Update - Guam Green Growth

February 2, 2020October 14, 2021

UOG guides Guam toward action on the UN’s sustainability goals

The University of Guam’s Center for Island Sustainability brought 84 local leaders together on Jan. 30 to kick off the Guam Green Growth (G3) Working Group, a group inspired by CIS and launched by the governor of Guam that will be creating a 10-year action plan for Guam to become more sustainable. CIS Director Austin Shelton is co-chairing the working group, and 15 faculty and administrators from UOG are participating as members as well as one UOG student.

Based on their areas of expertise and influence, the leaders were divided into eight teams that will focus on creating local objectives aligned with the United Nation’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals – a universal call to action to protect the planet and improve lives of people everywhere by 2030.

“Sustainable development is not only about the environment – it’s about economic welfare, social empowerment, cultural creativity, and ecological health. This is what the 17 SDGs address,” Shelton told the participants.

UOG President with his working group of education leaders

The goals range from reducing plastics in the oceans, preserving and restoring trees and forests, and reducing carbon dioxide emissions to providing quality education for all, reducing inequalities, and growing jobs and the economy.

UOG President Thomas W. Krise said the University of Guam has a role in addressing each of these, and he said the Micronesian region has thousands of years of indigenous knowledge on sustainable living that it can use to contribute to global solutions.

“We need to be a model, we need to be a laboratory for helping to solve these kinds of issues,” Krise said.

The G3 Working Group is expected to finalize and sign off on its G3 Action Strategy Framework on the last day of the 11th UOG Conference on Island Sustainability, which will take place March 31 to April 3 at the Hyatt Regency Guam.

Guam Gov. Lourdes A. Leon Guerrero and Lt. Gov. Joshua F. Tenorio partnered with the University of Guam and the UOG Center for Island Sustainability to establish the group to meet the Local2030 Islands Network‘s goal to advance locally driven models that target global challenges.

October 3, 2019October 14, 2021

UOG takes on new leadership roles in island sustainability

The University of Guam’s role as a leader in island sustainability and climate change adaptation continues to expand following new commitments in recent weeks.

1) G3 Working Group

Following the UOG Center for Island Sustainability’s August launch of the Guam Green Growth (G3) initiative to educate and encourage the community toward a circular economy, CIS Director Austin J. Shelton has been tasked by Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero through Executive Order 2019-23 to co-chair the G3 Working Group, which will develop a strategy for accelerating locally and culturally effective sustainability solutions to global challenges. The working group will align its objectives with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals designed by the United Nations to put the world on a path to a more sustainable, equitable, and prosperous future by 2030.

2) Local2030 Islands Network

UOG CIS will coordinate Guam’s membership in a new network established at this year’s Climate Week NYC, held Sept. 23 to Sept. 29. Lt. Gov. Joshua Tenorio at the joint Climate Week and UN General Assembly event committed Guam as a founding member of the Local2030 Islands Network, which will engage island partners in advancing locally driven models for sustainability and implementing concrete actions.

3) C3PR

President Thomas W. Krise and Shelton have begun work this month as part of the Guam Legislature’s Guam Council on Climate Change Preparedness and Resiliency (C3PR), created by Public Law 34-17. Krise is serving as vice chair, and Shelton is serving as a member.

The council, under the chairmanship of Sen. Sabina Perez, chairwoman of the legislature’s Committee on Environment, is a policy-recommending body in support of the government of Guam’s efforts to begin coordination and long-range planning efforts to mitigate adverse environmental and socioeconomics impacts of climate change.

*(From left) Celeste Connors, Austin Shelton, Romina King, Kate Brown*

4) Climate Change Resiliency Commission

Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero in August established a Climate Change Resiliency Commission via Executive Order 2019-19. Romina King, program director for the UOG Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Science Center, will be serving as vice chair of the commission, and Shelton will serve as a member.

The commission will develop an integrated strategy to build resiliency against the adverse effects of climate change and to reduce contributing factors, such as greenhouse emissions.

‘In a position to set the standard’

“With all of these new commitments coming into place, Guam is in a very opportunistic position to set the standard for a successful sustainable island model to a global audience,” Shelton said. “Our center is excited to work with a broad group of people — the UOG community, government leaders, businesses, nonprofits, organizations, and now a network of island partners — to incorporate our local and traditional knowledge in the plan for a successful global future.”

Shelton presented at Climate Week NYC on the circular economy efforts of the CIS and fostered relationships for collaborations with island, regional, and global attendees.

Also at Climate Week NYC, King served on the planning committee for an all-day Climate Strong Islands Dialogue, sponsored by the New York Community Trust. More than 75 representatives from U.S. and international islands gathered to speak about sustainable solutions, including the circular economy model, resilience to disasters, and opportunities for collaboration.

“Climate Week was an intense and amazing opportunity for PI-CASC UOG,” King said. “While the lack of additional commitments from big countries, such as China and the U.S., to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions was disappointing, the energy of the youth movement and the practical ways forward by the financial sector and the nonprofits, which were multi-disciplinary and data-driven, were very inspiring. Collaborating and learning from fellow scientists, natural resource managers, and small-island state representatives gave me hope in humanity’s ability to successfully adapt to a changing climate.

August 8, 2019October 14, 2021

UOG Center for Island Sustainability receives $10K grant to launch circular economy initiative

With the help of a $10,000 grant awarded to the Center for Island Sustainability, the University of Guam is launching the Guam Green Growth (G3) Initiative to contribute to a new green economy for the island.

The standard economic model is linear, meaning resources are extracted, turned into products, and then disposed of after use. A circular economy minimizes waste and pollution, keeps materials in use, and regenerates natural systems. The grant will start familiarizing the community with the benefits of transitioning to a circular economy

“Accelerating a circular economy is a sustainable solution to our heavy reliance on imports and massive production of waste,” said Austin Shelton, executive director of the UOG Center for Island Sustainability.

The G3 Initiative will start this month by offering the first-ever Island Circular Economy Industry Workshop for small-business owners, entrepreneurs, and intrapreneurs. The full-day workshop will be led by two sustainable development experts from Arizona State University: Rajesh Buch, director of sustainability practice and international development, and Amanda Jordan, program coordinator for the Resource Innovation & Solutions Network Incubator.

UOG is also working with the Guam Economic Development Authority and the Guam Unique Merchandise & Art Business Incubator to stimulate new island circular economy industries.

“We are happy to work with UOG on its G3 Initiative for a green economy,” said Melanie Mendiola, CEO and administrator of GEDA. “As we think about how we can bolster economic opportunities on Guam, we must also keep in mind how our decisions will impact our natural resources and quality of life. GEDA is working diligently to assist local businesses — especially small and new ones — through healthier, more sustainable programs that reduce our ecological footprint and promote self-sufficiency.”

The grant was made possible through a partnership among UOG, ASU, and Kamehameha Schools, all members of the Global Consortium for Sustainability Outcomes. The consortium is an international network of universities and research institutes advancing solutions to sustainability that the University of Guam was invited to join in July last year.

The workshop will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 13, in Room 235 of the Jesus and Eugenia Leon Guerrero School of Business and Public Administration on the University of Guam campus. Registration is $25 per person and includes lunch. Those interested can register at uogcis.regfox.com/circular. Seating is limited. For more information, contact Myracle Mugol at 482-0254 or mugolm@triton.uog.edu. A circular economy workshop will also be held in Hawaii.