Mission Statement
The WVC Sustainability Committee is a group of faculty, staff, administrators, and students that strive to engage, educate, equip, and empower the college and surrounding communities in social, environmental, and economic sustainability issues We welcome all interested individuals or groups, including alumni and community members, to participate with us.
Unlike some college committees, membership on the Sustainability Committee does not require approval or election. Furthermore, the committee works with many "friends" who do not regularly attend meetings. The members list includes regular meeting attendees and the aforementioned friends.
- Friday, September 13
- Friday, October 11
- Friday, November 8
- Friday, December 13
Zoom Meeting ID: 927 2957 9843
Passcode: 480900
| Member | Department |
|---|---|
| Brad Chin, Committee Chair | Math |
| Rachel Anderson | Biology |
| Heidi Brueckner, Core Team | Art |
| Chris Cruz | Park Management |
| Matt Fellenz | Associated Students of WVC |
| Leticia Gallardo | Biology |
| Michelle Geary | Biology |
| Meg Giberson | Community Member |
| Rebecca Hiller | Math |
| Ana Lobato | Admissions & Records |
| Nicole Markelz | Fashion Design |
| Heidi McFarland, Core Team | Park Management |
| Neeti Mittal, Core Team | Math |
| Karen Schneider–Brodine | WVC Facilities |
| Brooke Marie Schwartz | Associated Students of WVC |
| Amy Vu | Math |
| Randy Wu, Emeritus | District Facilities |
See the full storyboard of sustainability efforts at West Valley College.
Awards of up to $500 each are available to classified staff, faculty, student groups, and administrators for efforts related to sustainability at West Valley College. Proposals would ideally reduce the environmental impact of administration, instruction, and/or learning, improve the sustainability of the campus, or enhance instruction in sustainability or resilience.
The total amount of funds available is limited, and proposals will be reviewed as they are submitted. Funds must be dispersed by Saturday, April 30. However, use of the funds is not limited to the Spring semester; an instructor, for example, can purchase a
resource in March with the intent to use it in the summer or fall.
The Sustainability Committee would like to encourage you to take a step forward towards making your celebrations more environmentally friendly. In the spirit of learning and growing together, we are sharing sustainable celebration ideas. Please feel free to add more ideas to the list.
Additionally, we would appreciate it if you could make at least one pledge to make your celebrations more sustainable (though we would be delighted to have more than one pledge from you!). Please share your pledge and some information about yourself in the Sustainability Pledge document. We look forward to seeing pledges from our community and hope to have a lot of fun learning from each other.
Role within Organization
- Study current issues and trends related to climate change
- Present findings to the institution and local government agencies
- Propose recommendations for future planning and community outreach
Duties and Responsibilities
- Researcher will meet with supervisors weekly to determine scope of research
- Share research findings with various stakeholders
- Plan, prepare, and draft reports for specific research project
General qualifications
- Excellent research skills, specifically scientific research and data analysis
- Strong written and verbal communication
- Time management and organizational skills
- Passion for local sustainability and community outreach/education
- Strong interest in climate change/sustainability
Required Technical Skills
- Setting up and managing SharePoint
- Managing and updating webpages
Supervisor
Brad Chin and Mel Vaughn
If interested, please submit a resume and a cover letter that highlights any of the above skills that you may have.
Strategic Plan
Our vision is a culture of responsible stewardship.
Our mission is to educate and inspire the West Valley College community to embrace and implement sustainable practices campus wide.
In Spring 2022, a subset of our committee's members worked on Sustainability Master Planning. A draft of the Master Plan is provided below. We encourage and welcome the WVC community's input on this master plan. All input and queries can be emailed to the Sustainability Committee Chair.
Sustainability Master Plan
| Course Group | Course Name |
|---|---|
| Architecture | ARCH 053: Introduction to Architectural and Environmental Design |
| Architecture | ARCH 060: Green Building and Sustainable Design |
| Architecture | ARCH 072: History of Landscape Architecture |
| Architecture | ARCH 81: Landscape Plants Summer and Autumn |
| Architecture | ARCH 82: Landscape Plants Winter and Spring |
| Architecture | ARCH 83: Plant Composition |
| Architecture | ARCH 084: Sustainablity in Landscape Architecture |
| Anthropology | ANTH 001: Introduction to Physical Anthropology |
| Anthropology | ANTH 002: Introduction to Archaeology |
| Anthropology | ANTH 003/H: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology |
| Astronomy | ASTR 014: Life in the Universe |
| Astronomy | ASTR 020: Family of the Sun |
| Astronomy | ASTR 020: H Family of the Sun |
| Aviation | AVIA 30B: Introduction to UAS Systems |
| Aviation | AVIA 30C: UAS Image Analysis |
