Gutmann signs green pledge in Switzerland

Although one’s automatic mental image of Penn President Amy Gutmann in Switzerland might include a snowsuit and a backdrop of powder-covered ski slopes, Gutmann visited the city of Davos last week for a completely different purpose.

Gutmann joined 24 university presidents to sign the Sustainable Campus Charter at the World Economic Forum, an annual conference seeking to improve the global economy.

The sustainability agreement includes members of the Global University Leaders Forum — a coalition of leading university presidents — and aims to promote policies that are very similar to those launched by Penn’s Climate Action Plan.

Recommending that Gutmann sign the Charter was therefore an easy decision, Facilities and Real Estate Services Vice President Anne Papageorge said, because it is “consistent with what Penn is already doing. It seemed like nothing we haven’t already committed to.”

Among the principles outlined by the Charter is a commitment to sustainability — a concept which the University has already embraced, Papageorge explained.

As part of both the Charter and the Climate Action Plan, sustainability holds a central role in all planning and construction processes, according to FRES spokeswoman Jennifer Rizzi.

A second aspect of the Charter is campus-wide master planning, which is epitomized by several current Penn projects.

Penn’s enhanced pedestrian and bicycle pathways — as well as the Climate Action Plan’s focus on waste minimization and RecycleMania initiatives — also promote a campus-wide reduced-energy lifestyle, Papageorge stressed.

Finally, the Charter includes provisions to advance research and education on sustainability.

It emphasizes “being a living laboratory,” Papageorge said.

Similarly, the Climate Action Plan includes an academic goal that has given rise to a new undergraduate Sustainability and Environmental Management minor, as well as other programs in the Wharton School, the School of Design and even the Law School.

With many similarities between the newly-enacted Charter and Penn’s existing Climate Action Plan, Papageorge said, there are not likely to be any radical changes in Penn’s existing sustainability formula.

“They are organized a little differently, but the essence of each is the same,” she said, though, she added, “plans can be updated.”

At the same time, the Leaders Forum members have also committed to efficiently sharing digital resources with one another and less fortunate communities.

It is precisely this global component, Papageorge said, that makes Penn’s involvement in the agreement so meaningful.

Gutmann’s engagement in the agreement shows Penn’s commitment to leading the sustainability efforts, Papageorge said.

Yet just as importantly, she added, “these [global] exchanges allow us to benefit from some of the attempts and lessons that our peers have learned.”

Penn Environmental Group Co-Director Zachary Bell, a College sophomore, agreed that Gutmann’s participation in the conference is impressive in a global context.

“We all like to see our President promote sustainability as much as possible, especially in a global way,” he said. “Penn is increasingly being recognized as a top institution for sustainability and environmental awareness.”

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