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Thank you for making the UW a leader in sustainability

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Provost Ana Mari Cauce and Senior Vice President V’Ella Warren recently sent an email message to faculty, staff and students announcing the UW’s latest achievements in environmental sustainability. Below is a copy of that message.

As we wrap up the 2013–2014 academic year, the University of Washington Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC) would like to thank you for making the UW a globally recognized leader in sustainability and for supporting our Climate Action Plan goals.

The UW has continued to perform as a sustainability role model, ranking in the top 10% of universities worldwide for its sustainability efforts (UI Greenmetric World University Ranking), achieving national recognition in the Princeton Review Green Honor Roll (99, the highest score possible) and receiving accolades at home by Seattle Business Magazine’s Green Washington Award (Silver in Academia).

Our commitment to sustainability is greater than ever, with 28 LEED-certified buildings across three campuses, a 58% waste diversion rate and more than $12.83 million saved through utility conservation efforts. With your help, the UW has reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 8% from our 2005 levels, despite an increase in campus size and population.

The 2013–2014 academic year has seen:

  • The finalization of the Mercer Court Apartments, with the addition of another acre of growing space for the UW Farm.
  • The launch of 128 rooftop solar panels by UW-Solar that will produce an estimated 34,470 kilowatt hours per year.
  • The College of the Environment winning the UW’s first Green Laboratories Competition.
  • The inception of the Green Seed Fund, which supplied grants to five innovative research proposals and contributes to the goal of reducing campus carbon emissions.
  • The recognition of the UW Tower Data Center as one of 27 data centers in the country to receive a U.S. EPA ENERGY STAR Certification.

As we reflect on these and other milestones, we are also looking forward to the challenges and creative solutions that await. It is with gratitude that we thank Sandra Archibald, dean of the Evans School, for her leadership in chairing the Environmental Stewardship Committee for the past eight years, and welcome Lisa Graumlich, dean of the College of the Environment into her new role as chair.

Sustainability runs deep: Take a look at why 2013–2014 was also an outstanding year for sustainability at UW Bothell and UW Tacoma!

UW Bothell

  • Discovery Hall, UW Bothell’s newest building, will house the STEM program and sets the bar high with a targeted LEED Gold certification.
  • A $550,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce will be used to install nearly 500 rooftop solar panels. The energy generated will provide free charging to electric vehicle drivers who pay for parking and reduce utility bills for campus garages.
  • Participation in the Shred-it secure recycling program has helped to divert over 14 tons of paper from the landfill, saving over 240 trees from destruction.

UW Tacoma

  • UW Tacoma is the first of the three UW campuses to offer a Sustainability Minor, which gives UW Tacoma students the opportunity to engage in the interdisciplinary application of sustainability considering economic, societal and environmental perspectives.
  • Student leadership and sustainable urban agriculture that gives back to the community are the name of the game at the Giving Garden, which donated 318 pounds of food to Tacoma food banks.
  • The Prairie Line Trail–UWT Station is set to be completed in September 2014 and will combine smart storm water management with inviting open spaces to bring together community on the restored Prairie Line Railroad.

Your continued support ensures a sustainable future for the University of Washington and challenges how we imagine ‘business as usual’ on campus!

Learn about sustainability, events, Climate Action Plan goals and more at green.uw.edu.

The value of humanities in education

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As the academic year comes to a close, and graduates are seeking employment or considering their next move, my expectations for success of UW students and graduates are unparalleled — not only for those leaving here with computer science and other technical and professional degrees, but also for graduates of humanities and other liberal arts programs.

Recently, I met with the chairs of the humanities departments in our College of Arts & Sciences to discuss the benefit of humanities study for students of all majors. As the cornerstone of traditional liberal arts colleges, the humanities have enjoyed a special place in higher education as institutions expanded their offerings to meet the needs of enterprise and industry.

A study by the Association of American Colleges and Universities surveying employers about what they want in the ideal employee concluded that more than 90 percent of employers want someone who has a broad knowledge base and who can collaborate to solve complex problems, debate, communicate and think critically — all skills that humanities programs expect students to acquire before they graduate. And our terrific students do!

