2022 Sustainability Report

MSU has made long-standing commitments and progress in sustainability as a global leader by investing in sustainable research innovation and education, embracing sustainable operations, and engaging communities in sustainable action. Despite the challenges and transformational changes occuring around the world, MSU has made significant progress in advancing sustainability locally, regionally and globally. This report reflects the university's sustainability accomplishments and activities in 2022.  

2022 Highlights

We celebrated many great successes this year, including becoming an affiliate of the Bee Campus USA program, ranking No. 26 globally in the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, and reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by 36% from our 2010 baseline. See below for additional highlights from 2022 along with MSU's efforts to support progress in delivering on the 17 U.N. Sustainable Development Goals.

MSU reduces its greenhouse gas emissions by 36% as part of strategic plan implementation. Learn more.

MSU ranks globally for impact on UN Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more.

MSU designated as an affiliate of the Bee Campus USA program. Learn more.

T.B. Simon Power Plant reduces carbon footprint with R.I.C.E. technology. Learn more.

MSU expands electric vehicle fleet, bringing 40 EVs to campus. Learn more.

MSU launches climate change research initiative. Learn more.

MSU student families benefit from new partnership between the MSU Student Organic Farm and MSU Student Parent Resource Center. Learn more.

MSU Museum 1.5 Celsius exhibition and programs explore the impact of the global climate crisis. Learn more.

STEM Teaching and Learning Facility wins 2022 U.S. WoodWorks Wood Design Award for using mass timber. Learn more.

Making an Impact: How MSU is helping advance the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals

The MSU 2030 Strategic Plan calls for MSU to be a leader in developing transdisciplinary solutions to ecological and human problems affected by social, economic, political, climate and environmental changes. In 2015, U.N. member states agreed to implement the 17 U.N. Sustainable Development Goals within their own countries in order to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Learn how MSU is making tremendous impact in alignment with these global goals below.

By the Numbers

  • Over 6,950 students from low-income families received financial aid during the 2022 academic year.
  • 1,945 students coming to MSU in the 2022 academic year were first-generation students starting a degree.
  • MSU donated over 12,000 lbs of food to 10 local organizations from food collected during the annual Pack Up Pitch In sustainable move out program.
  • MSU Extension reached 342,121 adults and youth reached through in-person and virtual nutrition education programming in 2022, helping adults, families and children gain crucial knowledge about nutrition and healthy foods, increas their daily physical activity and reduce their food insecurity.

Programs and Initiatives

  • MSU was recognized as part of the 2021-2022 First-gen Forward Cohort by the Center for First-Generation Student Success, which acknowledges higher education institutions for their commitment to first-generation student success.
  • MSU launched the First-Generation College Student Initiative in the summer of 2022, which aims to inspire first-generation college students to persist and graduate by eliminating barriers and providing high-impact learning experiences along with ongoing student development. The program will become a leading space for work that closes opportunity gaps while elevating the voices and needs of MSU’s first-generation students. 

Researcher Spotlight

  • Dr. Saweda Liverpool-Tasie was named as a MSU Foundation Professor and appointed by President Biden to the Board for International Food and Agricultural Development. Dr. Liverpool-Tasie focuses on smallholders and market value-chain functioning in Sub-Saharan Africa. She ongoingly emphasizes collaboration with local partners, including researchers, policymakers and civil society to develop innovations that are implementable and effective at reducing poverty and creating more resilient communities.

Student Spotlight

  • The Spartan Global Development Fund, a registered student organization at MSU, aims to educate, inspire, and enable tomorrow’s agents of global change by raising funds locally in order to offer interest-free microloans to aspiring entrepreneurs throughout developing regions of world. To date, SGDF has made more than $134,000 in mircoloans to over 3,000 individuals in 72 countries. Five MSU students share their experiences being involved with the Spartan Global Development Fund.

Related Plans and Reports

By the Numbers

  • The MSU Student Organic Farm sold 5,599 lbs of produce to all campus dining venues from March 2022 through February 2023.
  • MSU donated over 12,000 lbs of nonperishable food to 10 local organizations during spring 2022 moveout.
  • MSU Extension offered educational programs focused on animal agriculture that were accessed by over 9,000 participants.

