Engaging in sustainability issues through co-curricular campus and community activities allows students to deepen and apply their understandings of sustainability principles. On campus, Furman has created a culture of sustainability. The Shi Institute supports engagement, training, and development programs in campus and community sustainability for faculty, staff, and students. Equipping employees and students with the tools, knowledge, and motivation to adopt behavior changes that promote sustainability is an essential activity of a sustainable campus.

Did You Know?

The Shi Institute for Sustainable Comunites employs student sustainability fellowships both during the summer and academic year to work on campus and in the community. Collaborative partner organizations are chosen to represent all aspects of sustainability (social, economic, and ecological), providing a variety of student experiences while also addressing sustainability in a holistic way. Over the course of the program, we have hosted >325 student fellowships with >30 distinct community partners.

The Affiliate Faculty Sustainability Program is a monthly faculty development program focused on curricular enhancement around sustainability. It currently has 60+ members representing 21 of 24 academic departments. 

The Greenbelt Engaged Living Community is an intentional student living learning community intended to foster sustainable living and lifestyle choices among sixteen student residents who live among two cabins by Furman Lake.

The Green Office program is part of an ongoing effort by the Shi Institute to work closely with university departments to help them model and adopt sustainable behaviors, save departments and the university money, support our ongoing campus wide sustainability efforts, and provide a chance for departments to showcase their green practices and garner recognition for their sustainability efforts. 

Furman’s self-guided walking tour map denotes all of Furman’s sustainability initiatives.

As part of the University’s Cultural Life Program, the Shi Institute hosts an annual student film series that features a different sustainability theme each year. Past series have focused on food systems, climate change, and the diversity of life.

Furman has partnered with UCapture, an online platform that allows users to offset their carbon footprint via a commission program with online merchants.  Student UCapture Ambassadors conduct peer-to-peer outreach to explain how an individual can contribute to carbon emissions and how they can reduce and mitigate their carbon footprint. Anyone can sign up using the link www.ucapture.com/furman to join in our effort!

Our EcoReps program seeks to promote sustainable lifestyle practices of students within our residence halls through fostering a culture of sustainability awareness, respect, accountability, and education.

What’s Next?

We aspire to increase campus engagement around sustainability through:

  • Expanding the scope and scale of our recently launched EcoReps program.
  • Adding tiers to our successful Green Office program.
  • Soliciting participation from faculty for all 24 academic departments in the Affiliate Faculty program.