Advertise on podcast: Campus Energy and Sustainability Podcast

Transformational sustainability projects live or die at the intersection of ambition and institutional finance. This conversation pulls back the curtain on how credit ratings shape what campuses can actually approve, explaining why CFOs and boards evaluate sustainability initiatives through the lenses of risk, affordability, and long-term resilience. Using familiar examples like student housing before moving into the harder reality of energy and utility infrastructure, the discussion reframes ‘off balance sheet’ thinking and challenges common assumptions about how transformational change gets funded. The result is a clearer, more realistic foundation for sustainability leaders who want their projects to move from good ideas to executable decisions.

Electrifying vehicle fleets is no longer a distant goal—it’s happening now in school districts, cities, and campuses across the country. In this episode, we explore what it takes to transition large fleets to all-electric, from financing to infrastructure and community impact. Our guest shares lessons the K-12 perspectives, highlighting challenges and opportunities. Listeners will gain practical insights into how electrification can reduce emissions, improve health outcomes, and reshape the future of community transportation.

Energy public-private partnerships (P3s) have moved beyond the pilot phase. They’re now a serious, scalable strategy for institutions facing aging infrastructure, decarbonization targets, and budget constraints. But a maturing market also brings complexity — in procurement models, financing tools, and internal alignment. In this episode, we talk with three experienced voices from across the P3 deal table about what’s working, what’s changing, and what institutions need to understand before jumping in.

What does it take to embed sustainability across an entire university—from academic buildings to athletic arenas? In this episode, we sit down with Andy Berki, Director of the Office of Campus Sustainability, and Paul Dunlop, Associate Director of Facility Operations for Michigan Athletics, to explore how the University of Michigan is turning ambitious climate goals into everyday action. From high-impact energy and waste reduction strategies to zero-waste game days at the Big House, Andy and Paul share how Michigan is leading the way in higher education sustainability. Whether you're focused on campus operations, athletics, or institutional strategy, this episode offers real-world insights for creating a culture of sustainability that sticks.

This episode was recorded live during a session at the 2024 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit co-sponsored by Second Nature and the Intentional Endowments Network in Long Beach, California, in February 2024. Guests from higher education and the private sector discuss the evolving nature of climate action planning and the emergence of decarbonization planning on college and university campuses. If you are a higher ed. sustainability professional trying to make sense of the alphabet soup of plans, strategies, roadmaps, and reports, this episode is for you!

In this episode, we feature guest host and recent Lewis & Clark graduate Lena Essak. Lena interviews regular host Dave Karlsgodt and two other guests: Dr. Lisa Benjamin, Associate Professor at Lewis & Clark Law School, author and climate negotiator, and Tim Swinehart, a social studies teacher from Lincoln High School in Portland, OR. The topic is climate communication.

In this episode, you'll hear a session recorded earlier this year at the 2023 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit hosted by Second Nature and the Intentional Endowments Network. The next frontier in campus decarbonization is the transition of thermal systems away from fossil fuels. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity. This expert panel shares experiences in decarbonizing campus thermal systems - from antiquated steam to efficient low temp hot water, from fossil fuels to the stable temperature of the ground. The panel will feature how to engage and collaborate with institutional constituents in the beginning stages all the way through complete projects covering planning, financing, implementation.

In this episode, you'll hear a session recorded earlier this summer at the 2023 Appalachian State University energy summit in Boone, North Carolina. This panel included my B&D colleague, Kevin Mara, and two industry experts, Chris DePodesta and Carolyn Arida, from the infrastructure investment group at Harrison Street. The topic evolving Energy public-private partnerships or energy P3s for higher education.

In this episode we interview two professors and researchers discussing a recently published paper in the journal One Earth entitled: “Carbon neutrality should not be the end goal: Lessons for institutional climate action from U.S. Higher education.” You’ll hear lead author Alex Baron of Smith College and co-author Aaron Strong from Hamilton College. We also want to recognize key collaborators and co-authors the who each made significant contributions the paper we discuss including Maya Domeshek and Lucy Metz who were students at Smith at the time of publication and Laura Drauker from the Boston-based non-profit Ceres. Link to the paper: https://www.cell.com/one-earth/fulltext/S2590-3322(21)00472-3 Alexander R. Barron, et al. "Carbon Neutrality Should Not Be the End Goal: Lessons for Institutional Climate Action From U.s. Higher Education." One earth, v. 4 ,.9 pp. 1248-1258. doi: 10.1016/j.oneear.2021.08.014

In this episode we will talk with journalist, author, and energy consultant Peter Kelly-Detwiler. Our topic: Cutting Edge Campus Climate Tech. Our mission: help campus decision makers and stakeholders understand "cutting edge" campus decarbonization / reliability / resilience technologies. How can they take advantage of new and emerging technologies while avoid wasting time on ideas that are either empty hype or operationally irrelevant for their campus context?

In this episode, we talk with with Dr. Katrina Kelly-Pitou, Energy Systems Strategist at SmithGroup. The discussion focuses on what higher education can expect from federal, state and local governments in the near term, but also a broader discussion about the politics and business model of higher ed. itself.  She both challenges conventional ideas and paints a compelling vision for a sustainable future for higher education and the communities in which they operate.

In this episode, we talk with Kenny Seeton, central plant and energy manager at California State University Dominguez Hills. The wide-ranging conversation spans everything from LED retrofits to solar powered golf carts. Kenny talks about how to safely take risks and how to connect systems seeking continuous improvement. He offers up sound advice for energy managers on metering, sensors, occupancy controls, valves, dampers, trend analysis and even phase change materials. This engaging episode is perfect for anyone looking for creative energy solutions for their campus, whether this is your first introduction to energy management or, like Dave and Kenny, you geek out over topics energy efficiency, storage, and more.

In this special episode of the podcast, we present a recording of Podcasting for Sustainability in Higher Education from AASHE’s 2020 Global Conference on Sustainability in Higher Education. Dave Karlsgodt, Katie Boyle and Brian Campbell talk about what it’s like to run a podcast and how they utilize their shows to further the conversation on energy and sustainability. All three delve into the missions behind their podcasts, as well as how and why they pick topics to cover. In this episode that explores podcasting as a tool for sustainability in higher education, our hosts aim to aid participants and listeners in learning how to frame their sustainability efforts in stories, making them compelling to a variety of audiences, from students to senior leaders, academics to alumni.