Secretary for Sustainability: Megan Smith (Photo: Wade Bruton)

That’s not something you hear often in daily conversation, right? But as out of place as it may seem, students and staff across this campus are engaging in a dialogue about sustainability that is growing even as you read this.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the concept, environmental sustainability is—in a nutshell—humanity’s ability to meet our current needs without compromising the needs of future generations. As UNCC rapidly develops, we are facing new challenges every day as we consider the most efficient use of our resources, our impact on the natural environment, and our duty to ensure eco-equity and environmental justice in our community.

As your Secretary for Sustainability, it’s my responsibility to help provide all students with the resources you need to practice sustainability on this campus, as well as to ensure that our institution makes sustainable decisions that benefit the student body. With that in mind, some of the projects that I am currently working on include:

Increasing campus resources for students who choose more environmentally friendly forms of transportation. I am currently working to make our campus more accessible to pedestrians, provide a map of bike lanes and accessible routes, increase the number and quality of bike racks, and expand resources for carpooling and ridesharing.

Extending and improving recycling in off-campus housing developments, many of which currently have no or insufficient resources for the thousands of students who live there.

Lobbying for energy policy reform and waste management in various academic and administrative departments on campus, which will save energy and money.

Working closely with the Charlotte Green Initiative Committee, which allocates funds from the student Green Fee toward facilities upgrades, including efficient, renewable energy projects.

Aside from these current initiatives, my plans for the future include pursuing several initiatives with Chartwells, which will be unveiling and piloting environmentally sustainable projects throughout the year. I will also be working toward establishing a free store for students, pushing for alternative energy on campus, expanding our current environmental programs, lobbying for more academic resources, and increasing communication between the administration and the student body.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any project ideas, issues, questions, or comments! I would love to help out in any way that I can.

Stay green, Niner Nation!

Megan Smith

msmit389@uncc.edu