Our History

Spring of 2007
  • Originally named “Clean Energy for UMD”, our original objective was to get the University of Maryland’s President Dan Mote to sign “The President’s Climate Commitment”
  • This is a nationally recognized mandate that would require the university to draft a comprehensive climate action plan to make the school carbon neutral by 2050.  
  • 93% of students indicated support of the university adopting better environmental practices by voting in favor of a referendum that would require students to pay a small “green fee” to fund a commitment by the university to carbon neutrality

Summer of 2007
  • President Mote agreed to sign the commitment
  • The University has since set up and staffed an Office of Sustainability, bought hybrid shuttle buses, implemented a student green fee, made the new journalism building LEED silver, spent  tens of millions of dollars on energy efficiency improvements, increased recycling by 60%, offered more courses on renewable energy and sustainability, and implemented a whole host of other initiatives.  
  • Also, the Office of Sustainability, university faculty, and students have drafted the Climate Action Plan.  It has a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 12% by 2012, 25% by 2020, and 100% by 2050! 

Fall of 2007
  • We collaborated with other colleges in the University System of Maryland such as Towson and UMBC and formed the Maryland Student Climate Coalition (MSCC).  These schools worked together to pass a sustainability initiative through the University System of Maryland’s Board of Regents.  The initiative mandated all 13 schools within the system to commit to carbon neutrality by 2050 and therefore take steps like signing The President’s Climate Commitment. 

Spring of 2008
  • Our group and the MSCC participated in the Powervote campaign.  This nationwide campaign started by the Energy Action Coalition got over 300,000 young people to sign pledges to vote for politicians who supported clean energy solutions to the environmental, economic, and national security challenges we face.
  • In Maryland, UMD for Clean Energy got several thousand pledges while at the same time held rallies for climate action, and set up lobby meetings with Senator Ben Cardin’s and Senator Barbara Mikulski’s office.    

Spring of 2009
  • We collaborated with other environmental organizations around the state along with the MSCC to help pass a piece of state legislation called The Greenhouse Gas Reductions Act (GGRA).  This act mandated the state of Maryland to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 25% below 2006 levels by 2020.  This is the strongest short-term target in the nation.
  • We spent the second half of the spring semester organizing for a Clean Energy Town Hall meeting with House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer.  The event drew over 300 students and constituents. 

Summer of 2009
  • We continued our push for federal climate legislation in the House called the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES).  The group collaborated with other MSCC schools to lobby swing voter Congressman Frank Kratovil.  Kratovil ultimately voted yes for the measure, which passed the House 219-212, and will be considered in the Senate this fall.

Fall of 2009
  • Now named UMD for Clean Energy, our group will continue to support the passage of climate legislation in the Senate. 
  • We are also getting involved in the local College Park elections by running a campaign called “Green for College Park”
  • See “Green for College Park” and “Federal Climate Bill” tabs for more information