Programs and Initiatives

  • The MSU Student Organic Farm provided over 2,000 lbs of fresh produce to the Student Parent Resource Center in November 2022 as part of a new partnership supporting food-insecure Spartan families. Read more.
  • MSU researchers are part of a team of more than 30 partners nationwide who will use a five-year, $15 million grant from NASA to strengthen U.S. agriculture as it faces climate threats. The MSU team will leverage Earth observation technology to support climate resilience in agriculture. Read more.
  • From June to September, MSU AgBioResearch and MSU Extension researchers and outreach specialists hosted 13 field days across the state, covering topics from hops and wheat to dairy and regenerative agriculture. Read more.
  • MSU Extension engaged with Ukrainian dairy farmers to increase milk production. Read more.

Researcher Spotlights

  • Dr. Jason Rowntree, C.S. Mott Professor of Sustainable Agriculture at Michigan State University, is leading a $19 million research project to understand how grazing management affects soil health and farmer well-being.

  • Dr. Felicia Wu, a John A. Hannah Distinguished Professor and an international expert on food safety within the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition and the Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics, was appointed as president-elect of the Society for Risk Analysis. Read more.

Student Spotlight

  • Jalen Lillard, a senior studying horticulture, reflects on finding his passion for farming as part his experience with the Residential Initiative on the Study of the Environment (RISE) Program, the Bailey Greenhouse and Urban Farm and Student Organic Farm on campus. Read more.
  • Spartan Food Security Council, a student group on campus, joined a national campaign to Swipe Out Hunger. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

By the Numbers

  • MSU Extension’s nutrition and physical activity programming helped Michigan adults, families and children gain crucial knowledge about nutrition and healthy foods, increase their daily physical activity and reduce their food insecurity. In 2022:
    • 4,190 health and nutrition programs were delivered, both in person and virtually.
    • 8,821 adults participated in 512 food safety programs.
    • 200,438 adults and youth participated in MSU Extension's in-person and virtual nutrition education programming.
    • 532,236 individuals were engaged through indirect outreach by MSU Extension's nutrition and physical activity education, which includes videos, social media postings, podcasts, articles and fact sheets.
    • In 2022, MSU Extension helped implement almost 37,000 PSE changes at 185 sites across Michigan, reaching 157,191 people.

Programs and Initiatives

  • MSU welcomed Dr. Alexis Travis as assistant provost and executive director, overseeing the university’s new University Health and Wellbeing division. The division brings together 11 departments focused on supporting faculty, staff and student health and wellbeing. 
  • MSU launched a pilot partnership with Uwill to expand mental health service capacity for students. UWill services will act as an extension of the university’s Counseling and Psychiatric Services (CAPS) department, providing students with free video, phone, chat and message sessions with licensed mental health professionals.
  • The MSU College of Education and Michigan Center for Rural Health are partnering on a project to support rural veterans with and without disabilities. The Improving Rural Enrollment, Access and Healthcare in Rural Veterans, or I-REACH Project, aims to improve access to needed health care services and better the coordination of care.  

Researcher Spotlight

  • Dr. Stephanie Watts, a leading researcher at the MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine in the field of vascular research, is leading an interdisciplinary team that was awarded $13.5M to study Perivascular Adipose Issue (PVAT) as a central integrator of vascular health.

Student Spotlight

  • Exercise is Medicine on Campus, a student organization, hosted the 7th annual Health Homecoming Walk in October 2022. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

By the Numbers

  • For the third year in a row, MSU was named #2 in the world for education in the ShanghaiRanking Global Ranking of Academic Subjects.
  • In 2022, 27,164 students engaged in community-engaged learning as reported in the MSU Community Engaged Learning Index.
  • During the 2022-2023 academic year, more than 4,600 students received additional financial aid in the spring semester. MSU invested more than $208 million in student financial aid for this academic year - an increase of nearly $11.9M over the previous year.
  • MSU offers a vast array of sustainability learning opportunities with three flagship degree programs in sustainability and over 20 undergraduate minors rooted in sustainability. 
  • Undergraduate and graduate students can enrich their studies by taking advantage of over 800 sustainability course offerings across 75 academic departments.