Other desirable qualities that employers listed are also integral to humanities degree requirements: ethical judgment and integrity, intercultural skills, the capacity for continued new learning and applied knowledge in real-world settings. And 80 percent of employers agreed that, regardless of their major, all college students should acquire broad knowledge in the liberal arts and sciences.

The UW is committed to providing a transformative experience for our students to ensure each one’s preparedness for life after college. Majoring in a humanities discipline or taking a course or two to complement another major will benefit students as they venture out into our interconnected world, where having an understanding of the tenets of humanities — language, literature, film and the history of ideas — is an advantage to succeeding in our modern, diverse and global economy.

Gifts from Washington Research Foundation fund Husky innovation

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President Young recently sent an email to the University community announcing a new, generous gift from one of the UW’s biggest supporters, Washington Research Foundation. Below is the official email announcing the details of the gift.

 

Dear Colleagues,

New opportunities are on the horizon for Huskies and the people we serve, thanks to an investment in innovation by Washington Research Foundation (WRF). Today, we announce a $31.2 million investment by WRF in four UW research initiatives, a show of support that speaks volumes to the UW’s strength as a center for enterprising innovators in our region.

The size and scope of WRF’s gifts to the UW are unprecedented. This represents entrepreneurial Washington investing in its research university and makes a strong statement about the importance of local investment. The four teams of grant recipients are among the UW’s most productive and creative faculty. We are incredibly proud of their achievements and deeply grateful to the foundation for its vote of confidence in their work.

The first award is an $8 million gift to launch a postdoctoral fellowship program for the Institute for Protein Design (IPD). Postdocs are critical to the success of the IPD’s outcomes, and this investment will help bring ideas out of the laboratory and into the lives of people who will benefit most from breakthroughs in protein design.

WRF also committed $7.2 million to jumpstart an Institute for Neuroengineering, which will bring faculty, students and postdoctoral researchers from several disciplines on board to develop new technologies for people affected by neural disorders.

The eScience Institute was awarded $9.3 million to embolden its global leadership in Big Data. The funding will support the institute’s work to find data-intensive breakthroughs in a breadth of disciplines.

And the Clean Energy Institute will receive $6.7 million to help recruit innovative faculty and postdoctoral fellows focused on advancing solutions in solar energy production, storage and delivery.

Details on each of these gifts are available on the UW Today website.

This is a watershed moment for the UW and WRF. Through this incredible partnership, we will bring our shared vision of innovation and implementing ideas into action to address some of our greatest challenges. Our sincere thanks to Washington Research Foundation. We are fortunate to have such a good friend.

Sincerely,
Michael K Young signature
Michael K. Young

Staying engaged with the UW beyond retirement

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President Young and Provost Cauce recently sent an email to University staff, faculty and retirees announcing new opportunities for UW retirees.  Below is the official email announcing the new Encore program.

 

Dear University of Washington Faculty, Staff and Retirees:

At the UW, we’re committed to finding ways we can continue to benefit from our “brain trust” of UW retirees and soon-to-be-retirees. We want to create opportunities for post-midlife adults, including our faculty, staff, retirees, alumni and friends, so that they can continue to make a positive difference in fresh ways that make best use of their accumulated skills and experience. With this commitment in mind, we are pleased to announce the launch of the UW Encore Initiative.

The UW Retirement Association (UWRA), with a grant from Encore.org, is partnering with the UW Alumni Association and University Advancement to develop guidelines and create opportunities for retirees to engage in community service for the greater good. This partnership began identifying pathways on and beyond our campuses to engage members of the UW family in Encore—an organization founded to support individuals to transition from a first career into a second act.The UW is the first four-year university in the country to support the creation of this initiative for all of our constituents, and opportunities to participate are under way. Our first campus Encore workshop recently concluded with an attendance of more than 70 (and a waiting list!).

