The Sustainability Initiative at UMass Dartmouth encompasses Sustainability Studies (graduate and undergraduate), changing the campus to become more green, and a growing set of Sustainaiblity Outreach Services sharing eco-friendly practices with the municipal, business, and residential populations of our region. The Sustainability Initiative is multi-disciplinary. It draws expertise and inspiratio
n from all colleges on the UMass Dartmouth campus and beyond to pursue solutions to and deepen understanding of sustainability challenges. The Initiative enjoys cross-college advisors who bring together the various voices and contributions of sustainability research and teaching from very different disciplines. The Initiative also connects with international partners for a global perspective. The Sustainability Initiative is seeking to create multi-disciplinary meeting spaces where teams of students and faculty can collaborate on complex system studies which are so vital to sustainability advancements. It is also building its own library of texts, software, and videos that create a focal point for sustainability-related resources from a wide variety of perspectives - from facilitating deep change to pursuing green policies to reflections on indigenous lifestyles and biomimicry. Far from being an academics-only endeavor, the UMass Dartmouth Sustainability Initiative is networked with community groups to grapple with real-life green living challenges and connect students with public activists. The Initiative is increasingly acting as a gathering force for public interest groups as well.
