Leadership and Outreach

Limiting sustainability education to our campus would ignore the global scope of the problems we are trying to address through sustainability. The action items for leadership and outreach in sustainability education are designed to reach Clemson alumni and supporters as well as the people of South Carolina and beyond.

These activities align closely with the mission of Clemson’s Public Service Activities (PSA) to develop and deliver science-based information specific to South Carolina’s needs. PSA has a presence in every county of the state. While the University’s main campus covers approximately 1,400 acres and supports many of Clemson’s academic and student life activities, an additional 17,000 acres of University research farms and forests surround the main campus. An additional 12,000 acres of Clemson land are distributed around the state, and the University also owns land in Italy and on the Caribbean island of Dominica. All of these properties are devoted to research and education.

Currently in action:

• Ensure that all PSA staff are well-versed in a clear and consistent sustainability message that includes audience appropriate educational materials. This includes developing sustainability talking points, collateral materials and a social media presence.
• As off-campus development projects are considered, plans will integrate campus building policies as well as sustainable building products and practices.
• Communicate and educate, using a variety of tools, the cost avoidance and lifecycle savings inherent in some sustainability measures.
• Ensure that Clemson’s sustainability story is shared in a compelling way. Case study examples may differ by location, resources and scale, but they will be shared. The message is that sustainability is a Clemson University priority and it is also a process that can be incorporated community-wide.
• Cultivate relationships with community media outlets on Clemson’s off-campus sustainability efforts.