We invite our leaders to join with the UW Encore Initiative to help our retirees find ways to stay engaged, give back and make the world a better place. Expanding our service through the UW Encore Initiative will be challenging and exciting. It will mean thinking creatively about how to engage highly skilled older adults. It also will enable the University to build stronger relationships with the communities beyond our campuses.

Please watch for further information from the UWRA about Encore-related workshops, websites and other opportunities as this initiative unfolds. And thank you to all of our staff, faculty and retirees for your service to the University—past, present and future.

Sincerely,

Michael K Young signature Ana Mari Cauce Signature
Michael K. Young Ana Mari Cauce
President Provost & Executive Vice President

Celebrating faculty excellence

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President Young recently sent an email to the University community announcing new research funding initiative, the Innovation Awards. Below is the official email announcing the details of the initiative.

 

Dear Campus Colleagues,

Breakthroughs occur every day in laboratories and classrooms across our campuses as Huskies work to tackle some of the world’s most intractable problems. Our faculty are at the heart of these innovations, and today I’m pleased to recognize a few who truly transform our world.

Benjamin Hall, professor emeritus of genome sciences and biology, and Eric D’Asaro, a senior principal oceanographer at the UW’s Applied Physics Laboratory and professor of oceanography, were among the 84 new members and 21 foreign associates elected as fellows to the National Academy of Sciences just last week. Chosen for the distinguished breadth and continuing depth of their original research, Professor Hall and Professor D’Asaro’s significant contributions to academia, science and the University community have spanned decades.

As we celebrate Professor Hall and Professor D’Asaro’s storied accomplishments, we also want to inspire innovative faculty who are early in their careers. So today, we are announcing a new initiative to fuel their research: the Innovation Awards.

The Innovation Awards recognize the most creative thinkers in our midst who are addressing the problems of humanity through research and education. These awards support unusually creative early and mid-career researchers engaged in the medical, natural, social and engineering sciences, as well as researchers fostering new levels of student engagement and understanding through active learning.

The application deadline is September 1 each year. The selection committees are organized and run by the Office of Research and the Office of Academic and Student Affairs. In its inaugural year, three outstanding faculty members have been honored with Innovation Awards to fund their transformational work in research and education:

Brandi Cossairt, assistant professor of chemistry, is focusing on chemical innovation in solar energy capture and storage. She is devising novel materials and devices that use abundant natural resources and low-cost processing methods geared toward advances in clean energy technology.

James Carothers, assistant professor of chemical engineering, will create new approaches to produce renewable chemicals. He will address fundamental questions of cellular design, which will be used to redesign living systems for biotech applications.

Eric Klavins, associate professor of electrical engineering, and his colleagues aim to revolutionize how laboratory courses are taught. Students will learn to encode their experiments as computer programs and use advanced technology to automatically generate their lab notebooks.

Join me in congratulating Professor Hall, Professor D’Asaro, Professor Cossairt, Professor Carothers and Professor Klavins for their outstanding efforts in powering creative research at the UW. Their work nurtures our experimental and enterprising culture, and we celebrate their accomplishments in fostering Husky innovation and imagination.

Sincerely,
Michael K Young signature
Michael K. Young

Strengthening the bond between the UW and Japan

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At the UW, we have been going about the business of learning about other parts of the world almost from the beginning of the university, and certainly from 1908, when 15 Japanese students helped found our International Students Club. Today, Japanese is the second-most studied language at the university and demand for the study of this country’s history, culture and language has never been stronger. This warms my heart more than ever as my affection for Japan has only deepened since I first traveled there more than four decades ago.

The UW’s long-standing partnerships with Japan extend to the Japan-America Society of the state of Washington, which hosted me at their annual meeting last month. The event was an opportunity to deepen the UW’s relationship with our Japanese friends and partners, and celebrate our mutual collaborations — past, present and future. The continued vitality and importance of the UW-Japan relationship are aided by the enterprising culture and global worldview we are fostering on campus. At the UW, we consider every student an international student; in today’s interconnected world, weaving a global perspective into all aspects of education is critical.

