Why not change the world? This weekend, the Sustainability Charrette gave students a way to embrace RPI’s motto. Students, faculty, staff, and alumni participated in the overnight event, designed to involve a broad cross-section of the RPI community in efforts to integrate sustainability into the culture of the Institute. Those present participated in diverse breakout groups that were tasked with generating creative ideas for a more sustainable campus that could be incorporated into the Institute, keeping in mind limitations such as cost and feasibility.
Ideas developed at the charrette ranged from building more awareness of sustainability through student orientation and the Office of the First-Year Experience to creating a sustainability center on the ’86 Field. Overall, the event showed that the RPI community is taking an active interest in creating a more sustainable world, starting with the campus. The editorial board of The Poly applauds the initiative shown by various groups on campus and feels that this charrette could be a gateway to many positive changes on campus. The degree of collaboration shown between the students, faculty, staff, and administration on this event was inspiring.
Coming out of the charrette, however, we have a challenge: We must ensure that these suggestions are not simply filed in the back of our minds and forgotten as the year winds down. Many of the ideas brought about as part of the charrette—such as green roofs and the use of biodiesel in shuttles—have been previously explored by groups and clubs on campus but were more formally introduced to the administration as possibilities during this event. We encourage everyone to work toward bringing some of these projects to fruition, rather than leaving them at the idea stage.
In order to truly change the world and make the most of the Sustainability Charrette, The Poly hopes that both the administration and the student body will go beyond just the brainstorming done in these two days in an effort to transform our campus for the better.
