St.

Mary’s College of Maryland Sustainability Office’s “Green Team” Internship Program

An Independent Applied Sustainability Research Project

Submitted for Consideration to Professor Barry Muchnick

For ENST-390: Applied Sustainability Practicum

Spring 2020

By Jacob Wilkins

Executive Summary:

Although the St. Mary’s College of Maryland has many green initiatives to push it

towards a more sustainable future, many of them do not receive enough upkeep and proper care

for them to work as efficiently as possible if at all. The best way to achieve a steady and routine

form of maintenance is through a “Green Team” internship program that doubles as a work force

for current and future green projects and as a way to better prepare students for their future

careers all with little to no spending on part of the college to implement. Through thorough

analysis of case studies, it is expressed that a Green Team is a versatile and effective form of

creating and maintaining a sustainable college environment. The St. Mary’s College of Maryland

needs a “Green Team” internship program as a way to maintain their current and future green

projects, prepare their students for their future careers, and do it all with little to zero cost.
Table of Contents:

Executive Summary……… 1

Introduction……… 3-4

Context……… 4-5

Case Studies……… 5-8

Project Overview……… 8-12

Conclusion……… 12-13

Recommendations……… 14

References……… 15-16

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Introduction

The inspiration for my project came to me when my class and I were on a tour of the St.

Mary’s College of Maryland campus. The tour was led by the Sustainability Office so they could

show us all the sustainable and environmental initiatives that the college participates in. Our first

stop was a permeable parking lot made of wood chips so that rainwater can infiltrate into the

ground more efficiently. The other feature of the parking lot was that it had nighttime LED light

poles that went around the perimeter of the parking lot. There was one problem though: the lights

were on at 3:15 PM when the sun was still out. This was either because the sensor was

malfunctioning or that whatever timer it might have been on was off. Either way, it seemed to

me that this was an obvious example of how the college cannot currently keep track of all its

green initiatives. If someone were to just simply check up on these aspects of the college, then

they would be able to maintain efficiency and, in this case, probably save the college money. The

idea of a “Green Team” sparked inside of my head at that very moment as a way for the college

to monitor and maintain its initiatives easily and affordably. A prime example of how fault

detection and diagnostics as a practice can be used to garner large amounts of savings, both in

monetary form and emissions, is at the University of Iowa. In 2017, the University of Iowa

installed Fault Detection and Diagnostic (FDD) technology in their buildings that would monitor

for excess energy usage so that predictive maintenance and increased efficiency of HVAC and

other related systems could be achieved1. After six months, they realized that they could be

saving $600,000 on energy1. Similar results can be replicated here at St. Mary’s without the need

for complicated and expensive FDD technology, but instead through the scholarly engagement of

our student body using a more comprehensive approach that incorporates all the current green

initiatives here at St. Mary’s.

1
Rossman, 2018

3
Context:

Sustainability is both an idea and a discipline. According to Margaret Robertson’s

Sustainability Principles and Practice, sustainability has two definitions:

“’Sustainability’ as an idea refers to the body of knowledge that deals with how

dynamic systems work on this planet we call home, including what we know

about the current health or decline of those systems. ‘Sustainability’ as a

discipline refers to humanity’s rapidly-evolving response to the urgent planetary

challenges we all face, a response that includes emerging professional

opportunities2.”

Through these definitions, we can discern the dichotomy of both the natural and

anthropologic world and how they must interact with each other. In our Applied

Sustainability Practicum course, we understand the concept of sustainability as the

overlap of anthropological and natural environment and how this should influence

humankind’s action steps towards a fruitful future. Throughout the course, we have

identified three pillars to sustainable practice: the environmental, the social, and the

economic. All three are interrelated. Without the environment, you would not have

society; without society, you would not have economy; and economy is what indirectly

dictates the quality of both the environment and society. In the context of campus

sustainability, the same definitions apply just to a different scale.

In terms of campus sustainability, sustainability as an idea and discipline manifest

themselves in both the curriculum and the actions that the college or university takes.

