Sustainability Annual Report 2024
Collective action on the climate crisis was an underlying theme of UC San Diego’s sustainability and climate efforts this past year.
Students, staff and faculty convened in thoughtful conversations and engaged in transformative initiatives to help determine the path forward for a more sustainable and climate-ready university.
Read More about Sustainability at UC San Diego
A highlight of the year was engaging in dialogue with campus community members at the new Climate Conversations series. This ongoing series focuses on the campus’s decarbonization study, climate resilience planning, environmental and climate justice, and coping with climate anxiety. UC San Diego was also the first in the UC system to adopt a climate change curriculum requirement, entitled the Jane Teranes Climate Change Education Requirement (JTCCER). Beginning in fall 2024, all first-year undergraduate students will be required to complete a JTCCER-approved course.
Collaboration and determination among students, staff and faculty also led to UC San Diego receiving Bee Campus USA designation, demonstrating an ongoing commitment to pollinator-friendly initiatives. This enthusiasm for the future was also reflected in the expansion of campus composting and education. Composting plays an important role in enriching the experience of students volunteering in campus gardens, which is highlighted in the video “Behind the Vine: Campus Gardens Cultivate Sustainability and Belonging.” Looking ahead, UC San Diego is empowered to create a greater culture of sustainability with the recent addition of two new sustainability officers: Carrie Metzgar, campus sustainability officer, and Elizabeth Lin, waste management, recycling, and sustainability manager.
Stories
UC San Diego Receives Bee Campus USA Designation
Receiving Bee Campus USA designation was a collaborative campus effort, with the steering committee comprised of campus leadership, staff, faculty, graduate students and undergraduate students. By serving as a Bee Campus, UC San Diego seeks to enhance and sustain biodiversity through education and ongoing collective action.
Establishment of the Jane Teranes Climate Change Education Requirement for Undergraduate Students, Beginning Fall 2024
The Jane Teranes Climate Change Education Requirement (JTCCER) will empower students with the knowledge and skills needed to confront the urgent global challenge of climate change. Starting with the first-year student cohort entering in fall 2024, candidates for a bachelor’s degree will be required to complete a one-quarter JTCCER-approved course.
EMISSIONS
*Interim goals for 2030, 2035 and 2040 to be developed through fossil-free planning that is underway at each location
**90% direct reduction of total emissions from 2019 levels with residual emissions negated by carbon removal
Compared with calendar year 2022, scopes 1 and 2 emissions for calendar year 2023 remained constant. Scope 3 emissions increased slightly due to increased business travel.
ENERGY – RENEWABLE ENERGY USE
ENERGY USE INTENSITY (EUI)
UC San Diego saw an increase in its EUI in the calendar year 2023.
FOOD
of food and beverage purchases met sustainability criteria ($7M)
of food and beverage purchases were plant-based ($6.2M)
UC San Diego’s sustainable food spend and plant-based spend reflect total spending for Housing, Dining, and Hospitality (HDH) and University Centers. The combined sustainable food spend for 2024 was approximately 27% of total food spend, which represented a 9 percentage point increase from last year. The combined plant-based spend was 24% of total food spend, a 1 percentage point increase from last year. This growth was a result of maintaining operations for all HDH food locations throughout the year and adding new operations. UCSD has also shifted sourcing of all bread and baked goods to local small-business bakeries; the products support UCSD’s plant-based food spend.
Green building
The new Franklin Antonio Hall collaborative research building received LEED Platinum certification, with sustainable design features such as reclaimed water supplying 100% of landscaping needs and external aluminum fins to provide shade to the building. Four all-electric buildings are currently under construction in the new Ridge Walk North Living and Learning Neighborhood. Project completion is scheduled for 2025.
11 Platinum, 29 Gold, 18 Silver and 5 Certified
Total number of LEED certifications
procurement
green spend on electronics (75%)
green spend on indoor office furniture (99%)
green spend on cleaning supplies (43%)
green spend on office supplies (28%)
The University reports on green spend, as defined in the Sustainable Procurement Guidelines, and reached out to suppliers for spend data in four product categories for this year’s report.
Green spend is defined as meeting preferred or minimum criteria in UC’s Sustainable Procurement Guidelines.
Suppliers reporting: Electronics (4), Furniture (4), Cleaning supplies (3), Office supplies (4).
UC Systemwide Spend Analytics category data provided by CalUSource.
Sustainable Building & Laboratory Operations
The UC San Diego Green Labs Program was placed on hiatus this past year due to the redevelopment of the certification program. UC San Diego did not certify any new labs but engaged with research groups during focus group sessions for the redevelopment of the program. The new certification program was launched in fall 2024.
total assessed green laboratories
Transportation
of students and employees are utilizing sustainable commuting methods
of all vehicles and 67% of sedans and minivans acquired in 2024 were electric (zero-emission), plug-in hybrid or clean transportation fuel
EV charging ports
Seventy-two percent of students, staff and faculty commute to and from campus using sustainable commuting options. This year, students who resided on campus were factored into the overall percentage as well. Sixty-one percent of UC San Diego’s total vehicle acquisitions were zero-emission vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (EV) or clean fuel vehicles. UC San Diego is deploying a multiyear project to install over 900 additional EV chargers, funded by the UC San Diego EV Program, the Inflation Reduction Act and the California Energy Commission.
WATER
*Based on a 3-year average of fiscal years 2005-08
**2025 goal is a 36% reduction from baseline.
Includes UCSD Health La Jolla Medical Center
Water usage per person declined due to increased rainfall, therefore reducing the need for irrigation. UC San Diego observed a 59% reduction in water use from the baseline and continues to meet UC policy goals.
ZERO WASTE – GENERATION
*These numbers might include a small amount of incineration that is being phased out.
**In 2021, waste generation per weighted campus user spiked due to pandemic-related closures as base-level operations continued but the number of users on campus decreased.
In fiscal year 2023-24, UC San Diego’s per capita waste generation rate was 36% below the fiscal year 2015–16 baseline, meeting the systemwide 2025 waste reduction policy goal. Total municipal solid waste (MSW) was reduced by 295 tons compared with the previous year. The difference in total included MSW was a result of 327 fewer tons of recycling, 103 fewer tons of landfill waste and an increase of 136 tons of included organics.
ZERO WASTE – DIVERsion
*Waste incineration was counted as diversion prior to July 2022.
The fiscal year 2023–24 diversion rate excluding construction and demolition (C&D) increased by 2 percentage points to 46%. With the addition of the large amount of C&D diverted from landfill, the campus diversion rate including C&D remained at 73%, the same diversion level as the previous year.
Single-Use Plastics Phase-Out
Complete Phase-out*
- Foodware in UC dining facilities
- Foodware in third-party dining facilities
- Beverage bottles in UC dining facilities
Partial Phase-out
- Plastic bags
- Beverage bottles in vending machines
Starting Soon
- N/A
*Complete phase-out of single-use plastics may include exemptions where reasonable alternatives to plastic do not exist.
UC San Diego continued to make great progress toward eliminating single-use plastics. Most recently, Housing, Dining, and Hospitality (HDH) catering improved procurement by purchasing compostable materials tested and approved in the anaerobic digestion facility the campus uses.
Awards
UC San Diego received Bee Campus USA designation this year, recognizing campus efforts to foster education about pollinators and enhance biodiversity. Nuevo East Graduate Student Housing was deemed the winner of a National Award of Merit in the Educational Facilities category by the Design-Build Institute of America. UC San Diego received a new AASHE STARS rating under v2.2 in fall 2024.
A full list of awards is featured on the UC Office of the President’s website.