Programs and Initiatives

Researcher Spotlight

  • Tanya S. Wright, Michigan State University associate professor of language and literacy, was selected to receive the Jerry Johns Outstanding Teacher Educator in Reading Award from the International Literacy Association. The award recognizes a teacher in higher education who exemplifies outstanding teaching of reading and reading methods and who is an innovative leader, mentor and scholar within the field of literacy education. Read more.

Student Group Spotlight

  • The Aspiring Educators of Michigan State University is a pre-professional organization for students studying to become educators, school psychologists and counselors, social workers, speech pathologists, nurses, and others supporting K-12 education. In 2022, the club organized a food and school supply drive for Kendon Elementary School in Lansing.

Related Plans and Reports

By the Numbers

  • Women made up 52% of the fall 2022 entering class.

Programs and Initiatives

  • The All-Gender Restroom Design Study is a stakeholder initiative to support equitable and inclusive restroom access at MSU. The study will identify parameters for the initial scope and serve as a guide for future improvement projects. MSU hosted townhalls in April 2022 to contribute to the overarching vision for restroom access at the university. Read more.
  • MSU joined the Association for Women in Science. MSU students, staff and faculty may join AWIS now free under the MSU institutional agreement. AWIS offers webinars, career resources, networking and more.
  • The Women*s Initiative for Leadership Development (WILD) is a student leadership initiative facilitated by a committee of engaged students in collaboration with Women*s Student Services and Women*s Council on campus. WILD held its annual conference in November 2022. Read more.
  • The Alliance for African Partnership welcomed its third cohort of African Futures Scholars in 2022. This program is designed to address the gender gap of researchers in Africa. The program aims to train early career African women researchers who, upon return to their home institutions at the end of the program, become scientific leaders in their community, help solve Africa's challenges, and become trainers of the next generation. Read more. 

Researcher and Student Spotlights

  • The American Council of Education Michigan Women’s Network honored Michigan State University Provost Teresa K. Woodruff with the 2022 Distinguished Woman in Higher Education Leadership Award. Read more.

Student Spotlight

  • Fisheries and Wildlife PhD student Edith Gondwe received the prestigious international fellowship from the American Association of University Women. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

By the Numbers

  • MSU uses 5 different water distribution systems that provide clean drinking water across its 5,200 acre campus in East Lansing.

Programs and Initiatives

  • MSU Extension coordinates a free Michigan Water School program, which features sessions on water quality, quantity, and policy, as well as how to plan for water infrastructure replacement. Read more.

Researcher Spotlight

  • Jeremy Orr, an adjunct professor of law in the MSU College of Law with expertise in water sustainability and issues of access and affordability, reflects on the Flint Water Crisis and its impact. Read more.
  • Joan Rose, Homer Nowlin Endowed Chair for Water Research at MSU, was part of an expert panel for the National Water Research Institute preparing a memorandum of findings for the California State Water Board Division of Drinking Water. Read more.

Staff Spotlight

Student Spotlight

  • Syed Rizvi, a second-year Osteopathic Medicine student at MSU, jumpstarted a student organization fundraiser to provide drinking water to those in need in Pakistan. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

By the Numbers

  • Three new natural gas-fired reciprocating internal combustion engines that generate up to 27 megawatts of electricity at peak output began producing electricity at the T.B. Simon Power Plant in February 2022. The new $47 million engine plant started producing electricity in February 2022, and Unlike the old boiler and steam turbine systems, the new $47 million engines can be started and stopped more readily to adjust quickly to changing campus power needs.
  • MSU has started transitioning part of its vehicle fleet to EVs, bringing 47 new electric vehicles to campus. There are 52 non-public chargers for the university fleet and 14 public chargers on campus for community use.

Programs and Initiatives

  • MSU kicked off a utility master planning process which includes a utility generation and distribution equipment condition assessment and a campus energy model and forecast demand development. As part of the planning process, it will evaluate options for the utility infrastructure on campus that support the university’s climate neutrality commitment, are cost effective, and balance risk and reliability.
  • MSU Infrastructure Planning and Facilities has recently completed a campuswide update of exterior lighting in coordination with the MSU Department of Police and Public Safety. The update will reduce MSU’s energy usage and also increase safety for Spartans who are traversing campus at night.