Sustainability, within the context of curriculum, performs both tasks of educating the

public on environmental matters and developing the skill sets needed for environmental
2
Robertson, 2014, pg. 3

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careers. The actions that the university takes in the name of sustainability reflect the

establishment’s attitude toward the environment. Recycling and composting programs,

use of alternative energy, and spreading of awareness are all examples of how an

institution can take control of its impact on the planet. A “Green Team” would be

beneficial on a microcosmic level as it would spread awareness of environmental

practices, develop the professional skills needed to enter this discipline, and perform the

necessary actions needed for campus sustainability. Each one of these actions that my

team would fulfill would also satisfy the environmental, societal, and economic pillars of

sustainable practice in a macrocosmic perspective as well.

Case Studies

There are a multitude of success stories associated with “Green Teams” across college

campuses and across the world. In our textbook, Sustainability on Campus: Stories and

Strategies for Change by Peggy F. Barlett and Geoffrey W. Chase, the story of The Green Task

Force: Facing the Challenges to Environmental Stewardship at Small Liberal Arts College by

Abigail R. Jahiel and R. Given Harper is shared. I chose this case study as it showcases a small

liberal arts college, just like St. Mary’s College of Maryland, putting into effect a “green task

force” that saw major results in just two years. According to Jahiel and Harper, they led a “Green

Task Force” in the spring of 2000 at the Illinois Wesleyan University where, within two years,

the force “…established a significantly expanded recycling program…” and “…started to reduce

campus paper and electricity consumption3.” This is significant as it shows that they could make

a large impact in a short period of time so it is easy to imagine the immense positive impact a

more permanent and well-established task force could do.

3
Harper and Jahiel, 2004, pg. 49

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 Another example is The International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) Green Team

where they were especially successful at community outreach by way of “…Teh Tarik session,

picnics, recycling projects, art-environment workshop with children (i.e. orphans), Kulliyyah of

Architecture and Environmental Design (KAED) Festival (or known as KAED FEST)

(handmade art, drum circle, recycling booth, shoe donation booth), and fund-raising and other

activities, such as making art out of recycled materials for an art bazaar…” and through their

Green Team newsletter and blog4. I chose this case study as it showcases the aspect of outreach

in terms of promoting their message. This is significant because it shows that a green team can

have a wide impact on the community at large and can be creative in how it creates a more

sustainable campus environment. This case study is also part of the reason why I made room for

a Student Relations intern, but that will be further discussed later.

Some other notable examples are the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology

University (RMIT University) and City University London (CUL). At RMIT University, the

campus links greening initiatives with education through the use of a two-stage system in which

students first design and develop a green roof best practice model and then monitor and study the

green roofs for efficiency and biodiversity5. This is a great example of the educational benefits of

my internship program idea as this shows how a hands-on study in green roofing can be used as a

fully fleshed out learning opportunity for students. The Green Dragon project at the CUL is also

note-worthy because of its similar methodology to my own project in terms of using both “…a

bottom-up basis and a top-down motivation…6.” This bottom-up and top-down approach of

management is significant as it uses the students to start projects and uses the curriculum to

motivate the students into fixing them.

4
Hashim, 2011
5
Barkowicz and Rogers, 2014
6
Xypaki, 2014

6
 These examples show how having a “Green Team” can benefit the community, the

college, and the projects themselves. These examples also help influence and shape my own

project ideas. With the example of the Green Task Force, it shows how quickly progress towards

a sustainable future can be made at an institution and how having a team can achieve it. This

helps defend my idea for a “Green Team” because it showcases how a small liberal arts college,

much like our own, can make great strides towards sustainability in a short period of time by the

creation of a dedicated team whose sole purpose is to create a more eco-friendly campus

environment. The example of IIUM’s Green Team shows how a team can benefit the community

and spread awareness of their mission through use of multiple different means. This influences

my idea as outreach plays a vital role in invigorating people to help support green initiatives and

make the connection between the institution and sustainability. The RMIT University example

shows how, by way of course work, students can enact and perform sustainable practice on

campus while preparing themselves for their future careers at the same time. This shows how

sustainable practice can spur student education which is a vital idea to my project. The CUL

example shows how the use of both a bottom-up and top-down approach to motivation and

organization can kickstart and sustain prolonged initiatives that benefit the establishment, the

students, and the environment all at the same time. This example shows how the university can

incentivize students to participate in sustainable practice and how students taking the reins of the

project creates an effective and experiential learning environment that prepares them for real

world application.

