Sustainability Positions Draft Proposal

Ad hoc Sustainability Advisory Group Revised 3/25/08

Context

Portland State University has an overarching commitment to understanding sustainable development as it pertains to environmental integrity and human development, and to exploring the ways that human and social systems and institutions guide the decisions that affect sustainability in the environmental, social and economic spheres. PSU ’s expertise is concentrated in two main, inter-connected areas – the coupling of human and natural systems, and sustainability in urban and urbanizing communities. PSU also has particular strengths in two cross-cutting topical areas – metrics and evaluation, and mechanisms that effect change and foster engagement at the individual, organizational, societal and ecosystem levels.

PSU is already a recognized leader in sustainability in both its operational practices and its educational mission, and is actively contributing to deepening the knowledge base in these areas and to advancing sustainability efforts in local, state, regional and international settings. We have the opportunity to leverage our joint commitments to sustainability and internationalization by developing a research agenda that ensures our leadership in sustainable development at the global as well as the regional and national levels.

With the goal of becoming a premier sustainability research institution in the region, nationally, and globally, PSU seeks to add faculty with expertise in specific sustainability-related areas. This investment is critically important, for while PSU has considerable competency in the social, economic, policy and other aspects of sustainability, our capacity is thin relative to the level of current demand and the growing opportunities in this field. With these new faculty investments, Portland State has the potential to catalyze new and expanded research in collaboration with its many public and private sector partners in the city, the state, the region, and beyond.

Those hired will contribute to sustainability directly through their research, teaching and service, through their involvement in cross campus, collaborative initiatives, and through engagement in the communities we serve. Knitting together individuals, programs and initiatives will be critical to the success of this investment strategy. For this reason, developing an organizational structure that supports collaboration in these areas and that ensures the effective integration of new and existing faculty is an essential step to support the success of PSU’s sustainability research agenda. The development of medium and long term goals for the sustainability research program and of an evaluation framework to assess progress toward these goals is another important step to ensure the success of the broader research program and to provide a robust and transparent programmatic context for this program. Members of the faculty advisory group and others from the PSU community would welcome the opportunity to develop such organizational structures, goals and frameworks.

1 Ad hoc Sustainability Advisory Group Revised 3/25/08

The following section describes the focal areas of PSU’s sustainability research in more detail, followed by descriptions of potential faculty positions. A matrix that maps positions against focal areas can be found at the end of this document.

Focal Areas (A-D)

A. Coupling of Human and Natural Systems – ecological systems, policy, technology, behavior, social and economic aspects, hard and soft solutions

The unsustainable practices and policies that threaten the health of ecosystems and communities of all types reflect a “disconnect” between natural and human systems. Sustainable solutions seek to integrate the environmental, social and economic spheres in ways which support the integrity, health and restoration of both of these systems. However, achieving this integration requires new ways of thinking across disciplines and new ways of translating academic research into practice.

PSU already has significant expertise in research related to the interface between biophysical systems (e.g. streams, lakes, watersheds, coastal margins, flora and fauna, ecosystem services, etc) and human communities (e.g. individual’s mental, physical and economic well-being, sustainable practices, planning, food systems, etc.). Additional faculty members with complementary expertise in this area will help leverage existing strengths in this area and could reside in a number of departments across campus.

By investing in additional faculty whose expertise relates to the bridging between human and natural systems - particularly as it relates to urban environments, the rural-urban interface and international as well as regional contexts - PSU can develop a broader, deeper and more integrated program that could serve as a national and international leader in this area. The new scholars should also possess the capacity to deepen community engagement on such complex sustainability issues, collaborating with public and private sector partners at all levels. . B. Sustainable Urban Communities – urban ecology, social and economic systems and the built environment

PSU is already known nationally and internationally for its expertise in urban systems and in the rural-urban interface--expertise that encompasses ecosystem management, planning and community development, transportation, governance, ecology, infrastructure, social sustainability, and community health. Expertise resides in departments across campus.

