The United Nations recognizes the definition of sustainable development as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
To practice sustainability, we must explore and support a balance between economic and environmental needs and social fairness, in a dynamically changing world.
Roosevelt University’s existing and new buildings are held to internationally-recognized LEED™ standards, which are superior to those established by local Chicago and suburban building codes.
Two campus buildings are LEED-certified in downtown Chicago near Michigan Avenue and Millennium Park: the new Wabash “vertical campus” (2012) earned LEED Gold and the new Goodman Center Fieldhouse (2013) earned LEED Silver.
A 32-story state-of-the-art skyscraper, the ninth tallest University building in the world, earned LEED Gold certification (2012) and SERF Certification (2013). The building is 414,585 square feet. Sustainability features include, but are not limited to:
The Goodman Center seats spectator in its sports facility and is 27,834 square feet. Sustainability features include, but are not limited to:
Surprisingly, commercial food preparation generates a substantial carbon and water footprint by consuming large amounts of energy, generating tons of waste, and using a substantial amount of water. Roosevelt University’s Dining Service addresses all of these issues and aspires to be a socially- and environmentally-responsible food service operation.
In 2013, the University began conducting tests on its Wabash Building 5th floor rooftop to determine the types of herbs, vegetables and fruits best suited to grow there. Modular containers were outfitted with lightweight soil and fertilizer, and planted with seed. Within that first year, 22 pounds of vegetables and herbs were harvested from the rooftop and shared with the Dining Center. In 2014, that number increased to 33 pounds, and then to 37.5 pounds in 2015. In 2016, production became more focused on herbs and kale, along with some arugula, collard greens, and Swiss chard. Recent growing seasons have focused on experimenting with different crops and garden plans.
Roosevelt's Food Service partners with suppliers which follow environmentally sound and socially-just practices, such as:
Provides waste-free oil disposal by regenerating oil into other products, including biodiesel.
With goals to reduce disposable laboratory waste, generate less chemical waste, use fewer harmful reagents, save money on chemicals, and upgrade equipment to more energy efficient models where possible, Roosevelt University’s Green Laboratory Initiative demonstrates how a laboratory renovation can make a difference in just a few years.
In incorporating environmentally sustainable products for use in the lab, Roosevelt accomplished the following:
Retrofit Chicago is a citywide effort spearheaded by former Mayor Rahm Emanuel to promote energy efficiency in the City of Chicago. Roosevelt University is a participant in the Commercial Buildings Initiative component of the program. This means Roosevelt University has committed to:
Roosevelt joined the program in 2014, with our goal of reaching a 20% reduction for the Auditorium Building by the year 2019.
Roosevelt University participates in voluntary energy curtailments with PJM (grid supplier) and EnerNOC (energy software). This readies RU to help reduce brown-outs in Chicago. By only using the energy needed and reducing use at peak times, building automation systems at Roosevelt’s Chicago and Schaumburg Campuses are key to continually reducing energy and greenhouse gas emissions.
In participating in this program, during peak energy use times, RU may be called by our utility providers to be asked reduce our energy demands. We accomplish this through an array of methods, including first “pre-cooling” our buildings so they will remain comfortable during the energy reduction. Then, non-essential systems are shut down for a short timeframe. From a cost savings perspective, we receive rebate checks based on our test results, and this money gets put into our University “Green Revolving Fund.” From a sustainability perspective, we are able to lower our carbon footprint and induce behavioral modification through education.
Since 2013, the City of Chicago has required all commercial buildings larger than 50,000 square feet of floor space to annually benchmark and report energy use. For Roosevelt University, both the Wabash Building and the Auditorium Building are required to benchmark. We utilize the EPA’s ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager to track energy use, and a report is submitted to the City of Chicago annually.
Purchasing across Roosevelt University incorporates responsible practices such as:
Roosevelt also purchases green office supplies whenever possible, reuses boxes and equipment, and purchases refurbished furniture.
Communities within the Chicago region rapidly urbanized in the last half of the 20th century by paving over farmlands, much of which had once been prairies, and draining wetlands, which function as nature’s water treatment systems. Much of the land's surface is now impervious, and water is now intensively managed at great cost by canals, retention ponds, sewers, and a huge network of wastewater treatment facilities. RU is working to put less stress on water resources through an evolving ethic of water conservation.
By 2012, Roosevelt replaced nearly nine of its 17 acres of impermeable, water-consumptive lawn with native prairie grasses, rain gardens, and a detention basin. As a result, native prairie has taken hold and is a living reminder of how our state was: 60% prairie at one time. (Today less than 1/100th of 1% of Illinois' original praire remains.) As part of its restoration work, Roosevelt created a prairie walk measuring just over ½ mile. The prairie is a haven for wildlife of all shapes and sizes. So come visit, bring a lunch, and immerse yourself in a bygone Illinois. Who knows, if you keep your eyes peeled you might be visited by some of the prairie's animal inhabitants such as the endangered Hines Dragonfly or a family of Goldfinches.
