Opportunities to Get Involved with OSI
These groups are run by the Office of Sustainability Initiatives. Learn more below and email emorysustainability@emory.edu for more information.
Sustainability Representatives
To assist Emory in achieving its sustainability vision, sustainability representatives have been named for all major campus buildings. These individuals were nominated by a dean or departmental supervisor based upon their respect among colleagues and their leadership capabilities to help Emory achieve its sustainability goals. The role of a sustainability representative is:
- to be an ambassador of the initiative to each school and department and to encourage behavioral changes that will create a more sustainable Emory.
- to serve as the interface between this initiative and the building occupants who can make its vision a reality. The building occupants’ daily decisions regarding recycling, energy, water, food, transportation, purchasing, printing, etc. will determine whether Emory builds a truly sustainable campus.
All representatives commit five hours per month to sustainability awareness-building activities and attend a Sustainability Representatives meeting once a month.
Faculty Advisory Council
Faculty liaisons for OSI convene other faculty interested in further integrating sustainability values and practices into the curriculum and research done at Emory. Members advise OSI, as well as advocate for changes in their own departments and academic units.
Emory Healthcare Sustainability Council
Emory health sciences clinicians, faculty, and administrators meet quarterly with a mission and goals to advance initiatives in healthy, healing spaces, develop sustainable operations processes, and cultivate understanding of connections between sustainable communities and healthy people.
Oxford Farm Volunteers
All Emory students are welcome to volunteer on the Oxford farm. Currently, the volunteer times are 2:30-4:30pm on Tuesdays and 9:00-11:00am on Fridays. Please signup to volunteer here. Email daniel.parson@emory.edu for more information.
Student Sustainability Forum
Emory’s Student Sustainability Forum is a group of student leaders from sustainability-related organizations, student publications, and student governmental associations who collaborate and learn about broader campus and community sustainability initiatives.
Zero Waste Ambassadors
Volunteer as a Zero Waste Ambassador! This group’s students, faculty and staff serve as peer-to-peer educators in residence halls, offices, healthcare facilities, labs and during events to educate about proper waste management.
Campus Student Sustainability Groups
AltKEY
AltKEY is an organization where activists and designers come together to spread awareness on upcycling, reducing consumption, and reusing pre-owned items. They strive to create an international organization that reaches many universities across the globe culminating in various sustainability fashion shows, conferences, and summits to educate others about how to be sustainable in the world of fashion and still be profitable. Email anita.osuri@emory.edu to get involved, or follow their instagram here!
Emory Bike Social
Emory Bike Social is a group of undergraduate students dedicated to promoting cycling in the Emory community. They organize regular group bike rides (usually with free food and great scenery!) as well as educational, environmental, sustainability, and activism-oriented events. They collaborate with the Emory Spokes Council, the graduate student club, to run the Fixie, a bike co-op (free bike repair shop). Email l alison.thieberg@emory.edu for more details, or follow their instagram here!
Emory Climate Analysis and Solutions Team
The Emory Climate Analysis and Solutions Team (ECAST) provides a forum for undergraduates, graduate students, & faculty across Emory University to conduct climate-related analyses, advance climate solutions, and host events that aim to increase their members’ capacity to take action. They are committed to building in members the skills they need to become effective climate advocates throughout their Emory career and beyond. ECAST consists of several project teams that each collaborate to develop their own unique environment-related project that aims to improve the state of sustainability at Emory and in surrounding communities. Email eva.li@emoryhealthcare.org to get involved, or follow their instagram here!
Emory Climate Reality Project
The Emory Climate Reality Project strives to fill current gaps across Emory University with respect to climate action and activism. It was founded in Spring 2019 after its founding members attended the Global Leadership Training of the Climate Reality Project, a climate action non-profit organization founded by Al Gore which has chapters across the world. The Emory chapter unites issues of climate, sustainability, and social justice through hosting informative events and by running climate action campaigns. A past campaign included working to convince Emory University to commit to using 100% renewable electricity, but this will shift to various other campaigns throughout our organization’s lifetime. The Emory Climate Reality Project prioritizes inclusivity and invites all students, regardless of major or past experiences, to join them in the fight against the climate crisis! Email dakota.taufeeq@emory.edu to get involved, or follow them on instagram here!