PSU has the opportunity to create a more integrated program that brings together these areas of expertise within a framework that addresses the social, economic and environmental elements of healthy and resilient urban communities (both biophysical communities and social communities). This program would integrate PSU’s growing understanding of ecosystem functions and services within the more human oriented sciences such as economics and sociology. As an urban university situated at the center

2 Ad hoc Sustainability Advisory Group Revised 3/25/08 of a progressive metropolitan area, PSU has the opportunity to establish long-term research projects that monitor the ecological and socio-economic conditions of this urban area and that reach beyond the built environment to incorporate the larger watershed context.

Hiring faculty members that can translate between the natural and built environments, as well as among ecology, sociology and economics, can help us achieve a more holistic understanding of the urban ecosystem and national leadership in this field.

C: Implementing Sustainable Solutions: Mechanisms for Change

Developing a better understanding of how to enhance public awareness and engagement related to the challenges facing the planet must be central to any long term sustainable solutions to climate change, social inequities, landscape degradation and other issues. This realm encompasses issues of human development, consumer choice, lifestyle and behavior change at multiple levels.

PSU has a unique concentration of degree programs, certificates, schools, etc. with research focused on change at the individual, family, organizational and institutional levels. Behavioral change at these different levels constitutes a focal area for most of the schools and colleges. PSU is one of a few universities in the U.S. with a graduate program in education and sustainability and is unique in offering an interdisciplinary and applied focus on social sustainability.

By linking existing faculty and integrating new faculty into a programmatic focus on these aspects of change, PSU has the opportunity to develop a program that would have impacts at the national and international levels. For example, one area of focus within such a program could be the human dimensions of climate change--how the consumer choices, business behaviors, and government regulations affect this issue both positively and negatively. Another example of focus within such a program could be the management of invasive species, which similarly constitutes a global threat with direct local implications. Such a program encompasses social investments, technology development, population growth and migration, cultural contexts, economic institutions, governance systems, the human impacts of a changing environment, human perceptions and valuations of ecosystem services, environmental justice, disaster management and mitigation, consumption patterns, systems of provision, supply chains, interactions of markets and policies, development of new business models, etc.

This focal area provide an overarching cross-disciplinary framework to bridge the work being done across PSU’s campus on the multiple mechanism and strategies for effecting change at the individual, organizational and societal levels. By integrating these efforts, PSU can offer a unique analytical framework and understanding of what actions need to happen at all scales to realize truly sustainable development.

D: Making Sustainability Credible: Measurement, Valuation, and Evaluation

As public and private sector players seek to develop and implement long term solutions to issues ranging from climate change to ecosystem degradation to public health, there is a significant need for more empirical and theoretically-grounded methods of impact assessment (health impact assessment, triple bottom line impact assessment, long term/intergenerational impact assessment) and for improved tools and strategies to inform public discussions, business decisions and public policy-making. These systems are essential to understand whether policies and programs are working, and to provide the feedback loops needed to refine and adapt decisions based on their impacts on the ground. Such information systems can improve the abilities of public and private actors to weigh the relative effects of their current actions and the impacts of choices made about future actions (that may produce either “more” or “less” “sustainable” results). What criteria are relevant? What kind of “metrics” are needed? How difficult are they to develop? How can they best be created, reported, and interpreted? How can they be best implemented?

In addition, the development of new and innovative valuation methodologies is needed to ensure that social and economic forces better reflect the value of natural systems (i.e. ecosystem services) to take into account long term and less easily quantifiable costs and benefits.

PSU offers the ideal platform to develop and test new and innovative decision-support systems to inform local, state, regional policy and market choices, and to help in conceiving, measuring, and communicating about socio-environmental change processes at the regional scale. Topical areas for sustainability include regional genuine progress indicators, salmon recovery models, flood prediction models, landslide models, climate change models, “evidence based” prescriptive models in medicine, criminal justice, etc. and social and economic well being models.

This focal area should be promoted as a core area that provides the underlying rigor and guidance that enhance the value and effectiveness of all the other areas of focus. It could serve both to guide research efforts as well as a sort of continuous “auditing/evaluation” center to gauge the effectiveness of research findings after implementation. The number of research projects that would be generated either by teams or individuals would be impressive as well as of tremendous value to a wider audience of practitioners.

