University of CaliforniaDavis

Continuing to answer the call to bend the curve on climate change, UC Davis launched a large-scale construction project — the Big Shift — in spring 2020 that lays the groundwork for ultimately reducing the campus’s reliance on fossil fuels while immediately decreasing energy and water use.

In honor of the 50^th Earth Day, the Office of Sustainability at UC Davis led campus partners in planning a month-long celebration that transitioned into a virtual festival featuring events such as the World Climate Simulation and the Tempestry Project. The UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden’s Learning by Leading program went online to keep students involved in learning virtually and by creating content during the pandemic. 

The annual Sustainability Summit also went virtual to ensure that student, staff and faculty champions of sustainability were honored, including the first Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Champion. In July 2019, UC Davis welcomed its first vice chancellor of diversity, equity and inclusion, Renetta Garrison Tull, to oversee the campus’s plan to ensure that institutional diversity, systemic inclusion and social equity are addressed systematically through support such as at the Student Community Center and through initiatives such as Aggie Square.

As demonstrated by UC Davis’s newest Gold rating in the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS), UC Davis students, faculty and staff vigorously engage in advancing sustainability. UC Davis Global Affairs launched Grants for Advancing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to support academic projects. Students announced the establishment of the Environmental Sustainability Student Coalition and led the effort to garner UC Davis a Fair Trade designation. And UC Davis achieved LEED Gold certification for the Central Cage Wash Facility project, which reduced water consumption by approximately 70% while improving cleaning quality.