2012 Best Practice Awards

The eleventh annual California Higher Education Sustainability Conference was hosted by University of California, Davis, in June 2012. The Best Practice Award winners represented here showcase the efforts of campus staff, consultants, and collaborating firms and organizations in the creation of energy-efficient and sustainable campuses throughout the UC and CSU systems.

The project summaries linked below describe key features and lessons learned from each project, so that campus project teams can learn from the collective efforts of peers at other campuses. Sidebar text includes details about each project, and contacts and links for additional information.

Best Overall Sustainable Design

UC Berkeley Energy Biosciences Building

UC Berkeley Energy Biosciences Building 
The newly completed Energy Biosciences Building consolidates research programs within cutting-edge laboratory spaces to improve collaboration between related fields. The university is anticipating LEED Gold certification for the project’s outstanding sustainable and energy-efficient design.


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California Maritime Acadamy facade

CSU California Maritime Academy
A careful integrated design process combined the school’s core values of integrity and community with a focus on the energy systems particular to a dining service facility. The project exceeded CSU's energy and life-cycle cost guidelines while advancing an energy-intensive building type.


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Best HVAC Design/Retrofit

Geisel Library

UC San Diego HVAC Controls Retrofit at Geisel Library
Instead of replacing the constant-air-volume (CAV) air delivery equipment in this heavily used library, a digital controls retrofit and new variable frequency drives (VFDs) allow significant fan speed reductions and better control, resulting in lower retrofit costs and immediate energy savings of 23 percent.


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Aztec Rec Center

San Diego State University Wireless HVAC Controls Retrofit
An intelligent wireless control system allows an existing constant air volume delivery system to perform much like a variable air volume system, resulting in substantial and immediate energy reductions. Incentives increased the cost-effectiveness of the retrofit, which reduced annual energy use by 30 percent.


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Best Lighting Design/Retrofit

Lighting at UC Santa Cruz

UC Santa Cruz Campus-wide Lighting Retrofit
UC Santa Cruz applied the latest in lighting design, technology, and controls, leveraged with helpful assistance from students, in this comprehensive lighting retrofit. The project resulted in significant energy savings with a simple payback of four years after incentives.


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Meriam Library Lighting Retrofit

CSU Chico Meriam Library Lighting Retrofit
The lighting retrofit of the Meriam Library was the first building-wide energy retrofit on the CSU Chico campus. After a photometric study, the original retrofit plan was modified to include the removal of a significant number of fixtures in addition to delamping, resulting in a 61 percent lighting energy reduction.


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Monitoring-Based Commissioning (MBCx)

UC Berkeley Davis Hall

UC Berkeley Davis Hall
At Davis Hall, a monitoring-based commissioning program replaced failed variable speed drives, reduced hours of operation for air handlers, and implemented occupant-based lighting controls. Generous utility rebates made the project highly cost effective, with a payback of less than five months.


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CSU San Marcos Kellogg Library

CSU San Marcos Kellogg Library
Monitoring-based commissioning is a proven method for achieving energy savings that is effective even in relatively new buildings. At Kellogg Library at CSU San Marcos, electricity use was reduced by 20 percent and chilled water by 62 percent, the result of commissioning and a lighting retrofit.


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Water Efficiency & Site Water Quality

UCSC Earth & Marine Sciences Building

UC Santa Cruz Water Efficiency and Water Management Improvements
In response to city water restrictions, UC Santa Cruz implemented numerous initiatives to improve how water is measured and managed on campus.
A collaborative approach led to water use reductions in buildings, as well as best-practice upgrades to metering, irrigation systems, and cooling towers.


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Cal Poly Landscaping

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Irrigation Conservation and Site Water Quality Program
A comprehensive set of measures at Cal Poly has successfully enhanced water quality and management throughout the campus community, landscape, farm areas, and managed lands. This has improved water savings as well as landscape restoration, riparian enhancement, and erosion control.


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Credits: The 2012 Best Practice Award case studies were edited by David Lehrer of the Green Building Research Center. Contributing authors include Katie Ackerly, Noelle Cole, Chris Hammer, Anna LaRue, Miriam Landman and Trista Little.

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