Potential Positions (1-10): numbers do not reflect priority ranking

Position 1: Landscape Level Systems Specialist (Rural-urban interface)

Scholarly interests that would complement/strengthen PSU programs: patterns and processes of urban systems as they relate to the integrity of human and ecological conditions, landscape level effects in urban and rural managed landscapes, food systems, “land use planning in 2020” (making farms and forests and green spaces work); ecosystem impact assessment and management; transportation systems (esp. relationship between transportation systems, land use/development, and economic/demographic

4 Ad hoc Sustainability Advisory Group Revised 3/25/08 systems), water across the landscape; extra-urban cultural linkages; could be configured as an ecologist with a policy/environmental management bent.

What this position leverages at PSU: ecosystem science and management, land use and planning expertise, invasive species management, water resources management, food systems interests, environmental and natural resource policy strengths, urban ecology

What this position leverages/ how contributes in the community/region: urban planning, ecosystem management, land use leadership, green spaces, food system leadership, water resources management

Position 2: Human Health and the Environment

Scholarly interests that would complement/strengthen PSU programs: Environmental health, outdoor photochemical modeling, confluence issues, (i.e. bio accumulating toxins, and asymmetric distribution of effects, i.e. air pollution in the Columbia River Gorge). Impacts of climate change on health, land use and health (e.g. obesity issues), social/equity issues related to green space, environmental justice.

What this position leverages at PSU: community health, public health, urban ecology, ecosystem management, urban planning, urban heat island research, climate issues, social sustainability

What this position leverages/ how contributes in the community/region: environmental justice, environmental health, quality of life, regional planning, climate change/policies

Position 3: Energy Economist (climate change as priority)

Scholarly interests that would complement/strengthen PSU programs: energy economics, economics of climate change, renewable/clean energy systems, costs of environmental impacts related to energy alternatives, economics of transportation (as relates to energy/fuels), human behavior and energy issues; possibly economic impacts of public transportation investments (streetcar, rail, bus)

What this position leverages/supports: transportation, energy economics certificate (currently not offered due to lack of tenure track faculty) – could be offered across departments/degree programs, could link energy expertise across campus, natural resource policy strengths

What this position leverages/ how contributes in the community/region: leadership/interest in innovative energy policies

Position 4: Sustainability Policy with Natural Resource/Water Focus

Scholarly interests that would complement/strengthen PSU programs: policy and administrative aspects of sustainability, water resources, interest in complex jurisdictional

5 Ad hoc Sustainability Advisory Group Revised 3/25/08 water issues (e.g., Columbia and Klamath basins) and process oriented issues; e.g., human impacts on watersheds, approaches to addressing over-constrained water resources, ecological and social adaptation to changing hydrological patterns, ecosystem services, environmental governance, urban/rural interface, coastal ecosystem management, invasive species management

What this position leverages/supports at PSU: technical strengths in water and ecosystem management issues, leadership in environmental/NR policy and governance, collaborative decision making, invasive species management,

What this position leverages/ how contributes in the community/region: leadership/interest in innovative sustainability policies, leadership in ecosystem management, invasive species management, water quality/quantity concerns, conflict in regions around water, ecosystem service interests

Position 5: Technical Energy Expert (Efficiency, Renewables)

Scholarly interests that would complement/strengthen PSU programs: energy efficiency and/or renewable energy (specific focus to complement other hires underway in MCECS)

What this position leverages at PSU: while there is energy expertise across campus, need more technical expertise in both of these areas to fully realize research opportunities (e.g. MCECS has underutilized photovoltaics testing lab, opportunity to work on wind power technology but lack expertise); need for more expertise in energy as it relates to transportation

What this position leverages/ how contributes in the community/region: BEST, growing leadership in energy efficiency and renewables.

