A year of remarkable accomplishments on the road toward sustainability
✌ Year in review: The year marked a number of milestones as USC continues its efforts to fight climate change starting at home.
Driven to lead, USC sets the pace on carbon neutrality
In a move taken by only a handful of universities, USC aims for carbon neutrality. By 2025, USC will have improved its energy efficiency and expanded the use of solar power. USC also has made sustainability a core part of its curriculum, fostering global citizens who will fight climate change.
Adverse environmental conditions impact a growing number of Angelenos, LABarometer survey finds
The second annual USC Dornsife-Union Bank LABarometer survey regarding sustainability and resilience examines how Los Angeles County residents experience and interact with their natural environment in the midst of a warming climate.
USC Viterbi student engineers looks to the sun to fuel their race car
A diverse team of undergraduate and graduate students is designing and building USC’s first-ever solar-powered race vehicle.
When basics are a luxury, how do you promote sustainability?
$10 milk. Electricity six times the national average. USC students partner with Alaska’s Tlingit indigenous community to find new answers.
A new ratings industry is emerging to help homebuyers assess climate risks
Using big data, a new industry is assessing the risks of flooding and wildfire to an area due to climate change and government standards should be put in place to ensure reliable and accurate information.
These Students Fight Climate Change With Art
See how students use poetry, viola concertos and animated whales to try to wake the world up to climate change.
How to reclaim more water — and save money, too
In Southern California, desalination facilities and wastewater reclamation plants are often near each other. That presents opportunities to provide the most water possible, while minimizing energy usage and keeping the environment in mind, USC Viterbi researchers say.
Professor brings academic research to life in L.A.’s underserved communities
John Wilson is working to improve the well-being of Angelenos through two USC Dornsife Public Exchange projects — one involving urban trees, the other ensuring people have enough to eat.
USC dental students look to make dentistry more sustainable
Single-use gowns, paper towels, gloves, plastic packaging and butcher paper can make dental education’s carbon footprint large, but the Ostrow Sustainability Group aims to change that paradigm — teaching dental students how to practice dentistry without trashing the planet.
U.N. climate conference draws USC experts and students to grapple with solutions
COP26 summit brings the world together to discuss sustainability, and Trojans aim to contribute.
With the clock ticking on climate disaster, USC experts see ways to respond
Scientists and researchers discuss how humanity will respond to climate change as the 26th U.N. Climate Conference and two weeks of negotiations kick off this week.
USC Alumna Prioritizes Sustainability and Access as California’s State Architect
As California state architect, Ida Clair ’87 helps set the standard for building sustainability, accessibility and safety.
Could 3D paper be a sustainable alternative to plastic?
Mechanical engineering student Aidan Leitch hopes his technique of using recycled paper to form solid objects can open doors to environmentally friendly plastic replacements.
Stunning Virtual Reality Project Takes You to the Arctic — and Into Climate Change
Think caribou in the arctic tundra have nothing to do with you? USC students use immersive technology to explain their urgent message for us all.
Students tackle climate change in global simulation conference
Teams focus on subjects such as deforestation, clean technologies, carbon trading and offsets, ocean health and population control.
Blockchain, the Internet of Things and meat: How a summer road trip led to a fellowship
Three USC undergrads — and sustainability fellowship recipients — believe emerging technologies like crypto could play a vital role in reinforcing the meat supply chain.
Undergrads use sustainability fellowship to improve waste disposal for homeless Angelenos
Though Sandra Maestre and Camila Rojas know they can’t solve all of L.A.’s problems, the juniors from Costa Rica and Venezuela are hoping their project can at least address hygiene concerns on Skid Row.
Undergrad sustainability fellow looks to bring urban agriculture to affordable neighborhoods
Urban studies and planning major Baron Zhu is working to see more urban gardens and green spaces in areas with affordable housing around L.A.
2021 USC Alumni Day of SCervice Welcomes Back Trojans After a Year Apart
Volunteers clean up a Santa Monica beach in one of scores of service projects worldwide.
USC earns silver for being green on national sustainability report card
The university underwent a rigorous evaluation by STARS, the nation’s sustainability rating system for colleges and universities, with the results highlighting successes in community partnerships and biodiversity.
Meet USC’s zero waste auditor: Where most people see abandoned fruit, he sees a delicious dessert
Josh Rebello audits trash, compost and recyclables for a living. The data he produces drive sustainable practices at USC, where multistream recycling is expanding.
How to use the new multistream recycling bins you’re seeing around USC
The bins are an important part of USC’s drive toward sustainability — but only if everyone uses them correctly.
Steps silent and unseen move USC toward a more sustainable future
A new report on USC’s sustainability goals reveals progress, including considerable reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, as the university prepares to launch its next sustainability plan.