Campus group urges compliance with environmental protocol

Joining a campaign sweeping across America, a group of four students from the Princeton Conservation Society is spearheading an effort to convince the University to comply with carbon dioxide emission standards outlined in the Kyoto Protocol.

The goal of this environmental compact — signed in December 1997 at the International Climate Summit — is to combat global warming. The agreement dictates that the United States must — in the period between 2008 and 2012 — reduce carbon dioxide emission to levels seven percent below 1990 levels. Because Congress has not yet ratified the agreement, however, the nation is not bound to fulfill its pledge.

According to Kelsey Jack '03, one of four students involved in the drive, the original impetus for this nationwide effort on college campuses came from an organization called Kyoto Now!, created specifically to advocate student activism on this issue. "Kyoto Now! tries to get students to compel universities to accept the Kyoto Protocol in order to influence the government to comply as well," she said.

Princeton Conservation Society president Melissa Waage '01 agreed that universities can play an important role in securing government compliance. "As the U.S. government has not ratified the protocol, it is useful for universities to sign on to it in order to send an encouraging message to Congress," she said.

Keir Soderberg '00, another group member, said the idea of starting a campaign at Princeton came from a conference called "The Greening of the Ivies," hosted on campus in February. "Every year there is a meeting between environmental organizations from the Ivy League schools," he said. "This year the representatives from Yale brought up this suggestion, and several of us thought it would be good to participate."

According to Kyoto Now! advocate Liz Bernier '02, students are actively promoting the environmental standards at five other Ivy League institutions — Harvard, Yale, Cornell, Columbia and Dartmouth.

"At the conference, we drafted a letter addressed to the presidents of our universities," Jack said. "This is a coordinated campaign within Ivy League schools. If they make a commitment to the Kyoto Protocol, it will be a powerful statement to the government, other colleges and private corporations."

The four Princeton students — Jack, Waage, Soderberg and Bernier — met with President Shapiro last week and Vice President for Finance and Administration Richard Spies GS '72 Monday to discuss the protocol. They are planning further meetings next week with several other University officials, including Director of Engineering Thomas Nyquist.

So far, the University has seemed open to addressing the students' concerns, Bernier noted. "Shapiro and Spies have been very receptive, but we're still in the process of figuring out exactly where the University stands," she said.

In fact, the University may already be in compliance with the emissions standards set by the Kyoto Protocol, according to Waage. "The University began operating its own cogeneration plant to power the campus in 1994. That system is extremely efficient and has improved our environmental impact. It was a fantastic step that Princeton took on its own initiative," she explained.

Jack added, however, that it remains unclear whether the University is already in full compliance with the Kyoto guidelines. "We're still collecting data and trying to get the actual numbers figured out," she said. "Even if emissions cuts do need to be made, Princeton is already well ahead of most other universities."

Regardless of whether the University must make changes to comply with the protocol's standards, Bernier believes that University officials will be cooperative. "Princeton has demonstrated a spirit in the past for promoting environmentalism. It depends on how much work needs to be done and the costs involved, but I expect the University will be supportive and make an honest effort to deal with this issue," she said.

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According to Spies, the University generally is sympathetic to environmental concerns. "We are very interested in the environment, more so than most schools," she said. "We are willing to think about these problems in the long term, because we expect Princeton to be here for a long time, and our future matters to us. These students will find that, on basic principle at least, we agree with them."