Overview

The David E. Shi Center for Sustainability (CFS), created in 2008, coordinates the university’s academic activities related to sustainability: energy conservation, environmental stewardship, resource management, campus-community research projects, public policy, and fund raising. The Center especially promotes a culture of conservation, on and off campus. Such a conservation culture depends on widespread student engagement and benefits from innovative curricular and co-curricular experiences in the liberal arts tradition. The CFS also serves as a bridge connecting the university with the greater Greenville community through collaborative research projects and a variety of creative partnerships and joint activities designed to conserve energy; enhance and preserve the environment; promote high-performance building design, systems, and organizations; and foster community well-being. In sum, the Center for Sustainability is a holistic and farsighted effort to help people—and organizations—enrich the present and protect the future. A sustainable society is one that ensures that resources—and opportunities—will be available for future generations to meet their personal, social, and economic needs.

In simple terms, sustainability is a conscious effort to consider the resource needs of future generations while meeting the needs of the present generation. Over ten years ago Furman formally adopted sustainability as one of its primary strategic goals. Sustainability was a major emphasis of the university's strategic plan adopted in 1997, and in 2001 the Board of Trustees unanimously agreed that the university should promote "sustainability through educational programs, campus operations/construction practices and public awareness initiatives."

The university's commitments to sustainability and environmental stewardship have encompassed campus operations, purchasing, the academic program, and community-based research and service learning. Since 2001 Furman has assumed a leadership position in the national effort to promote sustainability. But there is much more to be done. We want to weave the principles and premises of sustainability throughout the fabric of university life. We also want our graduates to practice environmental stewardship and lead sustainable lives.

One of the most significant of those activities is Furman’s involvement in the American College and University President's Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) Leadership Circle. In the spring of 2007 President Shi was one of the first college presidents to sign the climate commitment. Since then over 600 presidents have signed. The university has launched numerous climate-change initiatives in the past two years, including the construction of the $63 million Charles Townes Center for Science as a living laboratory for energy conservation and sustainability. Other initiatives include the Cliffs Cottage/Center for Sustainability; changes in the curriculum to include courses dealing with sustainability issues; the retro-fitting of the lakeside cabins into eco-cottages for student housing; and various operational efforts to reduce energy use. More recently, we have expanded and reorganized our Sustainability Planning Group into the Sustainability Planning Council which will spearhead the next stage of Furman's Climate Commitment, the development of a Climate Action Plan by September 15, 2009. Even as we celebrate our progress toward greater sustainability, we continue to explore new initiatives.