Roosevelt’s Schaumburg Campus has a lot to offer in supporting biodiversity. The campus has received Arboretum Accreditation 1, is a Certified Wildlife Habitat, is recognized as a Tree Campus USA, and is a certified Monarch Waystation. Beginning in 2011, the RUrbanPioneers Community Garden has provided growing space for food and has tripled in size and output since its founding. This ongoing local food effort advances sustainability by including drip irrigation, as well as soil improvements through the addition of compost. More recently, RU has undergone an arboretum improvement and installed two bee hives.
In the spring of 2016, RU’s Schaumburg Campus had over 60 dead trees removed, with many having suffered from the invasive Emerald Ash Borer (EAB). Instead of planting 60 of the same trees, we took a different approach by planting trees that are native to this area, which will add biodiversity to the campus and encourage pollinators as well. To date, the total number of new species that we have added is about 15. During our 2016 Arbor Day Observance (which we held on Earth Day), we had children from the Bright Horizons Daycare (located on campus) help plant an Ohio Buckeye tree.
In the summer of 2016, two bee hives were installed on the Schaumburg Campus in order to add to campus biodiversity. The company Sweet Beginnings LLC., a subsidiary of the North Lawndale Employment Network, did the installation, maintains the hives, and harvests the honey to turn it into sellable products. Sweet Beginnings, LLC “offers full-time transitional jobs to citizens returning from incarceration in a green industry—the production and sales of all-natural skin care products featuring its own urban honey under the beeloveTM brand. The company manages apiaries (bee farms) throughout Chicagoland including in North Lawndale, at O’Hare International Airport, and the Forest Preserve District of Cook County Trailside Museum.”
The design of our Wabash Campus and Goodman Center buildings support local biodiversity in a two-fold manner: as part of the built urban environment and as a way station in the Great Lakes Region's bird and insect migration corridor. Their green roofs provide habitat for native vegetation, insects, and related microbes, as well as birds who find unexpected resting places, nesting support, and food sources there. Additionally, the mostly glass exterior of the Wabash building is designed with angles and patterns which help to reduce bird collisions in a lakeshore flyway.
Trash is a social and environmental justice issue. Landfills emit methane and contribute to global warming, and are often sited near vulnerable human communities. By being responsible with our waste, we stand by our mission and help create a more sustainable campus and community.
Pre- and post-consumer food and packaging waste from Roosevelt’s Chicago Campus McCormick Dining Center is sorted and put through a Somat Pulper Machine, which grinds the compostable material into a “slurry” which is piped to a waste area. Water is then removed, and the slurry is picked up by the Chicago Resource Center, where it is then composted. Some of this compost product has been obtained for the Schaumburg Campus community garden.
In the spring of 2017, student volunteers in the SUST program launched a pilot project to provide compost collection bins at strategic points throughout the Auditorium Building at the Chicago Campus. Continued through the fall 2018 semester, that student-led all-volunteer effort resulted in over 300 pounds of food waste being diverted from RU's waste stream. In the spring of 2019, the university made a historic leap forward by instituting a comprehensive compost collection system in all of its buildings at both campuses.
Roosevelt received an Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) grant for recycling receptacles for each space in the Wabash Buildings. On average, the residents and visitors of the building have achieved a 40% waste diversion rate.
The University is always looking for new and creative ways to reuse and recycle:
A Bike Room—which provides indoor bicycle parking and storage—was included in the design and construction of the Wabash Building. In the past, this secure storage facility has allowed for 67 users, using a system of assigned spots. In an effort to increase use, assigned spots were eliminated and room capacity was increased to 75 users in the spring of 2016. Additionally, a stronger Bike Room Usage Policy was created, a tire pump was installed, and RU bike stickers are now given to users to place on their bikes. Shower facilities are also available at the Fitness Center on the Fifth floor of the Wabash Building.
This amenity is free to all RU students, faculty, and staff. However, space is limited. To register for the room, please review the Bike Room Usage Policy before visiting the Wabash campus security desk to check for availability.
In spring of 2014, Roosevelt University started offering discounted DIVVY memberships to the RU Community. DIVVY is a bike share program that began in Chicago through the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT). It makes bike riding in Chicago easy, fun, and affordable. For details on how students, faculty, and staff may utilize their different discount rates, please read through our guide and check the Divvy website.
Since of spring 2014, Roosevelt has participated in several Bike2Campus Week competitions. This effort is led by the Chicagoland Network for Sustainability in Higher Education (CNSHE) “Bike Group,” which includes Roosevelt University staff and students, who also help to organize the event. Participants bike to campus and earn perks by recording their efforts online and posting biking photos via social media outlets such as Facebook and Instagram.
Each year, one University wins an ultimate trophy through participation. Several students, faculty, and staff at Roosevelt have also won individual prizes for their efforts.