The research team will consist of approximately 10 undergraduates from various departments and colleges who will work together for the entire school year to characterize what sustainability might mean at OSU and find ways to measure those conditions using indicators for sustainability. Recently, Oregon Governor Kitzhaber signed an Executive Order challenging all state agencies to become sustainable by the year 2025. As a state agency, Oregon State University needs to address this challenge and find ways to create a sustainable community.
Sustainability requires simultaneously meeting environmental, economic, and community needs.
This is an ambitious program that Oregon State University, other state agencies, and citizens of Oregon need to begin addressing now. These are tough questions that we all have to face as we make choices about how to live in the 21st Century. The team will work with faculty, staff, and graduate student advisors who will help team members develop specific research skills, provide access to the people who make decisions at OSU, and share their experience with the team.