There is a strong link between the continued success of the UW and the vibrant Japanese community that surrounds us. Our fates are tied and our futures depend on our abilities to work together. In this vein, I am delighted and eager to continue this legacy of educational exchange between the UW and our Japanese friends and partners. Thank you to the Japan-America Society for your friendship and for helping to create these opportunities!

Recognizing our retirees, Husky style

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Call it a commencement of a different sort.

Earlier this week, we honored this year’s “class” of UW retirees, faculty and staff members who have retired in the past year. Each of our retirees has been an essential contributor to making this University an outstanding place. And between the 475 people honored in this diverse group, they have collectively served the University for a combined total of 10,276 years. Now, that’s dedication to the Husky Nation!

The UW continues to be committed to our retirees. We urge them to continue their involvement with the UW community with opportunities for engagement through our new UW Encore Initiative. Encore.org has provided a grant to the UW Retirement Association to lead the way. Our first campus Encore workshop recently concluded (with an attendance of more than 70 — and a waiting list!). The UW is the first university in the country to support the creation of this initiative to all of our constituents, including retirees.

We are deeply grateful for the careers our faculty and staff have dedicated to the UW, sustaining and adding to the excellence of this institution. On behalf of the UW, thank you to all of our retirees in the “class” of 2014.

Photo from May 12, 2014, UW retiree reception
President Michael K. Young greets guests during the UW retiree reception. Photo: M Levin/U of Washington

Remarks to the Japan Huskies

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In Japan, 120 alumni, parents, donors, partners and friends turned out at the Tokyo American Club for a Husky reception on April 15. The event was part of our weeklong goodwill visit to Taiwan and Japan. Below is the official transcript of his remarks from the event.

I want to tell you about a very long-lived and rewarding partnership between researchers at the University of Washington’s marine laboratory in Friday Harbor, Washington, and marine laboratories in Japan.

For decades, a fruitful exchange has occurred between Friday Harbor Laboratories and the Misaki Marine Laboratory, and the Sugishima Marine Laboratory at Nagoya University. This arrangement has recently been formalized as the Edward Sylvester Morse Institute through the dedication and philanthropy of faculty, individual donors, and the Mikimoto Pearl Company.

We are delighted to have among our guests two very important supporters of this effort, Professor Motonori Hoshi and Dr Makoto Omore (the latter received his Ph.D. from UW Oceanography). Thank you for all you have personally and professionally contributed to the ES Morse Institute.

This year, 2014 we are celebrating the UW Alumni Association’s 125th anniversary with Huskies here in Japan. In 1889, a small group of UW alumni organized themselves to better support the University. Ever since, alumni chapters have cropped up around the world. In fact, there are organized alumni chapters dotting 13 countries around the globe, from Peru to the United Arab Emirates. And the UWAA Japan is one of our strongest. Alumni in Japan have played a vital role in keeping their fellow Huskies connected, informed and involved with the University. I want to thank all of the gracious volunteers and alumni involved with the Japan Huskies, who make events like tonight, special and keep the Husky spirit strong across the Pacific.

Before I give you an update about some exciting things happening at UW, I’d like to share a few points of pride. National Taiwan University ranks us 1st in scientific research among American public universities. And we are the 13th best university in the world according to U.S. News & World Report. I’ve been in higher education for a while now, and I’ve learned that the best universities have the most engaged supporters. And as we can see by these rankings, the UW is among the best universities not only in the United States, but in the world.

You are a key reason for that success. In this room tonight there are business people, civic leaders, educators, artists, parents and alumni. And though we come from different backgrounds, our common bond is purple and gold; we are a community of people joined together by how deeply we care about the University of Washington.

When alumni, parents, donors and friends invest in the UW, more Huskies can focus their unbridled energy on their studies instead of worrying about making ends meet. In fact, in the last fiscal year alone, we were able to create 37 new undergraduate scholarships, 33 graduate fellowships and 59 funds that help our students.

It’s because of private philanthropy that our students, faculty and researchers are able to thrive and bring their innovations out of the classroom and into the real world. The UW produces good global citizens, and we graduate the thinkers, doers and innovators who are making our world a better place. And we are succeeding thanks to the support of our closest friends and alumni.

