LTE: Students, faculty should show support for Climate Action Plan

UK’s student organization Greenthumb has been collaborating with campus administration on adopting cleaner energy practices in the form of a Climate Action Plan.

By adopting a Climate Action Plan, the university would set goals to reach carbon neutrality by a set date and implement sustainability classes into the curriculum.

In a meeting with Shane Tedder — UK’s sustainability coordinator — on Sept. 29, Greenthumb members listened to an overview of the status of the university regarding this project.

In this meeting Shane described a “Green Light” that would serve as an approval to turn current plans into physical actions. One reason Shane believes this green light has not been given is because UK President Eli Capilouto is unsure how the staff and faculty would react to the plan.

According to Tedder, more faculty and staff support would influence Capilouto to give the approval for the plan to be implemented.

Tedder assures Greenthumb that completing an Emissions Reduction Plan by January 2016 is one of his top priorities, regardless of the fact that it has been 14 months since the university actively pursued the plan.

Some of UK’s administrative officials have assured Greenthumb that campus sustainability is a priority, but competing priorities such as constructing new dorms on campus have halted progress.

In a recent meeting with Tedder on Oct. 13, he told Greenthumb that he had met with Mary Vosevich, the vice president of Facilities Management at UK, yet there is still no action.

To push this forward we need as many people as possible to contact Vosevich at [email protected] to let her know that UK needs to act on climate. If you’re interested in getting involved, join us every Thursday at 7 p.m. in White Hall room 219.

Greenthumb is a UK club committed to environmental activism and awareness on campus.

[email protected]