Position 6: Environmental/Sustainability Finance

Scholarly interests that would complement/strengthen PSU programs: Expertise in environmental finance/triple bottom line financing strategies, ecological economics, ecosystem services valuation methods, ecosystem service markets; possibly interest in sustainable business models (public-private interface), micro enterprise as it relates to social capital development

What this position leverages at PSU: ecosystem science and management, governance and policy leadership, interest in innovative public finance models, environmental governance, intergenerational finance interests

What this position leverages/ how contributes in the community/region: leadership in incentives/policies to support sustainable development, ecosystem marketplace development,

Position 7: Triple Bottom Line Impact Assessment, Decision Support Systems, “Pathway” Analysis (integrated life cycle assessment, carbon footprint analysis/strategies)

Scholarly interests that would complement/strengthen PSU programs: Sustainability metrics (social, environmental, economic), triple bottom line pathway analysis (economic, social and environmental aspects of life cycle assessment, industrial ecology, etc), carbon footprint assessment, health impact assessment, spatial analysis, evaluation of program and policy impacts. If had strong economics bent, could address ecological and social (i.e. non-market) valuation methods.

What this position leverages at PSU: interest/need for more “triple bottom line” impact assessment expertise that complements transportation evaluation (opportunity to support evaluation of public transportation investments and impacts of alternative fuel adoption), interest in climate impacts/strategies; assessment of energy and emissions outcomes of various development paths); health evaluation, social/economic/environmental evaluation. Strong interest in non-market valuation.

What this position leverages/how contributes in the community/region: demand for assistance in carbon footprint/carbon strategy development, life cycle assessment, stronger evaluation techniques that address all spheres of sustainability (green building, transportation, policy alternatives etc), triple bottom line impact assessment

Position 8: Education/Public Awareness and Engagement/Behavior Change

Scholarly interests that would complement/strengthen PSU programs: mechanisms to enhance public awareness, engagement, and behavior change related to sustainability, non-formal and free-choice learning, moral and justice issues concerning environmental management, consumer choice, lifestyle, and behavior change, social marketing strategies, evaluation techniques relevant to awareness and engagement

What this position leverages at PSU: engagement as central to PSU’s identify – opportunity to build evaluative and implementation in this area, leadership in sustainability education across campus, educational programs focused on sustainability, multiple programs focused on behavioral change

What this position leverages/how contributes in the community/region: investment in civil society, interest in fostering behavior change toward sustainability through integrated strategies (policy, education, incentives, etc)

Position 9: “People and the Built Environment” (integrated grasp of environmental, social and economic aspects/impacts of green development of the built environment)

Scholarly interests that would complement/strengthen PSU programs:

Productivity effects of green building, health effects of green development, measurement and assessment of interrelationships between buildings/development patterns and people/social systems, evaluation expertise

What this position leverages at PSU: green building expertise growing (ARCH, MCECS), BEST, social sustainability, impact assessment, education, behavioral change

What this position leverages/ how contributes in the community/region: leadership in green building, need for more research on these aspects of green development, lack of R&D capacity in private sector, BEST

Position 10: Green Development of Infrastructure and the Built Environment – practice and policy

Scholarly interests that would complement/strengthen PSU programs: approaches to green infrastructure (technical and policy level), transportation infrastructure (modes, materials and propulsion), assessment of ecological impacts downstream from green development, technologies and strategies for low impact development, building systems (energy, water, air quality, etc), controls, information systems, material science, ecoroofs, evaluation expertise.

What this position leverages at PSU: Positions in MCECS and ARCH, BEST. USP, ongoing research in MCECS and ESR on low impact development, and on broader ecosystem impacts (water resources, heat island effect, health effects) of green infrastructure

What this position leverages/ how contributes in the community/region: planning, leadership in green development, lack or R&D resources in private sector, BEST, environmental planning and management of green buildings and low impact development patterns

Matrix: Focal Areas and Positions

Positions listed without A: Coupling of Human B: Sustainable Urban C: Mechanisms for D. Measurement, priority ranking and Natural Systems Communities Change Valuation, Evaluation

1- Landscape Systems X X

2 – Health and X X X Environment 3 – Energy Economics X X X X

4 – Sustainability X X X X Policy/ Water 5 – Energy X X Efficiency/Renewables 6 – Environmental X X X X Finance 7 – Triple Bottom Line X X X X Impact Assessment 8 – Education and Public X X X X Awareness 9 - People and the Built X X X X Environment 10 – Green X X X Infrastructure