| Biology | BIOL 002: Environmental Biolog |
| Biology | BIOL 002L: Environmental Biolog Lab |
| Biology | BIOL 10: Introduction to Biology |
| Biology | BIOL 10L: Introduction to Biology Lab |
| Biology | BIOL 12/12L: Introduction to Ecology and Wildlife |
| Biology | BIOL 13/13L: Natural History of California |
| Biology | BIOL 14/14L: California Plants and Animals |
| Biology | BIOL 18/18L: Marine Biology |
| Biology | BIOL 24 BIO: in the News |
| Biology | BIOL 35/35L: Biology of Birds |
| Biology | BIOL 36: Animal Behavior |
| Biology | BIOL 37: Evolution-Life on Earth |
| Biology | BIOL 38: Biodiversity and Extinction: Hotspots, Crisis and Conservation |
| Biology | BIOL 40/40L: Organismal Biology |
| Biology | BIOL 41/41L: Principles of Animals Biology |
| Biology | BIOL 42/42L: Principles of Plant Biology |
| Biology | BIOL 56: Ecology of the Sierra Nevada |
| Biology | BIOL 58: Field Ecology |
| Biology | BIOL 59: Climate Change |
| Fashion Design | FDAT 082: Sustainable Design |
| French | FRNC 001A: Beginning French |
| French | FRNC 001B: Beginning French |
| French | FRNC 002A: Intermediate French |
| French | FRNC 002B: Intermediate French |
| French | FRNC 003A: Advanced French, Oral and Written Composition |
| French | FRNC 003B: Advanced French, Oral and Written Composition |
| Geography | GEOG 001: Intro to Physical Geography |
| Geography | GEOG 002: Introduction to Cultural Geography |
| Geography | GEOG 006: World Regional Geography |
| Geology | GEO 001A/H: Physical Geology |
| Geology | GEOL 12: Earth Science with Lab |
| Geology | GEOL 15: Geology of California |
| Geospatial Technology | GIST 16A: Introduction to Geospatial Technology |
| Geospatial Technology | GIST 16B: Mobile GIS |
| Geospatial Technology | GIST 16C: Spatial Analysis for GIS |
| Geospatial Technology | GIST 16D: Cartographic Design for GIS |
| Geospatial Technology | GIST 16E: Database Design and Management for GIS |
| Geospatial Technology | GIST 16G: Introduction to Remote Sensing |
| Geospatial Technology | GIST 16I: GIS Programming and the Web |
| German | GERM 001A: Beginning German |
| German | GERM 001B: Beginning German |
| German | GERM 002A: Intermediate German |
| German | GERM 002B: Intermediate German |
| History | HIST 014: History of the Native North Americans |
| History | HIST 020: History and Geography of California |
| Interior Design | INTD 029A: Introduction to Sustainable Design |
| Interior Design | INTD 029B: Sustainable Design Materials and Resources |
| Interior Design | INTD 029C: Sustainable Design for Residential Projects |
| Interior Design | INTD 029D: Sustainable Design for Commercial Projects |
| Interior Design | INTD 090D: Sustainable Design Internship |
| Italian | ITAL 001A: Beginning Italian |
| Italian | ITAL 001B: Beginning Italian |
| Italian | ITAL 002A: Intermediate Italian |
| Italian | ITAL 002B: Intermediate Italian |
| Japanese | JPNS 001A: Beginning Japanese |
| Japanese | JPNS 001B: Beginning Japanese |
| Nutrition Studies | NUTR 020: World Food Customs and Nutrition |
| Oceanography | OCEA 010: Introduction to Oceanography |
| Park Management | PMGT 10: Introduction to Park Management |
| Park Management | PMGT 11: Park Communications |
| Park Management | PMGT 12A: Basic Outdoor Skills |
| Park Management | PMGT 12B: Backcountry Technical Rescue |
| Park Management | PMGT 12C: Advanced Outdoor Skills and Survival |
| Park Management | PMGT 13: Wildland Fire Suppression |
| Park Management | PMGT 14: Conservation of Our Natural Resources |
| Park Management | PMGT 15A: Duties of a Park Professional |
| Park Management | PMGT 15B: Natural and Cultural Resources Interpretation |
| Park Management | PMGT 15C: Park Maintenance |
| Park Management | PMGT 17: Park Horticulture |
| Park Management | PMGT 18: Park Planning and Design |
| Park Management | PMGT 20A: Employment Prep |
| Park Management | PMGT 20B: Internship |
| Park Management | PMGT 21: Park Operations |
| Park Management | PMGT 23: Powersaws |
| Park Management | PMGT 26: Regenerative Agriculture in Parks |
| Political Science | POLI 001: American Government |
| Political Science | POLI 002: Comparative Politics |
| Political Science | POLI 003: and 003H Introduction to Political Science |
| Political Science | POLI 004: International Relations |
| Sign Language | ASLA 001A: Beginning American Sign Language |
| Sign Language | ASLA 001B: Beginning American Sign Language |
| Sociology | SOCI 001: Introduction to Sociology |
| Sociology | SOCI 002: and 002H Social Problems |
| Sociology | SOCI 003: Social Psychology |
| Sociology | SOCI 020: Sociology of Race and Ethnicity |
| Sociology | SOCI 028: Sociology of Gender |
| Sociology | SOCI 040: Marriage and Family Sociology |
| Sociology | SOCI 045: Sociology of Human Sexuality |
| Spanish | SPAN 001B: Beginning Spanish |
| Spanish | SPAN 002A: Intermediate Spanish |
| Spanish | SPAN 002B: Intermediate Spanish |
| Spanish | SPAN 003A: Advanced Spanish, Oral and Written Composition |
| Spanish | SPAN 003B: Advanced Spanish, Oral and Written Composition |
Sustainability Presentations at West Valley College
"Meeting the Challenges of the 21st Century" presentation by Eugene Fiorini on Friday, February 23, 2018.
Sustainability Movies
Note: Some non-YouTube linked films require WVC login to view, as they are available through the WVC Library.