Researcher Spotlight

  • The MSU Innovation Center recognized Richard Lunt, Ph.D., the Johansen Crosby Endowed Professor of chemical engineering and materials science at MSU, with the 2022 Technology Transfer Achievement Award for his work on transparent solar cells.
  • MSU Foundation Professor Andrew Christlieb in the College of Natural Science is leading a $15M project funded by the U.S. Department of Energy to help make fusion energy a reality. Read more.

Staff Spotlight

  • Meet the faces of MSU Power and Water who operate the T.B. Simon Power Plant on campus and the manage the campus water distribution system.

Student Spotlight

  • The Michigan State University Industrial Assessment Center (IAC) is a U.S. Department of Energy-funded center located at MSU. In collaboration with Henry Ford College and Michigan Tech, this Center focuses on improving the energy efficiency and sustainability of small manufacturing and commercial buildings across the state of Michigan. The IAC educates and trains college-level students through a structured, hands-on educational program for industrial and commercial building energy assessments. In 2022, 8 students earned an IAC certificate. To earn this award, students must have completed at least two semesters at the IAC, attended a minimum of six energy assessments for organizations around the state, and demonstrate at least eight of the ten core skills. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

 

By the Numbers

  • Spartan Innovations, part of the MSU Research Foundation, is the venture studio and provides business development services around MSU intellectual property best commercialized via a new startup company. Spartan Innovations has assisted in getting $38 million in total grant funding over 122 separate awards and $1.3 million in subcontracts to MSU. Spartan Innovations has started over 47 companies, 15 with underrepresented founders and funding (via Red Cedar Ventures) $4.3M to MSU startups.
  • The MSU Burgess Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation program has ranked in the top 25 nationwide for the 5th consecutive year. Read more.

Programs and Initiatives

  • TechSmith Corporation opened its state of the art, 63,000 square foot office building on MSU's campus, a move expected to provide the company with opportunities to attract, expand and retain talent. Read more.
  • The MSU-EDA University Center for Regional Economic Innovation received an EDA Investment Award to work with Michigan's most economically distressed communities that face deeply rooted and social and economic inequality, turning them into economically vibrant places that encourage high-growth entrepreneurial development and create well-paid, sustainable new-economy jobs. Read more.
  • Apple and Michigan State University celebrated the graduation of the inaugural class of developers and entrepreneurs in the Apple Developer Academy in Detroit in summer 2022. The academy, which is Apple’s first in the United States, helps prepare its students for jobs in the thriving iOS app economy. The academy is part of Apple’s Racial Equity and Justice Initiative, an effort to address systemic racism and expand opportunities for communities of color across the country.

Researcher Spotlight

  • MSU researchers received $2M from USAID to support career development and help build the skills needed for economic growth in Mozambique. Read more.

Student Spotlight

  • Samhita Surapaneni, a senior studying marketing with a minor in entrepreneurship & innovation, reflects on her Spartan experience participating in the 2DAY VENTURE program. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

By the Numbers

  • The Innovation Center is Michigan State University’s hub for creating partnerships that develop economic value from the research and creativity happening across our campus every day. In 2022, the MSU Innovation Center helped steward ideas from concept to product, resulting in:
    • 52 US patents issued
    • 55 new patent applications
    • 157 new inventions disclosed
    • $25M+ in corporate support for research projects
    • $4M+ in royalties from licenses
    • 2 new startup companies created

Programs and Initiatives

  • MSU’s newest addition to its smart mobility ecosystem, an electric autonomous bus, officially began accepting passengers in spring 2022. The autonomous bus is one of the largest of its kind to be deployed on U.S. roadways to date.
  • MSU celebrated the the kickoff of the Michigan Open Optical Network – Leveraging Innovation to Get High-Speed Technology (MOON-Light) project, a $10.5M federal Broadband Infrastructure Program grant through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. The program leverages middle-mile infrastructure to allow internet service providers to make available affordable, high-speed broadband internet to unserved and underserved Michigan communities. Read more.
  • MSU will build a new Engineering and Digital Innovation Center to develop a next-generation workforce prepared for a technology-driven world. Read more.

