Instructional Leadership, emphasis: K-12 School Leadership (MEd)
Student studies sustainability practices at wind farm.
  1. NAU
  2. Our impact
  3. Sustainability

Sustainability initiatives at NAU

NAU is committed to being a leader in discovering and implementing new ideas that will sustain our way of life for future generations through research, degree programs, and university facility operations.

Finding solutions

NAU students, faculty, and staff tap into their passions and curiosity to find innovative solutions to sustainability issues that range from reducing waste to increasing use of renewable energy.

Three researchers stand outside on a dirt road looking at a laptop.

Dust and drought Paleoclimatologists study dust and drought

Associate professor Nick McKay and his team of paleoclimatologists in NAU’s School of Earth and Sustainability have been studying dust for several years in this high-elevation region, which is particularly vulnerable to climate change.

NAU alumni Sara LaRosa trimming NAU posters.
Encouraging creative uses of discarded objects through upcycling

The art of upcycling

Alumna Sara LaRosa is encouraging her colleagues in Printing Services—as well as students, faculty, and staff from across the NAU campus—to adopt upcycling and other environmentally friendly practices.

The manager of sustainability, Avi Henn stands by a recycling bin with a bike.

NAU Climate Action Plan supports sustainability

NAU’s Manager of Sustainability, Avi Henn, guides the Flagstaff campus towards carbon neutrality with the Climate Action Plan.

Connor Crouch, PhD Forestry, ’23, measures the circumference of an aspen tree.

Saving the aspen ecosystem

Connor Crouch, PhD Forestry, ’23, worked with forest managers to find ways to maintain a healthy aspen ecosystem in the face of multiple stressors.

Jayne Sandoval working on her laptop outside.

Finding solutions for her community

Fulbright scholar and Gold Axe winner Jayne Sandoval aspires to help her Navajo community develop a renewable energy program.

Lush field with trees in front of a mountain and a sunset.

Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP)

ITEP provides education programs in the management of tribal environmental resources. In 2019 ITEP received a $3.2 million grant from the Bureau of Indian Affairs to help tribal communities predict how climate change can affect their environments, resources, and health.

Other impacts

Green Fund employees sitting at a desk talking.

Green Fund

The Green Fund, NAU’s main source of sustainability funding, operates through a $15 per student per semester Green Fee. You, in turn, can submit project proposals for consideration.

 Axe The Trash volunteers picking up litter.

Facility Services

Sustainability is part of the mission of Facility Services. Facility Services oversees the Office of Sustainability, the construction of LEED buildings, and renewable energy production on campus.

 An 1899 employee putting food in a Starship.

Dining

NAU’s Campus Dining has a three-step approach to maximizing its sustainability efforts: minimize food waste before and after food is prepared, find responsible food sources, and reduce its environmental footprint by reusing plastic containers.

NAU students waiting for the bus.

Transportation

University Transit Services provides transportation alternatives, including campus shuttles and a city bus that links NAU and nearby Flagstaff neighborhoods. The popular Yellow Bike Program offers short-term rentals of refurbished bikes for students, faculty, and staff.