Emory Climate Reality Project – Oxford Chapter
The Oxford Climate Reality Project supports the international Climate Reality Project’s mission to make urgent climate action a necessity across every sector of society. They focus on making Oxford College and the surrounding community a more environmentally aware and sustainable place by advocating for consistent incorporation of sustainable practices into everyday life, promoting increased environmental awareness, and encouraging students to become involved in the environmental future through the work of our committees. Email inesha.gupta@emory.edu to get involved, or follow them on instagram here!
Emory Ecological Society
Part student conservation corps, part biological monitoring organization, the Emory Ecological Society aims to engage the Emory community in order to raise awareness for environmental issues while also bringing about positive change on campus and in surrounding communities. We hope to serve as a forum for both ecology-focused students and the broader Emory community to come together to appreciate our natural spaces and understand the challenges facing them. Email emoryecologicalsociety@gmail.com to get connected, or follow them on Instagram here!
Emory Environmental Report
The Emory Environmental Report is committed to spreading environmental awareness and advocacy through student-driven journalism. The EER is Emory’s hub for the scholarly discussion of contemporary environmental issues. As a student-run academic review, the report will provide insight into the ecological and environmental challenges of the modern day, while enabling committed students to develop solutions for global sustainability. Through a variety of sections providing insights into various aspects of environmentalism, the EER provides a space for rigorous and diverse discussions among the Emory student body. Email emoryenvironmentalreport@gmail.com to find out more, or follow them on Instagram here!
Emory Gardening Group
Emory Gardening Group aims to cultivate a community committed to sustainable living through the joy of gardening. Their mission is to foster a sense of environmental responsibility, wellness, and connection among students. They aim to facilitate hands-on gardening experiences and educational initiatives, and increase student knowledge of the Educational Gardens through PR campaigns, as well as an Emory Gardening Group weekly work day. They also host educational events on home gardening, to promote gardening and fun community-building. Email lydia.king@emory.edu to get involved, or follow them on Instagram here!
Emory Medical Students for Climate Action
Emory MSCA is a graduate student group working towards introducing and advancing sustainability initiatives, climate solutions, and environmental justice in medical education, clinical practice, and the community. Email riya.goel@emory.edu to get involved!
Emory Pi Epsilon Environmental Sciences Honor Society
Pi Epsilon’s first chapter and National Office was founded by a group of Environmental Sciences Ph.D. students at Wright State University in 2003. The Emory chapter was founded in 2022 by a group of Environmental Sciences undergraduates and graduates. Pi Epsilon promotes the study of environmental sciences through the recognition of exemplary scholarly and professional activity at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Environmental science is understood to be the study of our environment and all stressors acting on it: chemical, physical, and biological. The Society seeks to promote interdisciplinary studies and foster interactions between industry and academia to further the study of environmental science. Email emorypiepsilon@gmail.com to get involved!
Emory Spokes Council
Emory Spokes Council is a graduate student organization dedicated to educating and promoting the use of bicycles in the Emory community. They promote the use of bicycles by offering an alternative to expensive repair shops through our on-campus bike shop, The Fixie. They also promote cyclist safety by offering educational workshops on safe riding, and build community through social events and group rides. Email emoryspokescouncil@gmail.com to get in touch, or follow their Instagram here!
Emory Sustainable Business Group
Emory SBG educates, promotes, and provides a network for students interested in business sustainability. Email ari.krupnick@emory.edu to find out more, or follow their Instagram here!
Emory Wellbeing and Sustainability Club
The mission of Emory Wellbeing and Sustainability Club is to advance a healthy, sustainable future within physical therapy, healthcare and society by building a culture of movement spanning all the interdependent systems that support human well-being. Email emorydptsustainability@gmail.com to get involved, or view their website here!
Emory Votes Initiative
The Emory Votes Initiative fosters a more civically engaged campus by providing voter information, increasing voter turnout, and empowering our community with credible political resources. Emory students, staff, and faculty developed this nonpartisan initiative to strengthen and centralize voting efforts on campus. Let’s take the first step toward civic engagement together! One Emory, your vote, our future. Email emoryvotes@emory.edu for more information, or follow their Instagram here!
