizing the fee: "The buildings will be designed and certified as meeting the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver standard of the U.S. Green Building Council. The buildings will be designed to meet the LEED Gold standard, up to an incremental cost of 1% of the total capital project cost. The buildings will use 100% renewable electricity, up to an incremental cost 10% above the total cost of electricity for the buildings. The electricity may come from a renewable oncampus source or a Green-E Certified off-campus source." I believe that this is the strongest higher education green building policy in the country.

This complements actions the student government took earlier this year:

* Allocating funds to purchase 8.8 million kilowatthours of wind energy annually, starting in fall of 2004, to meet 100% of the electricity demand for the three student buildings (the recreation center, the student health center, and the student union);

* Establishing a new fund for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects in those three buildings;

* Allocating funds for a solar photovoltaic system on the student union building.

We are also continuing to see a flood of strong applicants to the relatively new masters and doctoral programs in environmental studies, getting worldwide interest in the sustainable resources conference, and getting ready to field another entry in the solar decathlon (which CU won last time).

So, yes, there is more than football going on at the University of Colorado.

WILLIAM TOOR 

Director, University of Colorado

Environmental Center

Mayor, Boulder, Colorado