by Amy Panzarella

Putting pen to paper to process the annual benefits open enrollment is a thing of the past!  Many companies, including American Public University System (APUS), have reverted to the more environmentally friendly and efficient method of processing benefits on-line.  This process affords employees the luxury of completing their benefits enrollment at their convenience.  Additionally, it affords the company a significant cost savings.  Take into consideration the following facts:

• 1 tree = 16 reams of printer paper.
• 1 ream of paper = 500 sheets.
• APUS = approximately 700 full-time employees and 400 part-time employees.
• Historically, open enrollment required that Human Resources distribute packets of information to all full-time employees.  Each packet contained approximately 100 pieces of paper.
• All enrollments were typed into the Human Resource Information System (HRIS) and vendor’s systems manually.  This process invited the opportunity for human error.  Additionally, it took an extraordinary amount of time to input information multiple times. 

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by Ashley Adams

In West Virginia, Adopt-A-Highway is co-sponsored by the Division of Highways and the Department of Environmental Protection, Rehabilitation Environmental Action Plan (REAP).  Adopt-A-Highway was developed in the 1980’s to promote community participation and awareness of the state’s environment by actively removing highway litter.  American Public University System (APUS) joined this program in 2004 and since has picked up trash along a two mile stretch of a local highway three times a year.  An email goes out to staff asking for volunteers to participate in the roadside cleanup. Usually between 15 and 20 employees take an afternoon to gather 20 plus bags of trash. Signs, on either end of the assigned roadside, indicate APUS has volunteered to be responsible for keeping the area free of trash. The Adopt-A-Highway program is in 49 states and available to all organizations.

by Jennifer Lefebvre

If you are in the market for a new vehicle, why not consider a more fuel-efficient, environmentally friendly vehicle?  In the past, hybrid vehicles tended to cost more and many people did not feel the savings up front equaled the fuel savings over the life of the vehicle.  However, costs are coming down and many of these vehicles are even affordable, starting well below $20,000.  There is no question that vehicles have enhanced the quality of our lives since their inception.  However, the increased use of gasoline by our ever-growing and ever-mobile population has added contaminants to our environment that have now affected our air quality.  Vehicles contribute some of the most significant greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution (25 percent of total GHG pollution).

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Second Nature is an organization based in Boston, Massachusetts dedicated to providing helpful resources to leaders in higher education seeking to create a more sustainable future.  Second Nature’s mission is to “accelerate movement toward a sustainable future by serving and supporting senior college and university leaders in making healthy, just, and sustainable living the foundation of all learning and practice in higher education.”  Second Nature supports the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) as well as other initiatives including Higher Education Associations Sustainability Consortium (HEASC).  The organization’s website provides a variety of resources related to financing sustainability in higher education, integrating sustainability into higher education curriculums, and green building practices.  For college and university leaders working towards greater sustainability in their organizations, Second Nature’s website can serve as a helpful and worthwhile resource.

by Jennifer Lefebvre

Did you know that even your garden could benefit from being “green”?  One of the most sustainable ways to green your landscaping is to use native plants.  Native plants are species that have naturally grown and survived in a particular environment.  These plants have evolved and adapted over many years and have shown to be resilient and vigorous.  They enjoy the soil in which they grow and have survived on the water supply they naturally receive.  They’ve survived diseases and pests that have come and gone which may have afflicted other species of plants.  In essence, they are low maintenance and thrive with the least amount of care.

A benefit of using native plants in your landscaping is that it fosters the existence of a natural ecosystem.  When native plants are healthy, the animals and insects that survive on them are also healthy.  Native plants offer a recognizable and diverse habitat for local wildlife.  This creates a balance in the environment.  Since native species have been able to survive on the water they receive from natural sources, it is not typically necessary to water them by hand.  In addition, they use water more efficiently because they have learned to; their root systems have adapted to their environment.  Not needing regular watering can save over 50 percent of landscape water usage.  Because of their root systems, they also help to control soil erosion.  In addition these types of plants do not require fertilizer or chemical pesticides.  Soil erosion and pesticides used on other types of plants can cause run-off that threatens our streams, rivers, and estuaries.

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