Faculty Senate to hear report on Stanford's Energy and Climate Plan
Joseph Stagner, executive director of the Department of Sustainability and Energy Management, will discuss the recently announced $250 million initiative at today's meeting, which begins at 3:15 p.m.
Energy sustainability on campus is one of several topics on the agenda today when the Faculty Senate convenes its third meeting of autumn quarter.
The senate also will hear presentations by John Powers, president and chief executive officer of Stanford Management Company, and by Jack Cleary, associate vice president for land, buildings and real estate.
Reducing the Farm's carbon impact
Joseph Stagner, director of Sustainability and Energy Management at Stanford, will discuss Stanford's $250 million initiative, known as the Energy and Climate Plan, to sharply reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions on campus.
Under a long-term plan unveiled Oct. 19, Stanford could reduce the campus carbon impact by as much as 20 percent below 1990 levels by 2020, far exceeding the aggressive goals of California's landmark Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006.
While the initial phases of the plan rely on aggressive energy conservation and major changes to the campus heating and cooling scheme, even more greenhouse gas reductions may be possible through the use of renewable electricity and other energy management technologies now being explored.
The plan is one of the most ambitious carbon-reduction programs of major U.S. universities. It includes higher-than-required energy standards for new buildings, major retrofitting of existing buildings, a significant transformation of the campus energy plant and programs to teach students, faculty and staff how to cut back on their energy use.
State of Stanford's investment pool
John Powers, president and chief executive officer of Stanford Management Company, will review the objectives, structure, investment practices and performance of the Merged Pool.
The Merged Pool is the university's primary investment pool and includes most of Stanford's endowment and expendable funds, as well as capital reserves from Stanford Hospital and Clinics, and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital.
Powers also will discuss lessons learned from the financial crisis of the last 18 months.
In September, Powers announced that the Merged Pool dropped to $14.5 billion for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2009, compared with $20.6 billion for the same period a year ago.
The Stanford Management Co. was established in 1991 to manage the university's financial and real estate assets. Its board of directors, which is appointed by the Stanford University Board of Trustees, approves asset allocation targets, oversees the hiring of external asset managers and evaluates the performance of its investments and professionals.
In addition to Powers, the company's board of directors includes investment and real estate professionals, President John Hennessey and Chief Financial Officer Randy Livingston.
In the fiscal year ending Aug. 31, 2009, the value of Stanford's endowment fell to $12.6 billion, compared with $17.2 billion for the same period a year ago. The change in endowment value includes investment losses and payout for university operations, as well as gifts made to the endowment.
Construction on the Farm
Jack Cleary, vice president of land, buildings and real estate, will give the Faculty Senate a high-level overview of the status of 16 capital projects that were recently completed or are now under construction. Currently, Stanford is in the middle of the largest construction program in its history.
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