Project Overview:

To address the problem of creating a “Green Team” for the school, we must first address

the working assumptions and any potential external factors. Some working assumptions that I

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have at this stage in the development of my project are that a “Green Team” is needed for St.

Mary’s; that it would be cheap and easy; and that the current curriculum would support my

theoretical implementation strategy. Some external factors that I thought of off the top of my

head might be governmental incentives/grants that would help with implantation or, on the other

hand, the potential of internal conflicts or power dynamics within the administration that would

add an extra hurdle for me and my project. A good illustration of these kinds of problems that

might present themselves are the ones discussed in Sustainability on Campus: Stories and

Strategies for Change’s exert, “Restoring Natural Landscapes: From Ideals to Action” by Allen

Franz.

At Marymount College, Palos Verdes, a small liberal arts college on the outskirts of Los

Angeles County, anthropology professor Allen Franz wanted his students to learn about

sustainability through the planting of native species in different areas of the campus. He and

fellow students planted an array of native species in a back area of campus7. However, due to

California law requiring that excess shrubbery be mowed or plowed during the dry season and a

lack of communication between the class and administration; most of the native plants were

disced7. The next problem they faced was over the planting of native trees behind an

administration building. Franz and his class planted four California sycamores which would

shade the building in the summer and drop its leaves and allow for more sun to reach the

building in the winter8. After two years, the campus director of environmental services

(responsible for landscaping) decided that he did not like the way that they were growing and

replaced three of them with non-native London plane trees8. These kinds of external factors are

hard to account for as they lay outside my realm of knowledge about St. Mary’s College.

7
Franz, 2004, pg. 233-234
8
Franz, 2004, pg. 235

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However, these do not carry too much wait as this is mainly a proposal and I plan to look further

into these outside forces when I continue my work as a SMP.

Before I get into any of these, I should first example my initial idea for implantation. The

largest problems for a project of this caliber are manpower, financing, creating the bureaucracy

for it, and educational implantation. For there to be maintenance and monitoring of all current

and future green projects on campus on a regularly scheduled basis, there would need to be a

large workforce to commit such tasks. The most obvious answer for this would be to have the

students do it all, but unless the students would benefit from the work directly in an educational

way or financial way; I do not see the likelihood of sustained employment. My plan is that I

would create an four member internship program underneath the authority of the Sustainability

Office that would cover the four main sectors of sustainability on campus: internal infrastructure

(everything inside the buildings), external infrastructure (everything outside the buildings), the

campus farm and food services, and student relations. However, referring to my assumption

involving curriculum, this relies on the idea that there is a heavy incentive for students to partake

in an internship as a part of their education. I do believe that there is a strong incentive as the

current curriculum at the college, Learning through Experiential and Applied Discovery

(LEAD), which pushes hands-on training in terms of career development. Whether the

curriculum explicitly requires an internship for graduation or something of that caliber, this

opportunity would be undeniably beneficial for a student’s education and training. A great

connection between how the internship program could help with career development could be

through a partnership between St. Mary’s College of Maryland Sustainability Office interns and

off-campus environmental clubs where the intern functions as a guest speaker or educator. This

would also help with publicity for the internship program and the college itself, but I digress.

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While internships being a crucial part of St. Mary’s curriculum seems to answer the question, I

just do not want to make an incorrect assumption especially at this stage in the game.