Researcher Spotlight

  • Dr. Chengcheng Fang was named a 2022 Innovator Under 35 by the science and technology magazine MIT Technology Review for her innovative work on electric vehicle batteries. Read more.

Student Spotlight

  • The MSU Burgess Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation announced that Olivia Gargett ('24, Broad College of Business) and Olivia Simone ('23, Broad College of Business) as the inaugural Vandervarro Scholars for their innovative mindset and drive in their entrepreneurial ventures. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

 

By the Numbers

  • 1,945 first-generation students started a degree this academic year.
  • MSU is home to over 9,000 international students, scholars and family members from more than 140 countries.
  • Between fall 2021 and fall 2022, the total enrollment of students of color increased to 26.6% of the domestic student population, while international students accounted for 8.7% of total students enrolled in fall 2022.
  • Enrollment of women increased by 0.7%, with women making up 52.9% of all students.
  • MSU workforce data showed a 4% increase in employees of color compared to 2021, bringing the total percentage up to 23.2%.
  • The number of women employees at MSU increased 1.4% from fall 2021 to fall 2022, making up 54.5% of all employees.
  • A total of $48 million was spent with diverse vendor suppliers, making up 4.55% of total
    supplier spending in fiscal year 2022.

Programs and Initiatives

  • DEI Foundations, a mandatory online education program to help foster and promote a culture of inclusion at MSU, underwent a redesign in academic year 2022 following extensive review and community feedback. Over 200 individuals contributed to the redesign, set to launch in academic year 2023.
  • During the 2022 academic year, for the first time, Residence Education and Housing Services made available gender inclusive housing to allow students from all gender identities and expressions to choose to live in the community of their choice.
  • The EVPA Office of DEI launched the Community Engagement Volunteer Pilot Program, named MSU CARES, to support proactive engagement with underrepresented and underserved communities, expand volunteer opportunities and increase and improve outreach and engagement activities.

Researcher Spotlight

  • The College of Communication Arts and Sciences welcomed seven new research faculty hires in October 2022 who bring research and teaching expertise that support the college’s strategic goal to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in the academy. Several faculty were identified as part of a planned thematic hire addressing topics related to race, ethnicity, gender and social inequities in communication. Read more.

Student Spotlight

  • The The Michigan State University Black Students’ Alliance, or BSA, hosted its 50th annual Black Power Rally, which creates awareness of the history, everyday experiences and narratives of African and African diaspora through artistic forms. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

 

By the Numbers

  • The STEM Teaching and Learning Facility has received over 10 awards for its innovative design repurposing an old power plant and utilizing mass timber construction.

Programs and Initiatives

  • The MSU Broad Art Museum celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2022.  Read more.
  • Ongoing planning continued on a facilities and land use plan for MSU's campus. The project team conducted 79 listening sessions with over 625 participants including students, faculty, staff, alumni, neighbors, and the broader MSU community. The team also created an interactive map where Spartans could submit their feedback on how they personally use campus spaces. Read more.
  • 40 new EVs have been added to the university fleet along with upgraded campus charging infrastructure.
  •  

Researcher Spotlight

  • Dr. James Dearing, Brandt Endowed Professor in the Department of Communication, was selected to join the United States Environmental Protection Agency Board of Scientific Counselors in March 2022.

  • Parisa Ghaderi, an assistant professor of graphic design in the MSU Department of Art, Art History and Design shares her experience as an Iranian scholar and artist in the United States and how the current protests in Iran have made an impact on her teaching and art. Read more.

Student Spotlight

  • Esme Bailey, a senior studying English and minoring in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages and American Indian and Indigenous Studies, reflects on exploring identity and healing through Anishinaabe beadwork. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

 

By the Numbers

  • During the 2021-2022 school year, the Surplus Store and Recycling Center closed the loop on 237,000 pounds of food waste through their vermicomposting program.

Programs and Initiatives

  • The Surplus Store and Recycling Center (SSRC) held their first spring vermicompost sale. Vermicompost is nutrient rich soil created from food scraps generated at MSU dining facilities.
  • SSRC hosted a series of Spartan Upcycle events, encouraging students to reuse campus materials for art and home goods. Read more.
  • The MSU Center for Community and Economic Development hosted a series of panels on fostering circular economies. Read more.

