UC’s Cool Campus Challenge is now in its second week, asking all of us, throughout the university system, to live more sustainably. In encouraging participation, UC Davis’ director of sustainability, Camille Kirk, wants people to know what the campus itself is doing to reduce its carbon footprint:

• LEED certifications — UC Davis has earned 31 LEED certifications for construction projects meeting criteria set by the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program — the latest a gold rating for the Memorial Union remodel.
• Energy savings — The campus has completed energy efficiency and conservation projects in existing buildings that have saved about 383 billion Btus (British thermal units) cumulatively since 2009. To put that in context, the average household in California uses about 62 million Btus a year. “So, we’ve saved about 6,175 households’ worth of energy use through those projects,” Kirk said in the Office of Sustainability’s April 8 enewsletter.
• 51 percent renewable energy — UC Davis derives just over half its energy from renewable sources, namely 17 megawatts of electricity from on-campus solar development, along with renewable energy credits for solar power in which UC Davis is a partner, off campus; and biogas from the campus’s biodigester.

“We are making progress, and we need your help to get to the end-goal of carbon neutrality,” Kirk said. “If you haven’t joined the Cool Campus Challenge, please do so today and start taking actions and attending events.”

Those events include a pair of Sustainability Sketch Crawls with staff member Pete Scully, sketch artist extraordinaire — guiding people as they sketch examples of campus sustainability (a green building, perhaps, or a Unitrans bus).

Two crawls are scheduled: noon to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday and Friday (April 10 and 12). Meet near the information desk in the lobby of the Student Community Center. The Office of Sustainability will supply all materials.

Due for Duo? Please sign up by May 31

The campus will begin enrolling other students (nonemployees) in the fall.

UC Davis is adopting Duo multifactor authentication to improve the security of information — yours, as well as the information the campus protects on behalf of all who teach, work or study here. Eventually, certain essential campus services will no longer be accessible without Duo.

The Duo requirement does not at this time cover campus email accounts. UC Davis has temporarily excluded these accounts from Duo to simplify the Duo enrollment process.

In setting the May 31 target date, officials said they hoped to see employees enroll in Duo before summer vacations, so as not to be rushed in the fall when Duo will be required to access to new UCPath payroll and personnel system, set to launch at UC Davis on Oct. 1.

Faculty who plan to travel internationally, whether they have Duo accounts now or will soon, should review this information. Faculty headed overseas may also contact their department’s IT desk or the IT Express Service Desk if they have questions about using Duo abroad.

To enroll in Duo or to receive assistance:

• Follow the instructions here.
• Attend a drop-in help session. The calendar here lists sessions from noon to 2 p.m. today through Thursday (April 9-10), and more will be added in April and May.
• Contact IT support in your department or unit, or the IT Express Service Desk.
• Twenty-four-hour, seven-day-a-week support for Duo will be available — dates to be announced.

The “Move to Duo” website has complete information, including a short video on how Duo works, or to read more about Duo at UC Davis, UC Davis Health employees with questions should contact the Technology Operations Center, 916-734-4357.

When your unit opts for 2 wheels …

The guide discusses bicycle features you should consider, including: “Get all the gear — A bicycle is not complete without front and rear lights, a U-lock (preferably with an accompanying looped cable) and at least one helmet sharable by riders.”

Another section advises: “Plan for bicycle maintenance,” and suggests a Bike Barn maintenance plan as an option.

“Lastly, remember that bicycling off-campus isn’t exactly the same as bicycling inside the campus’s restricted core. There are many more roundabouts and a much higher density of bicycles, scooters, skateboards and pedestrians within the UC Davis core than most people are accustomed.

“Encourage all potential riders to watch the UC Davis BEEP video to introduce them to bicycling at UC Davis.”

Cancer care center opens in Chico

UC Davis Health and Adventist Health scheduled a ribbon-cutting at 4 p.m. today (April 9) for their joint cancer care center in Chico, offering a closer alternative to Adventist Health’s Paradise center that closed in the wake of the Camp Fire last year.

Since the fire, some 120 patients have been traveling 46 miles each way for chemotherapy treatment at Adventist Health Rideout Cancer Center in Marysville. Chico, on the other hand, is about 15 miles from Paradise. 

The Adventist Health Rideout Cancer Center in Marysville already is a UC Davis Health cancer care partner, one of several centers that bring UC Davis Health’s nation-leading cancer expertise into rural communities around Northern California through the UC Davis Cancer Care Network. 

Read the complete news release from UC Davis Health.

Medical plan satisfaction survey

UC Human Resources announced that its annual medical plan satisfaction survey will launch Monday (April 15). Surveys will go to randomly-selected faculty, staff and retirees (as well as their spouses or domestic partners).

The survey takes roughly 20 minutes to complete; all responses are anonymous and confidential. The survey will focus on member experiences with university- sponsored medical plans in 2018, and the results will help HR plan and shape benefits offerings for future years.

Members of non-Medicare plans who are selected to participate will receive emails (provided the members have work email addresses on file) containing a link to the online survey; otherwise, survey packages will come by mail. Medicare members who are selected to participate will receive survey packages by mail, and can return their responses by mail or take the survey over the phone.

Read the complete news release from UCnet.

Follow Dateline UC Davis on Twitter.