Anyway, obviously four interns would not be enough to cover that much ground, but I

figure that these positions would be more akin to leadership positions where the interns can have

the opportunity to manage other students or outside help such as volunteers. In fact, the reason

why I thought of creating an intern specifically for student relations is that I knew that manpower

is the biggest hurdle so you need someone who will advertise intern positions and spur student

participation. Also, the internship program can be used as an employment opportunity for the

intern and a recruitment opportunity for the school as the intern that performs their job the best

could easily make a great sustainability fellow as well. To further this point, the same idea can

apply for student volunteers wanting to be interns. For clarification, I imagined that these

internship opportunities would be more favorable to upperclassmen in the environmental studies

or science field due to the workload, level of responsibility, and nature of the work. I plan to

expand upon this idea further as an SMP. One idea that I already have for expansion is to make

the St. Mary’s College of Maryland work with the Maryland Master Naturalist program which is

an extension of the University of Maryland that trains individuals in everything from elementary

ecology to advanced topics such as environmental education and that requires those individuals

to complete 40 hours of volunteer service per year in order to maintain their certification. While

this is an excellent idea, I intend on saving this for my SMP or capstone; but nevertheless, is an

example of potential for this project.

In terms of finances, I do not really see them as an issue initially speaking. While I am

developing this assignment for my Applied Sustainability Practicum course, I am mainly

focusing on creating the foundation for the “Green Team” and not figuring out costs for any

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projects that they may encounter. The reason why I would not spend time on this is because I see

the main points of investment (labor, tools, etc.) being kept insular to the college. For example,

the labor can come from the students and tools are already available through the landscaping

crew. The only way I see funding becoming involved is either by the college wanting to give the

interns stipends such as the ones that the current interns under the Sustainability Office receive

or an external factor of grant money or fundraising coming into play. I believe that a stipend

would be unnecessary if internships were to be a requirement for graduation, but I do not know

this information for certain and hence it is one of my working assumptions. Even If internships

are not necessarily a requirement, however, they still would be a major talking point on a

resume.

In terms of the bureaucratic side of things, this would be a larger issue in and of itself.

Through my previous discussions with the Sustainability Office, they informed me of

centralization problems within the college’s environmental implementations9. According to the

Sustainability Office, the administration will enact a sustainability project or an environmental

endeavor, but the Sustainability Office will not be informed of the matter9. This causes problems

as the entity most likely to monitor, maintain, and simply keep track of the project is the

Sustainability Office. This would be my first order of business as the Sustainability Office

should have a complete record of sustainable and environmental efforts so that they can delegate

respective taskings to one of the four interns.

In terms of educational implantation, I would have to pitch my idea to the administration

not only for approval, but for how they would want to incentivize the student body into helping. I

figured that if the administration would want mainly students to be involved then creating some

sort of service learning or volunteer program would be the most logical way to do this. However,
9
Wilkins, 2020

11
if this would not create enough of a surplus of workers then there might be an option outside of

the student body such as Maryland Master Naturalists as they need 40 hours of annual volunteer

service to maintain their certification (I should know I have been a Naturalist since 2018). The

other idea that I had in terms of education implementation is that the environmental studies and

science departments could act as free advertising as the professors could simply mention to their

students before class that there are internship opportunities or that the “Green Team” would be

having an event.

Conclusion

According to Beaudoin and Brundiers, “Building a program under which many projects

can exist is helpful for clustering activities, creating synergies, and deploying resources more

efficiently10.” I feel that I have achieved this not only because I already have ideas for expansion,

but because I intended my idea for a “Green Team” to be an on-going educational and cost-

effective way for the college to build student’s skills sustainable management and for the school

to get a steady supply of labor. Furthermore, according to The Association for the Advancement

of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), “Engaging in sustainability through co-

curricular activities allows students, faculty, and staff to deepen and apply their understanding of

sustainability principles11.” This is, in fact, is my ultimate goal and I do believe that a “Green

Team” would achieve this most effectively. I have provided examples of other institutions

conducting their own green teams or similar operations that either defend my methods or

influence them. I have thoroughly explained my implantation strategy here at St. Mary’s College

of Maryland and how I would address issues such as manpower, financing, bureaucracy, and

curricular incorporation.