Last week we were in Taiwan to attend the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) Asia Conference in Taipei. I was honored to give the AUTM Conference keynote address on innovation and entrepreneurism in higher education based on the UW’s long-standing success in commercialization.

In 2013, the UW had a banner year, placing us among the top five schools in the United States for startup formation by producing a record 17 new companies through our Center for Commercialization (C4C). The UW is first in the number of licenses issued as well as first in different types of licenses, such as biotech, metadata, etc. And we intend to top our record in the coming years, thanks to 80 robust projects in the startup pipeline through our C4C New Ventures Program.

Universities contribute to society in a number of ways. One of the most important contributions we can make is to transform our research into new products, treatments, cures, and devices, etc. that will have a positive impact. In order to do that, we have created an innovation ecosystem at the UW to provide space and systems to support faculty, researchers, students and entrepreneurs to have the best chance to succeed. And the results are extraordinary.

Job Creation

  • On average, 60 jobs created in new companies
  • Kaufmann Foundation study (Economic Impact Report 2010) – 80% new jobs were created by companies 5 years old or newer
  • Job opportunities for UW grads

Economy Boosts

  • Developing new companies in state/region and attracting investors from out of state increases tax base
  • Creating wealth, leading to more investment, commitment to state/region
  • Attracting / retaining faculty members
  • Translationally directed – ability to make an impact through teaching and basic research / and rewarded financially for entrepreneurialism (who could make more money in private industry) because they get best of both (academic research and commercial enterprise).

Global Collaboration

As a first-tier world university, it is incumbent upon us to be engaged with our international partners so that we can extend the extraordinary work of our faculty and students to places where it can do the most good. During our visit to Taiwan, we were guests of Taiwan’s Ministry of Education to tour National Taiwan University, National Chung Hsing University and National Chiao Tung University.

  • International education/research campus with promising Asian and European universities and potential private partners.
  • Exciting new ideas and plans for bringing the UW to the world and the world to the UW.
  • Opportunity to create on a larger scale

What’s Next?

  • UW is 2nd only to Microsoft in creating spin-offs in software
  • UW has life sciences and technology research pipelines for potential commercialization
  • Exciting opportunities for new innovation, commercialization, growth, etc.
  • Mutual benefits for local, regional, state, national governments.
  • Benefit to UW as well, but not exclusive
  • Collective interest in providing support for the best chance of positive outcomes

Many of our startups are based on UW research that is funded by private support. We are able to do this because of you. The UW is especially grateful for the support we receive from our alumni, family and friends. We can accomplish so much when we put our minds together toward common goals. Thank you for your gracious hospitality. It truly is great to be with you here in Tokyo.

Michael K. Young
UW President

Bringing the world back to the UW

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Wherever I travel and meet Huskies, I am reminded what a special place the University of Washington truly is. The UW educates global citizens who are innovators and entrepreneurs working together to solve the world’s most pressing challenges. Their work is strengthened by our partnerships at home and abroad; we can better meet the needs of Washington state and the world through international collaboration.

Our meetings and events in Taiwan and Japan have fortified existing partnerships and initiated new ones. We have a memorandum of agreement with Waseda University to partner on its new Center for Teaching, Learning & Technology. I was welcomed by Taiwan’s Ministry of Education on a tour to strengthen our relationships with that country’s top universities. And I made some wonderful connections before and after my keynote address at the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) Asia Conference in Taipei.

The trip was notable, too, because it was an opportunity to help the UW Alumni Association celebrate its 125th anniversary with so many Huskies overseas. In 1889, a small group of UW alumni organized themselves to better support the university. Ever since, alumni chapters have cropped up around the world. In fact, there are organized alumni chapters dotting 13 countries around the globe, from Peru to the United Arab Emirates.

I was honored and humbled to spend time with some of the most ardent UW alumni and friends in Japan and Taiwan this week, and I am extraordinarily heartened to see how deeply Husky pride spans the Pacific. Together, we are building a stronger future for our state, our nations and our world.