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Sustainability at UIW

At UIW we believe that sustainability is a concept that draws people together: people from different academic disciplines, cultural and national backgrounds, and belief systems. Learn more about how our students, staff, and faculty are putting sustainability into action to improve our campus and civic communities and the world. And get involved!

The University of the Incarnate Word Sustainability Commitment

Sustainability balances human development and growth with the welfare of the natural world, both in the present and for the future. The emphasis placed on social justice by the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word and the establishment of care for creation as a tenet of Catholic social teaching inspire us to make sustainability a part of our university's legacy. We commit to meeting people's cultural, educational, economic, and ecological needs in ways that protect and restore the natural environment.

–adopted by the Sustainability Advisory Board on April 1, 2015

Sustainability Groups at UIW

The Office of Sustainability is part of the Ettling Center for Civic Leadership and Sustainability (ECCLS). The Office’s executive team helps determine sustainability priorities at UIW and provides advice about sustainability initiatives. The Office is assisted by the Sustainability Advisory Board (SAB), a volunteer group comprised of students, staff, faculty, and administrators, that works on various sustainability initiatives at UIW. The work of the SAB is carried out by four standing committees, each with a chair who also serves on the SAB; committee members do not need to be members of the SAB. The committees are: Education, Energy and the Environment, Community Gardens, and Annual Events and Communications. Committees meet monthly during the fall and spring semesters, and the SAB also meets monthly with an end-of-year annual retreat. The SAB may meet periodically in the summer. See a list of the 2020-2021 Sustainability Advisory Board members. UIW also has a student sustainability organization, Sustain. Follow this link for more information.