Climate Action Steering Team (CAST)

Purpose & Mission

The Climate Action Steering Team (CAST), formed in 2026, is charged with advancing the sustainability of the UMD Campus and operations, and the 2023 UMD Campus & Climate Action Plans (CCAP). An overarching goal is to transition UMD to carbon neutrality by 2050 (or earlier). This group will foster campus-wide engagement in the CCAP implementation by providing input on the prioritization of decarbonization projects and initiatives, monitor progress, and provide accountability through annual reporting. 

The Climate Action Steering Team will also synchronize UMD’s work with the emerging UMD Strategic Pathway and U of M Elevate Extraordinary Strategic Roadmap, which embeds sustainability and the discovery of sustainable solutions into its core imperatives. By aligning with the Roadmap’s Action Teams, the CAST ensures UMD is leveraging resources and building on the momentum of the broader University system while maintaining focus on Duluth’s unique geographic and operational needs. Furthermore, the Team will bridge operational goals with UMD’s academic mission, and foster collaboration that integrates climate action in campus operations with sustainability research, teaching, and experiential learning.  

Key Responsibilities

  1. Strategic Guidance & Prioritization: Recommend high-level project priorities and help facilitate CCAP implementation by leveraging UMD expertise, creativity, and collective action to bridge gaps that turns plans into institutional progress.
  2. Monitoring & Accountability: Track institutional milestones toward carbon neutrality and sustainability goals. The Team will review performance data and provide transparent annual reporting to campus leadership and community.  
  3. Academic & UniversityAlignment: Synchronize climate initiatives with UMD’s academic mission and University-wide as reflected in Elevate Extraordinary. Alignment will aim to ensure that sustainability is integrated into research, teaching, and experiential learning.
  4. Advocacy & Representation: Serve as a campus voice across all of the CCAP’s Campus Frameworks: Decarbonization & Resilience, Mobility, Recreation, Landscape, Campus Life, and Academic & Research Facilities, including balancing plan implementation with evolving sustainability practices and technologies and campus needs. 
  5. Communication & Engagement: Act as a two-way conduit between the Team and respective campus units to share progress, gather diverse input, and foster broad-based buy in. 

 

Campus & Climate Action Plans

Committee Members

  • Jamie Alexander - Director of External Engagement & Strategy, Natural Resources Research Institute
  • Lillian Campbell - Student, Interdisciplinary Studies Major
  • Katlyn Dexter - Student, GIS/Environment, Sustainability, & Geography Major
  • Hanlu Fan - Faculty, Accounting & Finance - Labovitz School of Business & Economics
  • Eric Freberg - Project Manager, Facilities Management
  • David Gore - Faculty, Communication - College of Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences
  • Dustin Haines - Faculty, Biology - Swenson College of Science & Engineering
  • Matthew Lunde - Faculty, Marketing - Labovitz School of Business & Economics
  • Daniel Nolan - Faculty, World Languages & Cultures - College of Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences
  • Lisa Norr - Director, Transportation & Parking Services
  • Catherine O’Reilly - Director, Large Lakes Observatory
  • Emily Onello - Faculty, Family Medicine and Behavioral Health - UMN Medical School Duluth Campus
  • Carrie Seay-Fleming - Faculty, Environment, Sustainability, & Geography - College of Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences
  • Sam Shanks - Data & Research Analyst, Office of Institutional Research
  • Ben Thompson - Associate Director of Maintenance & Custodial, Housing
  • Bradyn Watson - Assistant Director of Transfer Recruitment, Office of Admissions
  • Tom White - Associate Director of Recreation, Recreational Sports Outdoor Program