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Sustainability Around the U

Is your New Year’s Resolution to get more exercise?

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Do you want to improve your health by getting more exercise in the new year? Is it difficult to find the time to exercise during your busy day? Activate your commute and you’ll do both! Make walking or biking a part of your commute to the U and your physical health will improve – and […]

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Is climate change good for plants?

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This article, originally published in @theu, November 25, 2019, was written by Paul Gabrielsen, science writer, University of Utah Communications. In a world of rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, plants should be happy, right? Experiments have shown that, yes, increased carbon dioxide does allow plants to photosynthesize more and use less water. But the […]

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What’s waste got to do with climate change?

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This article, originally published in @theu, November 13, 2019, was written by Kate Whitbeck, communications, sustainability department. Did you know that one of the easiest low cost and most effective ways to impact climate change is to change our consumption habits? An Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funded study indicates that more than 40% of our […]

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Humans of the U: Piper Christian

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This article was originally published in@theu on November 14, 2019. “At the age of 16, I had the opportunity to travel to Paris during the COP 21 climate accords. As a junior correspondent for a Utah news station, I was tasked with reporting the events of the accords back to my home state. I wanted […]

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Changing Behavior to Improve the Air

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This article by University of Utah Communications was featured in @theu on November 19, 2019. Sometimes even well-meaning people contribute to air pollution (exhibit A: the majority of attendees at the University of Utah’s “The Air We Breathe” symposium arrived by car). So how do you inspire people to change? Take a look at the […]

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Policy, Media and the Public: Driving the Agenda for Change

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By Amber Aumiller, graduate assistant, Sustainability Office How much impact does the media actually have on policy change?  How much impact does the public have?  Knowing the answers to these questions is absolutely critical in a global moment where the effects of climate change necessitate a swift environmental policy or regulatory response. Knowing what the […]

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Confronting Climate Change

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By Kate Whitbeck, communications and relationship manager, Sustainability Office What if climate change wasn’t a terrifying specter threatening our future? What if it were an opportunity—an opportunity for research, investment and growth? An opportunity to right wrongs and restore balance? An opportunity to build stronger partnerships and collaboration and, through them, healthier robust communities able […]

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What prehistoric societies can teach us about climate change

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By Nicholas Apodaca, Graduate Assistant, Sustainability Office The common rhetoric surrounding the contemporary climate crisis often frames the dramatic manifestations of climate change as unprecedented in their intensity. The scorching heat and record-level dryness that has plagued the Western US in recent years clearly indicates an ominous shift to a “new normal.” However, while there […]

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When Green isn’t Green

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Kate Whitbeck, communications manager, Sustainability Office Wes Mangum, communications specialist, Facilities Our landscape has slowly been changing around us. Those who have been on campus for more than 10 years remember when much of it was a vast expanse of lush green turf. As awareness of water conservation became more prevalent, the University of Utah […]

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New Directions for Environmental Justice

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By Nicholas Apodaca, graduate assistant, Sustainability Office Many of us who care about climate change and environmental justice take action in our daily lives to do our part: we recycle, use sustainable products, use public transportation or eat locally grown food. Yet often environmental problems play out at a larger scale, and while our personal […]

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