Goizueta Energy and Clean Tech Association
The mission of the Goizueta Energy & CleanTech Association is to educate graduate students and promote engagement in multiple facets of the energy industry including energy fundamentals and trends, financing, new technologies, and career paths. The Club provides forums to discuss energy & cleantech issues by hosting industry experts and executives to speak on campus at events. The Club will also provide students with opportunities to hone their interview skills (both case and behavioral). Students will get opportunities to exercise their skills at case competitions and connect with industry professionals with potential on-site visits. Email sam.haber@emory.edu to learn more!
Goizueta Sustainability Initiatives
GSI launched in February 2019 and has since grown to more than 80 members, including first year, second year, one-year, and evening MBA students, as well as a handful of BBA students. GSI’s primary objectives are to:
1. Increase awareness and participation in Sustainability practices through:
– Better integration with Emory’s Office of Sustainability Initiatives
– Educational campaigns during new student orientation and throughout the year on: a) reducing waste; b) sustainable food; c) alternative commuting
– Volunteering and participating in events in the Atlanta community
2. Increase Goizueta’s profile as a hub for Sustainable Business through:
– Awareness of career opportunities & business treks
– Participation in local and national case competitions
– Auditing GBS’s Sustainability practices to create long-term institutional change
Email marco.zgliczynski@emory.edu to get involved!
Outdoor Emory
Outdoor Emory is Emory University’s outdoors club with over 1200 registered members. The club sends an average of two trips per weekend to destinations across the Southeast. Trips include backpacking, caving, day hikes, skiing, white-water rafting, and much more! All trips are substantially subsidized and all-inclusive (housing, transportation, food), enabling greater accessibility to outdoor activities that can normally be quite expensive. In addition to fun trips, Outdoor Emory has monthly general body meetings (GBMs) open to all members which involve food, crafts, activities, and other students interested in the outdoors at Emory! To learn more, reach out to adventure@emory.edu, or follow their Instagram here!
Plant Based Emory
Plant Based Emory acts as a support for anyone who is vegan, vegetarian, or interested in learning more about the lifestyle. They work to educate the Emory community on where their food comes from, the health and environmental implications of the food they eat, as well as how animals are treated for clothing, entertainment, and lab experiments. Contact plantbasedemory@gmail.com for more information, or follow their Instagram here!
Plastic Free Emory
Plastic Free Emory is a student-led initiative dedicated to phasing out unnecessary single-use plastic on Emory’s campuses through education, outreach, policy change, and most importantly, a Break Free From Plastic Pledge that marks a phase-out plan for unnecessary single-use plastic by 2026. Email anisha.johnson@emory.edu to get involved, or follow their Instagram here!
Residence Hall Association (RHA) Sustainability Chairs
RHA Sustainability Chairs promote sustainability in all of Emory’s undergraduate residence halls by working to make all RHA programs sustainable certified events, by planning their own themed programs, and by sharing resources and information about sustainability. Join the Residence Hall Association by emailing rha.emory@emory.edu, or follow their Instagram here!
Rollins Environmental Health Action Committee
REHAC’s is a student-run organization at Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University. They believe the environment influences our health and, as health advocates, we must promote a safe and sustainable community. REHAC seeks to improve and protect our living and working environment through locally focused and collaborative education, action, and reaction. Each semester they organize and promote various volunteer opportunities, advocacy events, and guest lecturers. They also sponsor events to help strengthen environmental awareness in our community. All interested RSPH students are welcome to get involved! Email rehac.emory@gmail.com for more info, or follow their Instagram here!
Slow Food Emory
Slow Food Emory is a local campus chapter of the international Slow Food Movement. Their main goal is to advocate “Good, Clean, and Fair” food in a way that is adaptable and accessible to Emory students. Slow Food Emory strives to reconnect students to the soil, water, organisms, cultures, and traditions salient to the production of food and establish sustainable communal interactions. Slow Food Emory seeks to invigorate genuine interest in food policy and production, encourage student involvement with the local sustainable food community, and encourage an appreciation for the importance of food in our daily lives. Email sabrina.li@emory.edu to learn more, or follow their Instagram here!