1. T O o d
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www.solargeneration.org

2. ? ?
HOW TO
?
K ESTABLISH GOOD RELATIONS WITH
THE UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATION
Ah, relationships with the governing body of your college or your university...
now there's a tricky subject, but one which is essential to the success of your
project. Actually, they are the decision-makers, so you are going to have to
manage relations with these partners in a way that subtly combines tact and
tenacity. They are not your enemies but are in fact your partners: long-term
partners, on whom your project depends totally, from a financial point of view.
This is why you need to see to it that the administration feels involved
and decides to commit itself. The future of your Solar Generation project
depends on it!
1.THE BASIC PRINCIPLES OF
COMMUNICATION
1. Be polite.
2. Present yourselves clearly, making yourselves of value to them -
you have to be indispensable!
3. Explain your project well, in a clear and well-argued manner:
It’s not just one student project among many, it’s a radical change;
You are part of a network of student organisations, you have the benefit
of suitable professional contacts (contacts from the design office, guides
from other campuses etc.);
Through your organisation you will commit to this project both time and
money, by means of seeking grants. That’s your “added value”;
You are close to the students and are better placed to lead campaigns
to raise awareness and communicate issues;
Solar Generation benefits everyone on campus - less greenhouse gas,
but also less money thrown down the drain. Emphasise the savings that
the university or college could make by carrying out this project.

3. 2. THE PRACTICE
BEFOREHAND
Nominate someone within your organisation to be your regular contact with
the administration.
Find out about the different departments within the university and identify
those with which you should collaborate (closely or loosely). You can draw an
organisation chart to help you to understand the relationships between the
different departments, the hierarchy. This will show you who to contact first
and who are the decision-makers.
Try to find out about existing relations between the departments and also
between the staff of different departments. Sometimes feelings of
competition, jealousy or, conversely, friendship between key personnel can
act in your favour; learn to identify these in advance.
FIRST CONTACT
Write a letter to the administration, taking into account the points mentioned
above (be polite, present your organisation and your project in a clear, well
thought-out fashion). Your letter must not reveal everything; hold back some
details that you can explain at your first meeting. See Factsheet – Form Letter to
the Administration.
You could also start by contacting the technical services department to
explain to them that you are running a project on energy saving
measures at the university and you would like to obtain some
information beforehand. Acting nonchalant is a good way of an
establishing contact with them without putting them under design
u canational chart
Yo niz
any pressure, and to get the chance to show the
orga derstand the n the
e
seriousness of your project. They need to understand that to un ions betwetments
it’s a student initiative, by a motivated group, and that you relat rent depar
want to include them in the process. diffe
The fact that the project forms part of your coursework
can also be a means of reassuring them. You can then
begin getting to know them and start to glean
information about the workings of your university or
college, which will help you to progress with objectives
that are more precise and suited to the situation.
If possible, surround yourselves with professionals who
support your project. This could be an expert in the field
of energy, or a teacher/lecturer that is already involved in
this area. The more support you have, the more credibility
you carry.

4. You can also find a way to show that your project reflects the general will of
all the students on your campus (by means of an amicable petition) so that it
becomes a necessity, even an obligation.
MAKE THE RELATIONS LAST
Listen to the staff in the administration and technical services. They can give
you information, get round restrictions and guide your research. They can
help you to identify obstacles and to narrow down your objectives so
that they are better suited to the specific circumstances of
- your campus.
your ,
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Donf to be eck if d are
Don’t let them push you around though. Always clarify
things as much as possible. You are running this project,
sel ays chu hear e you are there as a negotiator, as their equal. Don’t present
alwngs yo possibl yourselves as obedient pupils but as true project leaders.
thi tually Always show that you are of value, that you know what you are
ac
talking about, that your project is coherent and structured and that you have
the legitimate right to defend it.
N.B. This is why your objectives must be clearly defined, have fixed time-
scales, and be backed up by figures, and why you must continually hammer
them home without being distracted! See Factsheet – Define your Objectives.
The best thing to do to communicate with the administration regularly,
officially and calmly is to create an Environmental Management Committee
(see Factsheet – EMC). This is comprised of the various interested parties and
takes communal decisions, taking into account the circumstances and
restrictions of the different parties. In this way you can ask to have a say in the
decisions that affect your project.
In any case, it’s best if you can arrange to have regular meetings with the
administration. However, if they don’t honour you with their presence, if the
meetings are too far apart or if it seems impossible to set up an EMC, why
don’t you organise an event to force them to establish relations with you? (See
Guide – How to organise an event.)
This will be a chance to bring together campus students and staff and to have
a more informal discussion. You can use this to let them know how
disappointed you are with their lack of communication. Explain to them how
this is paralysing your project and how you want to establish long-term
relations with the administration and collaborate with them on the issue of
Solar Generation. Several events that come under the heading of fun are
also suitable for bringing people closer together: organic dinners,
workshops, exhibitions…

5. COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY?
There are big differences in relations with the administration depending on
the size of your institution and its status. There are notable differences
between colleges and universities, although sometimes the features that are
advantages and disadvantages for one can equally apply to the other (a
college can have a huge campus and lots of students, a university can have
many contacts to exploit and a governing body that is easy to contact and
readily available). In general the governing body has many different things to
manage so you must play your cards right if you want to be actively
supported. To simplify:
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE
Difficult to contact / contacts more Easy to contact / contacts easier to
difficult to identify. identify.
Anonymous. Everyone knows everyone / easier
Several kinds of site and buildings. to have personal and regular
Several electricity contracts / contact.
managed with other universities / Often only one building or a very
shares buildings. small campus.
Little financial freedom. One electricity contract.
Few or no partnerships with Depends on the college, often
business. business schools have more
Small address book. financial scope and are better
More areas of specialisation, more placed to support or even
diverse support (lecturers, research encourage student projects.
and teaching units…) Partnerships with businesses for
Less well-known, dependent on the student placements / can be useful
university. to the project.
Students have more autonomy, Large address book.
easier to adopt a project. One limited area of teaching.
Student organisations enjoy little or More well-known, more easily
no support. identifiable, more power.
Students are often “mentored”, less
flexibility to take on projects.
Setting up or joining an
organisation is practically part of
the educational process.

6. So you can see that relations with the administration of
a college are often easier than with that of a
st of
the mo
university. It is often the case that students of a
make eputation od off college feel more supported and less held back by
the r college aou n typical administrative obstacles: slowness, no
yourhe tools y . transparency in relations, lack of communication,
all t available down time… as a result the administration of a college
hav e
seems more dynamic. Indeed, the student population is
often smaller which facilitates management and personalised
contact with every student or organisation.
So, make the most of the reputation of your college and of all the tools you
have available. On the other hand, don’t be discouraged if the atmosphere at
your university does not seem suitable for your project or if you feel you are
not supported, have patience and you will succeed in moving things along. Do
not forget your strong point - university students are often more easily
mobilised, they will be willing to support your initiative, and you will be able to
use this support to your advantage in dealings with the administration.
SUMMARY
TIP 1. In short, you need to formalise
6 Suggest good ideas
to your contacts whilst
relations with the governing body;
creating an EMC is the ultimate aim
giving the impression that of this process.
actually it was their idea.
2. Prior to this, find out how the
This is a very good way to
administration functions, the levels of
get them to adopt ideas and
hierarchy, the names and contacts
defend them fiercely to other
within the different departments.
departments/participants!
Draw up a contact sheet.
3. Then, organise regular meetings with the various interested parties. Try to
become an integral part of the team of decision-makers, having a say in the
decisions concerning energy and buildings. Your organisation must play a
specific role.
4. In order to do this you will need to gain recognition and credibility. This will
be the result of your work and of your capacity to make your work visible by
organising events and meetings.
5. Be clear, communicative, both firm and cooperative. The harder you work
on your project, the more your self-confidence will grow and the better you will
be at putting it into words.
6. Within your organisation it’s the job of the nominated representative for
relations with the administration to follow up with your contacts within the
university. They must make the effort to maintain regular contact with
members of the administration. Their role is to communicate and negotiate

7. with these partners. They can make an assessment of the state of relations
between your organisation and the administration and come up with a
communications plan to improve these relations.
7. If there’s a crisis, don’t get discouraged. Continue to push your project
forward and to keep the administration informed (send letters, telephone…).
The more you are open and clear with the administration, the more they will
be with you.
8. Communicate and use powers of persuasion. You must convince the
administration of the value of your project.
NEXT…
Have your chancellor/president or other influential person sign a Green
Campus Charter. This should be reviewed each year and set targets that are
more and more ambitious and specific. It will allow you to establish long-term
relations and set in stone your Solar Generation project. See Factsheet –
Charter of Commitment.
Laying the groundwork for good relations with the administration will make it
easier to hand over your project to future members of your organisation. Your
role is to sow the seeds of Solar Generation so that everyone can enjoy the
harvest. Remember, the more you can mobilise the various groups on
campus, the more involved they will feel and the longer the support for your
project will be maintained.

8. TESTIMONY
THOMAS, FORMER LEADER OF
THE SOLAR GENERATION PROJECT
IN STRASBOURG:
« I was involved in setting
up the Solar Generation
project in Strasbourg, as leader of
the project. At the start, we were
just a group of friends in the same
year that wanted to take some
kind of action within the university.
At the start things were a bit difficult due to our total ignorance of the university and
how it worked. We had problems finding good people to represent us, and this led
to some disappointments. But once the first step had been taken, the adminis-
tration gave us a proper hearing. Now that we have succeeded in showing that our
undertaking deserves to be taken seriously, dialogue between the two parties
(university and association) is going really well.
This successful initial contact with the administration was in fact our main
Greenpeace International Ottho Heldringstraat 5 1066 AZ Amsterdam Netherlands
achievement in the first year. It is absolutely essential to establish a relationship of
trust in the first instance, otherwise discussion is impossible. Given the size of the
university, this was not an easy task.
This partnership with the university admin was formalised by the signing of a
charter, which, while not implying any major commitment for the university, did at
least make them aware of environmental issues and of our desire for the university
to get involved on a more practical level.
Printed on 100% post consumer recycled chlorine-free paper
We have now succeeded in becoming known and recognised by the full range of
university departments, and I think we can say that our association has become
an essential part of campus life! »
www.solargeneration.org