University of CaliforniaOffice of the President

The UC Office of the President (UCOP) is the systemwide headquarters of the University of California that manages UC’s fiscal and business operations and supports the academic and research missions across its campuses, labs and health systems. UCOP owns and leases space primarily in California, but also has properties in Washington, D.C., and Mexico City. 

On the climate front, UCOP observed a decrease of more than 13% in greenhouse gas emissions in 2019. This reduction was achieved primarily by increasing the use of carbon-free electricity. For example, UCOP’s scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions from purchased electricity dropped 35% due to the carbon-free electricity that UCOP headquarters at 1111 Franklin Street in Oakland and its Washington, D.C., property received. A solar photovoltaic system was also installed at the UCPath Center in Riverside, California. 

Other milestones from the past year include the launch of the UCOP Sustainability Affinity Group, an employee-led group focused on monitoring UCOP’s sustainability data and increasing sustainability practices within UCOP. 

The COVID-19 shutdown impacted UCOP’s sustainability data for this reporting year. For instance, the drop in employee commute rates skews UCOP’s commute rate data downward. (Data was reported with the assumption that no more than 10% of employees were commuting to UCOP buildings daily.) While a similar downward trend in water use was expected, UCOP locations observed an increase in water usage in fiscal year 2019-20. 

In fiscal year 2020-21, UCOP will consolidate its Oakland offices into two buildings. This consolidation is expected to save money, increase employee well-being and bring UCOP closer to meeting UC’s sustainability goals through a smaller office footprint.