Climate Action Progress

Indiana University Climate Action Plan: One Year Later

In September 2023, President Pamela Whitten approved the Indiana University (IU) Climate Action Plan (CAP), which created a pathway for IU to reduce its scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions to neutral by 2040.  

One year later, the IU Office of Sustainability, in collaboration with countless partners across IU, have laid a strong foundation for IU to continue pursuit of its climate action goals.  Below are updates to the recommendations outlined in the CAP, along with additional sustainability updates.

Progress on CAP Recommendations

  • Met with Duke (IUB, IUK, IUSE) and AES Indiana (IUI) to identify opportunities for shared interests, namely: EV, utility-scale (supply-side) renewable solutions, and energy efficiency  
  • IU is engaged in Duke Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) process 
  • AES Indiana IRP will commence in 2025 

  • Repair and Rehabilitation (R&R) funding: Board of Trustees (BOT) approved FY25 R&R budget of $48.2M in June 2024; CAP benefits from: building commissioning, building envelope improvements, mechanical system upgrades, and building controls  
  • “Shut the sash” decals are being applied to fume hoods on all IU campuses as a reminder to save energy when fume hoods are not in use; decals funded by Sustainability and IU School of Medicine (IUSOM), decals applied by Environmental Health and Safety at annual fume hood re-certification 
  • Engaged in lab equipment electrical metering project at IUSOM to understand equipment energy profiles while idle vs in active research; results to inform targeted interventions for laboratory equipment procurement and use 
  • New temperature set points in effect across all IU campuses 
  • Dynamic air filters are being tested at Gatch Hall at IUI with aim of reducing air handler unit energy use 
  • Introduced energy savings lens into FY25 R&R selection; further refinement in development for FY26 selections 

  • Not begun; requires increasing efficiency at central heating plant first (ie: combined heat and power) to ensure correct scaling for hot water loop projects 
 

  • Completed a full inventory of kitchen equipment at IUB to understand fuel type – natural gas vs electric – necessary to plan for equipment electrification or biofuel potential
 

  • Hired consultants to examine cost and construction needs for heat recovery/combined heat and power at IUB; the result of this study was approved at September 2024 BOT meeting and move on for State approval; estimated emissions reduction of 13% at IUB
 

  • Completed an electric vehicle (EV) benchmark study of Big 10 and friends peer institutions to guide IU to correct solution for charging and fleet electrification  
  • Participated in the fleet electrification advisory program, a program of Duke Energy, for all IU campuses; this program created transition planning recommendations for plated university vehicles to move from internal combustion engine to EV 
  • IUI has begun electrifying their grounds equipment; IUB and regionals to test electric grounds equipment this fiscal year 
  • EV charger infrastructure planning has occurred at all IU campuses, including: preliminary engineering analysis, siting considerations, ADA requirements, EV charger features, ownership models, and more 
  • Benchmarked points of intervention during IU’s vehicle procurement process; currently working with Fleet Services and Procurement Services to inform future IU procurement process/policy for EV acquisition 
  • DOT Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Grant was submitted to fund the installation of EV chargers across all IU campuses; this application also included collaborators Purdue University and Ball State University; grant request totaled $5.8 million 

  • The consultant study for combined heat and power at IUB includes considerations for fuel switching to alternatives like hydrogen 
  • Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) grant was submitted for $75,220 in support of a food waste dehydrator at IUB, which has the potential to serve as a biofuel source for central heating plant

  • Existing solar assets at IUB and IUI are being assessed for past performance and operational challenges to inform future strategy  
  • Prioritizing solar study on new builds, including IUI Arena and Lab, as new buildings can be designed to accommodate the vertical and wind load of solar during construction 

  • Launched space heater exchange program; collected and removed over 200 space heaters across IU campuses 
  • Sustainability student internship program is being expanded to all IU campuses fall 2024 semester 
  • Assisted with enhanced space inventory project to further understand space utilization throughout the day 

  • Federal and state grant applications submitted: 
  1. EPA Climate Pollution Reduction Grant: $21.5 million for solar; $12 million for fleet electrification; $75 million for heat recovery  
  2. DOT Charing and Fueling Infrastructure Grant: $5.8 million for EV chargers for all IU campuses 
  3. DNR Urban and Community Forestry: $142k for mapping, interns, trees at all IU campuses 
  4. DNR Natural Disaster Recovery: $40k for replacement trees damaged by storms at IUB and IUSE 
  5. DNR State Urban Forest Resilience: $27,600 for invasive tree species removal and native replacement at IUI 
  6. IDEM Community Recycling Grant: $75,220 for food waste dehydrator at IUB 
  • Energy Fund: currently benchmarking programs across other universities to inform creation of IU Energy Fund 
  • R&R: ongoing funding of energy conservation measures 
  • Capital appropriation request – combined heat and power approved by BOT 

  • New dashboards were created on the Climate Action Plan website: greenhouse gas dashboard, utility data dashboard, and CAP implementation dashboard 
  • A new, centralized Sustainability website is in development for all campuses 
  • Created a list of projects students/faculty can take on to contribute to CAP; this list has been shared through IU Student Government, Integrated Program on the Environment Sustainability Scholars program, and with CAPIC members to distribute 
  • Sustainability has been invited to contribute and provide language for large contract negotiations, including waste and pouring contracts 

  • Scope 3:
    • Gaps in scope 3 reporting have been identified 
    • Scope 3 efforts have been benchmarked among Big 10 universities 
    • Current focus is business travel due to near completeness of data sets and potential for positive impact on university budget 

  • Greening IUI Grant ($25k) + IUB Innovation Fund ($50k) will be available fall 2024 semester to support CAP efforts; these funds support the ideas of students, faculty, and staff to make the campus operations more sustainable

  • Starting in fall 2024, all campuses will begin reporting sustainability performance to Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS) framework  

  • Woodland Campus Initiative: Sustainability supports Tree Campus Committees on each IU campus to ensure Tree Campus Higher Education certification for all campuses; IUI has met 25% of 28% canopy coverage goal; continued investments in tree canopy growth for all campuses 
  • EV siting included considerations for resilience, including impacts of heat and flooding 
  • New builds prioritizing white roofs for heat reflectivity
  • Heat recovery study will support backup energy for IUB, providing power resilience during periods of electricity loss 
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Emissions change from baselines

  • IU Bloomington: 44% reduction from 2010 baseline  
  • IU Indianapolis: 15% reduction from 2020 baseline 
  • IU East: 15% reduction from 2020 baseline 
  • IU Kokomo: 3% increase from 2020 baseline* 
    • *IUK increase driven by addition of one building to the inventory boundary 
  • IU Northwest: 4% decrease from 2020 baseline 
  • IU South Bend: 12% increase from 2020 baseline** 
    • * IUSB increase driven by addition of two buildings (+9,299 sq ft) to the inventory boundary 
  • IU Southeast: 1% decrease from 2020 baseline 

View the full GHG Dashboard

Sustainability is great. Really amazing. The best. Drill baby drill. How much wood can a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? This is approaching the suggested character limit.

Orson T. Cat

IU Bloomington STARS Gold

IUB renewed STARS Gold rating with its highest score yet

IU Indianapolis STARS Gold

IU Indy renewed its STARS Gold rating

Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings

THE Impact Rankings evaluate institutions based on their ability to address key indicators identified by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Indiana University is among the top ranking universities in the US.

#5US rank for IU Indianapolis

#25US rank for IU Bloomington