As consumption increases and life-sustaining resources decline, we are faced with a growing crisis for the earth to sustain the demand for its resources.
Business and Administrative Services represents a wide variety of functions on campus which positions us to effectively impact sustainability on the UC Berkeley campus.
The policy statement below was taken from the UC Office of the President's Policy on Sustainable Practices:
Resource sustainability is critically important to the University of California, the State of California, and the nation. Efficient energy use is central to this objective, and renewable energy and energy-conservation efforts provide a means to save money, foster environmental awareness, reduce the environmental consequences of University activities, and provide educational leadership for the 21st century.
The University is committed to stewardship of the environment and to reducing the University’s dependence on non-renewable energy sources. With this commitment in mind, we will regularly review initiatives and best practices and share successes by augmenting the existing University guidelines. These guidelines currently recommend that University operations:
- Incorporate the principles of energy efficiency and sustainability in all capital projects, renovation projects, operations and maintenance within budgetary constraints and programmatic requirements.
- Minimize the use of non-renewable energy sources on behalf of the University’s built environment by creating a portfolio approach to energy use, including the use of local renewable energy and purchase of green power from the grid as well as conservation measures that reduce energy consumption.
- Incorporate alternative means of transportation to/from and within the campus to improve the quality of life on campus and in the surrounding community. The campuses will continue their strong commitment to provide affordable on-campus housing, in order to reduce the volume of commutes to and from campus. These housing goals are detailed in the campuses’ Long Range Development Plans.
- Track, report and minimize greenhouse gas emissions on behalf of University operations
- Minimize the amount of University generated waste sent to landfill.
- Utilize the University’s purchasing power to meet its sustainability objectives.
Parking & Transportation’s customer contact is different than most departments. We sometimes deal with unhappy customers – those who have recently received parking tickets, for example. Even customers who are in our office to purchase parking permits often resent that they have to pay for them. Many customers take out their resentment on our customer service staff which makes it hard to maintain a positive attitude day after day.