Statement
of Cooperation
between
Mount Union College
and
City of Alliance, Ohio
February, 2008
Mount Union College and the City of
Alliance have independently initiated efforts to create more sustainable
operations. The President of Mount Union
College has created a Task Force on Sustainability and has signed the American
College and University President’s Climate Commitment. It is the goal of Mount Union College’s
Sustainability Task Force is to meet the growing concern for sustainability on
our campus. Through education and
communication, the task force will encourage and facilitate awareness and
action on Mount Union’s campus and throughout the Alliance Community. The task force will assist Mount Union
College in its decision making process in these aspects, and will search out
opportunities that are socially, financially, and environmentally sound in
order to create a sustainable, efficient and healthy atmosphere for our
students, faculty, and staff.
Similarly, the Mayor of the City of
Alliance and the Alliance City Council has signed the U. S. Mayors’ Climate
Protection Agreement. Moreover the Mayor of Alliance created the Green
Alliance: The Mayor’s Green Task Force. Their mission is to develop
recommendations and strategies to fulfill the U. S. Mayors’ Climate Protection
Agreement with the City of Alliance, and to establish partnerships with various
entities of government, education, business, industry and among citizens to
educate and empower the greater Alliance community with the primary goal of
developing as an environmentally, socially and economically sustainable
community.
Based
upon the fundamental principles and concomitant goals shared between the Mount
Union College Task force on Sustainability and the Mayor’s Green Task Force,
Mount Union College and the City of Alliance have issued this joint statement
of cooperation.
The
areas of cooperation covered under this Statement may include, but not be
limited to:
·
Sharing
research on sustainable operations
including, energy efficiency, purchasing, fleet management, waste management
and related items.
·
Supporting one another in identifying and
securing funding sources for
sustainability initiatives including supporting letters, in-kind services,
cooperative efforts and possible joint applications.
·
Communicating
between the two task forces by formalizing cross representation with each task
force designating a person to be the formal communicator to the other task
force.
·
Cooperating in use of facilities with the College providing,
at no cost, space for the Mayor’s task force meetings, use of
computers (by MUC staff or students) for the city survey and related research
items.
·
Cooperating on education with the City offering opportunities for student
internships, class research projects or other educational activities such as
jointly sponsored field trips, seminars, and other educational programs.
·
Cooperating in public outreach through joint press releases and other public
relations activities.
·
Other items acceptable to both the entities
and approved by Mount Union College and the City of Alliance.
Both entities have been meeting during 2007 and are beginning to develop
specific plans to inventory their current level of sustainability. This
statement of cooperation is intended to maximize communication and efficiency
as both entities work towards similar ends.
More questions will emerge and new issues will continually present themselves
to be addressed. Through this Statement, we will have the opportunity to
cooperatively confront and address those questions and issues together.
Together, we will share these findings and complement the research, programs,
and policy initiatives. The end goal is to positively impact the personal and
environmental health of all stakeholders.
This Statement of Cooperation is not intended to and does not create any
contractual rights or obligations with respect to the signatory entities or any
other parties.
Signed and dated
Richard F. Giese, President, Mount Union College
Toni E. Middleton, Mayor, City of Alliance, OH