Researcher Spotlight

  • Dr. Muhammad Rabnawaz, an associate professor in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, was awarded a two-year $450,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to explore the development of high-barrier biodegradable paper (HB2P) as an alternative to plastics and PFAS-coated paper. Read more. 

Student Spotlight

  • The student organization Spartan Sierra Club partnered with SSRC on a post-basketball game collection of recyclables left in Spartan Stadium’s seating. 

Related Plans and Reports

 

By the Numbers

  • MSU is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions for scope 1 and scope 2 emissions by 50% by 2030 from our 2010 baseline and achieving climate neutrality by 2050. With the elimination of coal as a fuel source, incorporation of additional upgrades to the micro-grid system, installation of the anaerobic digester and the solar carport arrays, and implementation of energy conservation measures, MSU has reduced its scope 1 and scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions by over 36% since 2010. 

Programs and Initiatives

  • In collaboration with the Northern Institute of Applied Climate Science and other federal, state, private, and NGO partners, MSU researchers from the Forest Carbon and Climate Program helped develop a Climate Change Field Guide for Northern Michigan Forests.
  • In one of the first major implementation events of the MSU Strategic Plan 2030, more than 160 faculty, staff and students came together in April 2022 for the Campus Convening on Climate Change: Our Planet, Our Food, Our People, to share ideas for the development of a comprehensive research agenda around climate change mitigation and adaptation, organized by the Office of Research and Innovation. Read more.
  • MSU Science Gallery was one of seven members of the international Science Gallery Network collaborating to host the 2022 Youth Symposium, HOT AND BOTHERED, which was a free four-day event connecting young people around the world on the topic of climate action. Read more.

Researcher Spotlights

  • Many of the major challenges related to a changing climate and their impact on society have Michigan State University Spartans working on solutions. MSU researchers address five big questions about climate change including: Can geoengineering cool the planet? Why doesn't everyone have solar panels on their homes? And how big of a problem is water availability when one year there is a flood and the next year there is a drought?
  • Yadu Pokhrel, associate professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, discusses what climate change is and how it is impacting the world during an Earth Day reflection. Read more.

Student Spotlight

  • Lauren Sawyer, a senior studying environmental studies and sustainability, reflects on her time at MSU and her passion for climate justice. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

 

By the Numbers

  • Roughly two miles of the Red Cedar River run through MSU's campus. The Red Cedar River Watershed is over 461 square miles, covering two counties.

Programs and Initiatives

  • The Michigan Clean Boats, Clean Waters program, a joint educational program between MSU Extension and the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, awarded $26,000 across 12 projects to stop the spread of aquatic invasive species in Michigan. Read more.
  • MSU Extension received a 5-year grant from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy to administer the Michigan Clean Water Corps, or MiCorps, a statewide network of volunteer-based monitoring programs measuring lake and stream water quality.
  • MSU will host a new collaborative U.S. Geological Survey research unit focused on the overall advancement, conservation and protection of natural resources in Michigan and beyond. The Michigan Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit is a partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey, Department of Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Michigan State University, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and the Wildlife Management Institute. Read more.

Researcher Spotlight

  • MSU researchers examined how freshwater wildlife navigates waterways in the face of climate change and humans altering the landscape. Read more.

Student Spotlight

  • Fisheries and Wildlife Ph.D. student Emily Liljestrand reflects on her passion for mathematics and computer modeling with a love for marine biology to evaluate long-term sustainability in fisheries. Read more.
  • Fisheries and Wildlife Ph.D. student Emily Dean led the development of a new migratory freshwater fish database, bringing together life history information on 1,250 species to inform conservation practices. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

 

By the Numbers

  • The MSU Department of Foresty brought in $4.1M in research funding in 2022.
  • MSU Extension develiered over 100 programs on pollinators in 2022, reaching over 12,000 participants.

