What is the Climate Justice Council?

As a way to follow through with this initiative, the Coalition of Climate Justice is requesting the administration to establish a “Climate Justice Council.” This council would help advise in the creation and implementation of a Sustainability Energy Plan for the university. This would coincide with the already existing energy plan, but add a clear sustainability component—the Climate Justice Petition. This would include an annual report that highlights existing university initiatives to reduce energy usage and sustainability efforts across campus, as well as year-to-year improvements and setbacks.

The Council would ensure an institutional mechanism by which student leader representatives and the administration can communicate specifically and solely about the urgency and feasibility of the Climate Justice Petition. Members of this committee could include stakeholder senior administrators: VP of Student Affairs, Lisa Kirkpatrick; VP of Finance and Administration, Kimberly Kvaal; Director of Facilities, Jim Morris; and AVP of Operations, Scott Burnotes. Student members of this committee will include the President and Vice President of Students for Sustainability (SFS) and the President and Vice President of SGA. This annual commitment from four student organization leaders ensures accountability to the organizations who started this coalition and regular attendance. Ideally, this council would meet two times every semester, once in the beginning and once at the end, according to the availability of participating members