Symposium Call for Proposals • Electric Bus Debut • Public Transit Impacts of Bridge Collapse • Local Dining Partners • Green Fashion & Gifting Tips |
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Happy holidays from the Office of Climate and Sustainability! Check out this final newsletter of 2025 for the announcement of our Student Organization Sustainability Grant winners, information about submissions for the 2026 Sustainability Symposium, and a spotlight on local farms used by Hopkins Dining, plus highlights from recent OCS events.
Our latest blog posts feature an interview with a Hopkins undergraduate economics student researching the effects of the Key Bridge collapse on public transit use in Baltimore and tips on making more sustainable clothing choices this holiday season and beyond. Read on to the end for recent climate- and sustainability-related news from around JHU, as well as a selection of upcoming events both on campus and in the Baltimore area.
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Student Organization Grant Winners Announced |
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The inaugural winners of our Student Organization Sustainability Grant have been announced! Five organizations were chosen including Blue Jay's Perch, the Johns Hopkins Outdoors Club, Sustainable Hopkins Innovative Projects (SHIP), Engineers without Borders, and the Eritrean Ethiopian Student Association. The winning projects include an indigenous foraging work, biking events, an upcycling workshop, lead testing education, and plant-based food and zero waste supplies for a cultural event. We're excited to share these events as they get planned!
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Sustainability Symposium Call for Proposals |
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The Sustainability Leadership Council is seeking submissions for the 7th Annual JHU Sustainability Symposium. The event, which will be held April 8, 2026, will feature dialogue on important sustainability topics through cross-disciplinary presentations, panel discussions, research posters, and tabling opportunities. All JHU faculty, students, and staff are invited to submit presentation ideas.
Submissions are due by Monday, January 26, 2026. Learn more on the symposium web page or email sustainability@jhu.edu. We look forward to your submissions!
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Debut of New Johns Hopkins Electric Buses |
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OCS and Transportation Services recently celebrated the roll-out of five new electric buses! These state-of-the-art vehicles will help to reduce the university’s carbon footprint, provide a quieter, cleaner, and more efficient way to travel between campuses, and support the goals of JHU’s Climate Action and Sustainability Plan.
The new buses will reduce the emissions produced annually per bus by 110 tons, compared to diesel. Each bus has a range of 16-18 hours of drive time thanks to their rechargeable batteries and integrated regenerative braking system, which turns the kinetic energy from braking into additional electricity. The battery-powered buses run on the Homewood-Peabody-JHMI shuttle route.
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Recent Office of Climate & Sustainability Event Highlights |
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OCS had a busy end to our fall semester, including: sharing sustainable recipes and hosting a communal sustainability table at Hopkins Dining’s Friendsgiving event; giving away plant-based cinnamon buns at Lighting of the Quads; holding sustainability tabling at Hopkins Athletics football and volleyball games; stained glass making with campus sustainability practitioners; and more!
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New Planetary Health Funding Opportunity |
The Johns Hopkins Institute for Planetary Health (JHIPH) is partnering with Johns Hopkins University’s 2026 Discovery Awards and 2026 Nexus Awards by offering additional funding for Planetary Health track proposals that seek to address the degradation of Earth’s natural systems and its impacts on human health and well-being. Solutions to the Earth crisis can only be found together. By offering a Planetary Health track for the Discovery and Nexus awards, JHIPH hopes to catalyze transdisciplinary Planetary Health research and elevate efforts that advance critical solutions to protect the web of life on Earth.
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In the Lab: Effects of the Key Bridge Collapse on Public Transportation Use in Baltimore |
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Undergraduate senior Raghav Agrawal has long been interested in public transportation. For his economics honors thesis, he is studying the impacts of the March 2024 collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge on public transit use in the city.
| “Reducing vehicular emissions through the use of public transit is a huge aspect of making cities sustainable.”
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Spotlight on Local Partners: Frecon Farms & Pequea Valley Farm |
Johns Hopkins University's dining locations prioritize supporting sustainable food systems, local sourcing, community partnership, food waste reduction, and resource-efficient practices. Hopkins Dining, in partnership with food distributor The Common Market, focuses on purchasing from local and sustainable producers. In addition to finding local products in dining locations including Hopkins Café, Nolan’s on 33rd, and Peabody, you can also buy local produce and dairy at Charles Street Market.
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Frecon Farms is a family-owned orchard and farm market in Boyertown, PA, whose approach to growing is shaped by environmental stewardship, from managing pests with minimal chemical inputs, reducing their environmental impacts, strengthening community engagement with local food systems, and more. Pequea Valley Farm is a family-owned local dairy farm in York County, PA, emphasizing minimal processing and ethical animal care, maintaining a tightly managed, transparent operation that reflects respect for land, animals, and consumers.
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| Is wrapping paper recyclable?
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Use the scrunch test! Scrunch the wrapping paper up – if it stays scrunched, it’s recyclable; if not, it contains plastic and can’t be recycled.
Learn more.
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– Johns Hopkins University Hub
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| – Ralph O’Connor Sustainable Energy Institute
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| – Bloomberg School of Public Health
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How eco-friendly is my holiday outfit? How do I make sustainable clothing choices for myself and others this holiday season and beyond? |
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Every fiber tells a story, so knowing what your clothes are made of and where they came from matters. The holiday season brings the temptation to gift cozy sweaters, glittery party wear, or matching pajamas. But behind the festive sparkle often hides a less cheerful reality: stories about microplastics, landfill waste, and missed opportunities for circular design.
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How can you make better clothing choices? Here are some tips:
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Learn more about what different fibers are and their potential impacts
- Avoid both fast fashion and greenwashing
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Make your gifts more eco-friendly by opting for secondhand finds, making something by hand, or choosing brands that prioritize sustainability and transparency
- Gift someone with the skills or funds to repair their existing clothing
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