Programs and Initiatives

  • MSU's Department of Foresty began offering a new hybrid onling master's degree program in Forestry, uniquely tailored to learners that need flexibility, with the majority of the courses delivered in an online format coupled with field-based learning in students’ local forests. Read more.
  • A partnership with Ecotek Lab provides opportunities for Detroit youth to pursue higher education careers in natural resources and sustainable bioproducts by bringing them right into Dr. Nejad’s Green Bioproducts Science & Engineering Lab to conduct experiments and learn. Read more.

Researcher Spotlight

  • Dr. Jianguo "Jack" Liu was honored with the Eminent Ecologist Award by the Ecological Society of America for building interdisciplinary bridges in sustainability science that has strengthened research and sparked significant impact on global conservation efforts.
  • Dr. Seung Yon “Sue” Rhee will be joining MSU as director of the MSU Plant Resilience Institute and an MSU Foundation Professor in the departments of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Plant Biology, and Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences. Rhee is the founding director of The Arabidopsis Information Resource — one of the most heavily used online resources for plant scientists.

Student Spotlight

  • Arjeta Bajramaj, a student studying forestry at MSU, reflects on influential experiences that that have helped transform her interest in forestry into an aspiring career path. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

 

By the Numbers

  • 1,069 people between the ages of 18-21 registered to vote in the City of East Lansing on election day for the mid-term elections on November 8, 2022. Read more about MSU's efforts at Voter-Friendly Campus in this report.

Programs and Initiatives

  • The MSU Ethics Institute held its annual symposium in November 2022, focused on the Ethics of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence. Read more.
  • MSU has been a recognized Voter Friendly Campus since 2016. In 2022, MSU Vote conducted a number of initaitives to get out the vote for the 2022 midterm elections.
  • The MSU Peace and Justice Studies minor program, housed within the College of Social Science, explores issues of human rights, social justice, peace, violence, and conflict, exploring their connections and distinctions through an interdisciplinary curriculum that develops the critical thinking skills necessary to face global challenges.
  • MSU Law Dean Linda S. Greene kicked off the second annual Dean’s Speaker Series focused on “Ethics, Law, and Society”. The series brings in a diverse group of leading legal thinkers to the MSU community with thought-provoking presentations about law and contemporary issues. Read more.

Researcher Spotlight

  • The American Law Institute elected MSU College of Law Professor Catherine Grosso as a new member in July, recognizing her scholarship in the role of race and other extralegal factors in criminal investigations, trials and the administration of capital punishment. Read more.

Student Spotlight

  • First-Generation Students at MSU Law provides an inclusive safe space for law students who are first-generation college students, first-generation professionals, and/or students from low-income or working-class backgrounds. Here, they can share and affirm their experiences, advance accessibility within the legal profession, and support each other’s career aspirations. Four students share their experiences as part of the student organization. Read more.

Related Plans and Reports

 

By the Numbers

  • MSU provides life-changing opportunities to a diverse and inclusive academic community and pushes the boundaries of discovery to solve the most pressing global challenges, offering over 800 sustainability course offerings across 75 academic departments.

Programs and Initiatives

  • The Student Sustainability Leadership Council and MSU Eco Rep programs are two programs bringing together student sustainability leaders to educate peers and make MSU more sustainable. Read more.
  • The MSU Alliance for African Partnership hosted a Youth Empowerment through Employment and Entrepreneurship Diagloue in partnership with the Southern African Development Community and the University of Botswana. Read more.
  • MSU Global IDEAS facilitates the Community of Practice (CoP) on Global Development to bring MSU faculty, researchers, practitioners, and students together to discuss global challenges and propose solutions, innovations, and research to global development challenges. In 2022, they held multiple dialogues, workshops and discussions focused around topics including international development, gender and partnerships. Read more. 

Researcher Spotlight

  • Forest Carbon and Climate Program Director Lauren Cooper was a contributing author to the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) Values Assessment. Read more.
  • Dr. Jack Liu, the Rachel Carson Chair in Sustainability, a University Distinguished Professor and the founding director of the MSU Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability, was elected to the prestigious Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters. Read more.

Staff Spotlight

  • Carla Iansiti, Sustainability Officer for the MSU Student Life and Engagement Division educates educates students and trains staff in stewardship practices and implements innovative sustainable initiatives within the residence and dining halls. Read more.

Student Spotlight

Related Plans and Reports

 

Sustainability Assessments and Plans