This document summarizes discussions from the MIT Sustainability Connect 2016 conference about initiatives to make the MIT campus a living laboratory for sustainability research. It includes: 1) A presentation on AccessMyCommute, a platform to help employees make more sustainable commuting choices, and the challenges of integrating data from various transportation apps and measuring behavior change. 2) A roof sustainability assessment conducted by facilities and students to study energy conservation, stormwater management, and community benefits from MIT roofs. 3) A student project that used a MIT-developed tool to analyze the solar potential of MIT roofs and presented findings to administrators. 4) A class project on adapting MIT to climate change that included a vulnerability

1. may 9.2016
John Fernandez, Dir. of MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative
AccessMyCommute
• John Attanucci, Lecturer & Manager MIT Transit Research Program
• Corey Tucker, 3rd year, Master of Sci. in Transport. and Technology &
Policy
MIT Roof Study
• Taya Dixon, Senior Planner, Capital Renewal
• Isaac LaJoie, 4th year, Mechanical Engineering
2100 Resiliency Planning
• Mike Wilson, Urban Studies and Planning
• Jacqueline Kuo, 4th year, Mechanical Engineering
campus as a living
laboratory

2. Accessmycommute
Corey Tucker
John Attanucci

3. What is AccessMyCommute?

4. Benefits of AccessMyCommute
• Institute
– Reduction in parking
demand
– Increased campus
sustainability
• Employees
– Information for decision
making
– Carpool facilitation
– Financial incentives

5. Challenges/Research Advances
• Platform integration (Combining a mobile app with secure,
interactive employee dashboard on established site)
– RideAmigos – Unity
– ATLAS
– Moves
• Data (Can we collect and present reliable dashboard data
seamlessly with minimal user assistance?)
– Availability
– Reliability
– Processing
• User reception/experience (Can we get eyes repeatedly on the
dashboard; can we measure & change commuting behavior?)
– Email messaging
– Use of Moves

7. | MIT Sustainability Connect 2016: Campus as a Living Lab
Department of Facilities: Building on Faculty & Student Research
ROOF SUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT
Roof Sustainability Assessment
• Energy Conservation
• Stormwater Management
• Community Benefits

8. | MIT Sustainability Connect 2016: Campus as a Living Lab
Student Investigation: What is MIT’s solar potential?
 MIT should be a leader in
sustainability and clean
energy
 Used MIT developed tool
(Mapdwell) to generate data
and designs
 Worked with Office of
Sustainability
 Presented findings to
administration
ROOF SUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT
Student Inquiry
Administration
Office of Sustainability
Impact &
Development
Facilities

10. ADAPTING MIT TO CLIMATE
CHANGE
11.123 | BIG PLANS
INSTRUCTORS: LINDA SHI AND MIKE WILSON
STUDENT: JACQUELINE KUO

11. CAMBRIDGE CLIMATE VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT

12. CAMBRIDGE CLIMATE VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT

13. CLASS VISION

14. Team
Name
Engaged
Communities
Intervention Strategy Hazard(s)
Addressed
Approximate
Timeline
Beaver Fever West Campus
and Undergrads
Change Behavior
Keeping Community
Moving
Dorm Row and Grad
Students
Protect from
Elements
MIT Underwater Researchers
and Institute
Fortify and
Change Standards
C-Green City and
Commuters
Accommodate
and Redevelop
Kendall Outdoor Lab Researchers
and Tourists
Research
and Educate
ADAPTATION STRATEGIES MIX
Present - 2030 - 2050 - 2070 - 2100

15. Beaver Fever Open Space Committee
Recommendation
• Mission:
1. Facilitate a culture of living with heat
2. Enhance community engagement by transforming and creating
programming in underutilized open space
3. Using the Commons Framework, advocate for and implement open space in
future campus planning projects

16. • Suggested structure
– 6 elected faculty members
– 3 undergraduates students
– 2 graduate students
– 2 representatives from the Office of the Dean for Student Life
– Additional student involvement in open “town hall” meetings
• At the level of an MIT institute committee
• Consult on new building projects
• Reflect on existing open spaces and suggest renovations
Design Behavior
Shift
Beaver Fever Open Space Committee
Recommendation

17. Outdoor Green
Space
Indoor/Outdoor
Space
Indoor Space
Central Light
Chamber
Proposed
Student
Center Space

18. Stakeholder Pros Concerns
MIT Corporation ● Iconic part of MIT and opportunity to rebrand MIT
as a leader in innovative climate-ready campuses
● Cost
MIT President ● Personal legacy
● Promotes student mental health
● Vibrant outdoor scene promotes MIT’s image and
attracts potential students
● Project may begin or end at a different
president’s term
Office of Facilities ● Aligned with campus climate goals
● Increase student interaction
● Student Center’s maintenance costs rise as the
building gets older
● Upfront expenses
● Timeline/schedule of construction
Students ● New center
● More comfortable space
● Without a student center during
construction period (2 years?) -
especially difficult for student group
offices
City of Cambridge ● Healthier + happier students are more invested in
being part of broader community
● Noise from construction
Stakeholder Concerns

19. may 9.2016
campus as a living
laboratory
discussion & questions