The Sustainability Leadership Council (SLC) convenes faculty, staff, and students across JHU schools and divisions to advance sustainability and advise university leaders. In the 2023-2024 academic year, the SLC’s committees focused on research and academics, operations, and environmental justice, each comprised of working groups spearheading strategic initiatives.

Research & Academics Committee

Chaired by Peter Winch, Ben Zaitchik, & Ben Hobbs

The Research & Academics committee convened JHU’s sustainability-focused research and academic departments, centers, and institutes to identify and pursue opportunities to expand sustainability learning and discovery. The key activities of the research and academics working groups last year are summarized below.

Chaired by Ben Zaitchik & Vicky Nguyen 

  • Identified emerging cross-disciplinary research collaboration opportunities around sustainability topics such as water, waste, and cities 
  • Advised the 5th JHU Sustainability Symposium which showcased university research and practice to 375+ attendees with over 80 speakers,18 panels, 24 research posters, and leadership remarks 

Chaired by Tanvi Gadhia & Stacy Villegas      

  • Advised the development and launch of JHU’s new Campus as a Living Lab program, designed to foster campus sustainability research and teaching leveraging the university as a testbed for sustainability innovations  
  • Promoted and oversaw the first program grant cycle, resulting in 63 expressions of interest, 35 grant proposals, and 30 faculty and student grant reviewers 

Chaired by Hunter Gehlbach & Matthew Aubourg  

  • Brought together representatives of JHU sustainability education initiatives to develop an online dashboard with the goal of fostering coordinated collaboration with Baltimore City Public Schools  
  • Collaborated with the Youth Climate Institute to mentor students in local K-12 schools, facilitating their involvement in sustainability 

Chaired by Jeremy Greene & Christopher Lemon  

  • Advocated for sustainability in healthcare curricula with leaders in the schools of Medicine and Nursing 
  • Fostered sustainability healthcare research collaboration in conjunction with the new Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary Health 
  • Assessed strategies for healthcare institutions to address climate mitigation and resilience in order to develop recommendations for Johns Hopkins  
  • Developed strategies for faculty-led advocacy, policy, and awareness efforts to advance sustainable healthcare practices locally and globally  

Operations Committee

Chaired by Bob McLean & Sally MacConnell

The Operations committee convened facilities leaders to identify and recommend best practices and opportunities for more sustainable campus operations and infrastructure. The key activities of the operations working groups last year are summarized below.

Chaired by Leana Houser & Jasper Adams   

  • Convened diverse stakeholders from facilities, procurement, dining, and events to identify barriers to campus zero waste goals and develop collaborative solutions 
  • Coordinated consistency for waste bins and signage across campuses to ensure effective waste sorting strategies  
  • Guided JHU campuses on next steps to achieve new university goals for waste reduction and responsible consumption 
  • Developed strategies to minimize single-use plastics and packaging waste for food and drinks served on JHU campuses 
  • Created guidance resources to encourage sustainable event planning practices on JHU campuses 

Chaired by Greg Smith 

  • Advised on the launch of new shuttle services, the Hampden Circulator and Keswick-Penn Shuttle, to reduce transportation emissions  
  • Recommended electric buses for purchase for JHU’s Homewood-Peabody-JHMI Shuttle line  
  • Researched new charging stations to accommodate more electric vehicles for the university’s fleet and commuters 
  • Advised the development of a new subsidy supporting JHU employees commuting on public transit  

Chaired by Ryan Weeks 

  • Promoted Green Labs best practices and sustainable vendors at the Genetic Resource Core Facility Symposium, a JHU medical research symposium 
  • Investigated factors impacting lab purchasing choices for ultra-low temperature freezers to effectively identify and recommend energy-efficient models 
  • Drafted a guide for lab researchers and staff to safely reduce and sort waste unique to their labs and locations  

Chaired by Graham Browning     

  • Promoted local and seasonal produce available through Hopkins Dining and local farmers markets  
  • Researched best practices and developed recommendations to help JHU address food insecurity and hunger on campus 
  • Organized 12 events to track food waste and raise awareness in dining halls on Homewood and Peabody campuses called “Weigh your Waste”  
  • Piloted a research study which labeled the climate impacts of dining hall food choices to explore how labels impact students’ selection of plant-forward menu options  

Environmental Justice Committee

Chaired by Nicole Labruto & Chris Heaney  

The Environmental Justice committee coordinated advocacy and initiatives which advance environmental justice efforts across JHU. The key activities of the environmental justice working groups last year are summarized below. 

Chaired by Nicole Labruto 

  • Promoted new prompts to integrate environmental justice and equity considerations in decision-making across JHU 
  • Contributed to a proposal for the establishment of a new university-wide initiative focused on coordinating environmental justice efforts with Baltimore communities 
  • Organized panels and workshops at the JHU Sustainability Symposium and Diversity and Inclusion Conference to increase skills, awareness, and environmental justice action 

Chaired by Chris Heaney  

  • Advised Johns Hopkins University and Health System leaders in responding to the guilty plea of a local medical waste operator, resulting in a change to where the university and health system send waste materials 
  • Developed recommendations for JHU to improve local community engagement in support of environmental justice goals  

SLC Impacts

This year's accomplishments are just part of the legacy of the SLC. Learn more about the impacts and accomplishments of the Council and explore more success stories and annual reports to better understand how an array of driven leaders have helped shape sustainability at JHU.

Learn More