10
Beaudoin and Brundiers, 2017
11
AASHE, 2019

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 Like I have said throughout my proposal, I intend on expanding upon this idea further as

a capstone or SMP project. I believe there is an infinite amount of possibilities for a green team

or similar concept here at the college. For example, I mentioned how there could be external

factors that could serve as a hindrance that will require extensive research into the internal

workings of St. Mary’s College of Maryland. There is also room for expansion in terms of

manpower and financing as these could easily become much more intensive and compounded

problems over time. Collaboration is also a large area that could use further probing as this could

benefit all parties involved. I only mentioned this idea previously, but I can think of one local

elementary school (Ridge Elementary School) that has an environmental/garden club that would

be a great place for interns to hone their skills in communication and teaching. In conclusion, a

green team would be an affordable, educational, and sustainable form of monitoring and

maintaining current and future environmental practice projects at the St. Mary’s College of

Maryland. I look forward to expanding upon this idea further in my final project of my academic

career here at the college.

Recommendations

Assuming that my green team idea translates adequately into a SMP or capstone project,

then I have several recommendations for further research and overall improvement upon my

original idea. First, because this is no longer a proposal at this theoretical point in time; my

research needs to look more internally into St. Mary’s College of Maryland’s dynamics both as

its own independent being and also within the context of the St. Mary’s County education

system. I would have to discover and flesh out all working assumptions and external factors that

I have previously mentioned. Next, I would work on the execution of more specific and practical

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factors that I merely pay lip services to in this proposal. Getting outside establishments like

Maryland Master Naturalist program and Ridge Elementary School are prime examples. I would

also investigate possible grants and other forms of funding for the consequential projects that

would come out of having a green team. The two biggest issues that I would have to tackle is

convincing the administration to adjust their curriculum to maximize the internship program and

leave responsibility solely to the sustainability office. Other than that, I would mostly just be

doing the same thing that I am now which is focusing on the effective and practical

implementation of this program. These would possibly be quite large institutional shifts for both

the administration, curriculum, and students; but highly beneficial for all parties.

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 References

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Sustainability Through Doing. In: Leal Filho W., Brandli L., Kuznetsova O., Paço A.

(eds) Integrative Approaches to Sustainable Development at University Level. World

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https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-10690-8_34 DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10690-8_34

Beaudoin, F.D., Brundiers, K. (2017) “A Guide for Applied Sustainability Learning Projects:

Advancing Sustainability Outcomes on Campus and in the Community.” Philadelphia:

Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).

Franz, A. “Restoring Natural Landscapes: From Ideals to Action,” in Sustainability on Campus:

Stories and Strategies for Change, ed. Barlett, P. and Chase, G. Urban and Industrial

Environments, ed. Gottlieb, R. and Luce, H. (Cambridge, The MIT Press, 2004), 233-

235.

Harper, R. and Jahiel, A. “The Green Task Force: Facing the Challenges to Environmental

Stewardship at a Small Liberal Arts College,” in Sustainability on Campus: Stories and

Strategies for Change, ed. Barlett, P. and Chase, G. Urban and Industrial Environments,

ed. Gottlieb, R. and Luce, H. (Cambridge, The MIT Press, 2004), 49.

Hashim, K., Mohammed, A., and Redza, H. “Developing Conceptual Waste Minimization

Awareness Model Through Community Based Movement: A Case Study of Green Team,

International Islamic University Malaysia.” (2011). Retrieved March 2, 2020, from

http://irep.iium.edu.my/8655/1/FULL_PAPER_DEVELOPING_CONCEPTUAL_WAST

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 E_MINIMIZATION_AWARENESS_MODEL_THROUGH_COMMUNITY_BASED_

MOVEMENT.pdf

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. (2019). The

Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education: Sustainable

Campus Index. The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher

Education: Sustainable Campus Index.

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. “University of Iowa

IN-25: Innovation B.” Last modified July 24, 2018.

https://reports.aashe.org/institutions/university-of-iowa-ia/report/2018-07-

24/IN/innovation/IN-25/.

Robertson, Margaret. Sustainability Principles and Practice. (New York: Routledge, 2014). 3.

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