May 2024

Congratulations to all the Wolverines graduating this month!

Elektron Solar Project Update

UVU Fountain Plaza

On April 23, KSL's Shelby Lofton interviewed UVU's Val Peterson about the upcoming completion of the Elektron Solar farm. Here are a few highlights:

"When the opportunity came for us to be able to participate with Elektron and take our campus energy usage to 92% green, we just felt like it was a great opportunity to make UVU, which is a green campus, even greener, said Val Peterson, UVU’s vice president for administration and strategic relations.

UVU has a goal to be carbon neutral by 2050. It’s a goal they said they can meet with the renewable energy coming from Elektron.

“With this project, it’ll be about the equivalent of taking 886 cars off the road,” Peterson said.

News video and full article

Sustainability Summit 2024: Campus Tour

The 3rd Annual UVU Sustainability Summit on April 9, 2024, included four enriching panel discussions with leaders working in Government, the Great Salt Lake, Worldview/Interfaith, and Business (see April newsletter for more details). The Summit closed out with a campus sustainability tour featuring behind-the-scenes highlights of sustainability efforts in operations across campus.

A group of people looking out a window in the Clarke Building

We kicked things off by learning about the GRIT Garden. UVU students Iris Cepeda and Isabel Lykken, shared impressive totals from just the first two years of the campus garden production: 3.25 tons of produce, 750 volunteers, 275 students educated, 7 research projects, and formally worked with six classes across academic disciplines.

A group of people outside the UVU CARE Hub

Second, we stopped by the CARE Hub to learn from Kinsey Oldroyd, UVU's Food Access Program Manager. The CARE Hub works with community food pantries and the UVU GRIT Garden to get healthy produce to UVU students at no cost. During 2023, the CARE Hub distributed 36,000 lbs of food and served more than 4,900 students.

A group of people at the UVU Outdoor Adventure Center

Our third stop was to the Outdoor Adventure Center where Program Director Kimberly Reynolds and her team discussed the benefits of outdoor, non-motorized recreation and how the center provides affordable equipment rentals and organized outings for activities like climbing, hiking, camping, snow-shoeing, etc.

A group of people at the UVU recycling baler

Next up was a closer look at a recycling baler with Dylan Genes, UVU's Recycling Coordinator. UVU Recycling has recently expanded its operating capacity with an additional baler, essentially doubling paper output each month.

A group of people at the UVU Fountain Plaza

The group then stopped at the Fountain Plaza where Kyle Pope, Irrigation and Landscaping Manager, and John Hansen, Grounds Director, talked about the technology that the team uses to optimize watering and improve efficiency. The Grounds crew has strategically integrated more water-wise landscaping to save water and money while keeping campus a welcoming place.

A group of people at the UVU Fountain Plaza

A big part of that welcoming feel is the trees on campus. Stacy Hamm, an architect with UVU Facilities and Planning serves as co-chair (with John Hansen, Grounds Director) of the Tree Campus Advisory Committee and has helped UVU achieve "Tree Campus" designation by the Arbor Day Foundation every year since 2017. (More information about Grounds and Landscaping)

A group of people at UVU's central plant

The tour concluded with a visit to the central plant on campus. Scott Draper, Assistant Director of the Central Plant explained how the plant utilizes renewable geothermal energy to provide campus with most of its heating and cooling needs. He uses a combination of detailed computer programs and a team of talented technicians that keep energy use on campus as efficient as possible.

And that concludes our first full year hosting the UVU Campus Sustainability Tour Series. Watch a 1-minute highlight reel of the monthly tours.

Celebrating National Bike Month

May is National Bike Month and UVU is joining the fun with a couple of events!

MAY 16 - Bike Orem is teaming up with the City of Orem to host "Bike to Work (or Anywhere) Day" on Thursday, May 16th. Featured stations include: 1. Murdock Canal at the Canyon Park Tech Center, 2. Orem Public Library, 3. The Orchard at University Place, 4. Student Life Plaza at Utah Valley University, and 5. Orem Fitness Center. The UVU station will take place 7:30-9:00 am and will include the following:

complimentary breakfast refreshments for all those arriving by bike
free safety checks by technicians from the Outdoor Adventure Center
bike course to play around with
swag and giveaways like stickers, T-shirts, and more
group rides and promo photos around lower campus at 8:00 and again at 8:30

MAY 30 - The Active Transportation Committee is piloting a group UVU-UTA ride that is open to everyone. We will:

4:45 pm - Meet on the East side of the pedestrian bridge on UVU's main Orem campus
Cross the pedestrian bridge to the Orem FrontRunner Station
5:24 pm - Board the Northbound train - securing bikes in the designated train cars. UVU (and BYU) students*, faculty, and staff can ride free with ID card (*to be eligible for free fare during summer, students must be enrolled in a minimum of 1 credit hour). Dependents can also ride free if they have applied for dependent cards through Campus Connection.
5:44 pm - Get off at the Lehi FrontRunner Station and ride bikes to UVU's Lehi Campus and other area amenities. Refreshments provided by UVU Facilities.
Return 1) by UTA FrontRunner to Orem Station (with a wave hello to UVU's future Vineyard Campus as we pass by the Vineyard Station) - during the evening hours trains run every 30 minutes, or other UTA buses; OR 2) by bike along the Murdock Canal Trail