Last fiscal year 2024, USC reached 50% climate neutrality — meaning they have reduced half of all greenhouse gas emissions generated on campus — compared to their 2014 baseline, Chief Sustainability Officer Mick Dalrymple said Monday during an Assignment: Earth press briefing with campus media ahead of Earth Month.

Dalrymple attributed the feat to USC’s energy efficiency retrofits, the use of LED lighting, a cleaner overall grid and their renewable energy deal with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, which captures around 30% of campus electricity usage. He said the University hopes to achieve full neutrality by June.

“We’re going at a pretty good clip, but it’s going to take some big, heavy lifting [to finish],” Dalrymple said.

Dalrymple said the University will calculate its greenhouse gas inventory in June to analyze what it can replace with carbon offsets or remove entirely. USC is also following its decarbonization roadmap, where it plans to convert their utility systems from steam to hot water and from gas to electric to further offset their greenhouse gas use, he said.

Dalrymple said the University’s Sustainable Design and Construction guidelines have led to the building of more sustainable buildings. 

The School of Dramatic Arts building received the Platinum Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification from the United States Green Building Council and Ginsburg Hall has exceeded the required number of points to complete Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Platinum certification, making it possibly one of the highest scoring buildings in California. 

Additionally, the University reduced its water usage by 25% compared to its 2014 baseline at the end of the 2024 fiscal year, surpassing its goal of 20% reduction by 2028, Dalrymple said. He said there are several measures taken to reduce consumption, including a monitoring system which tracks potential leakages across campus to be investigated and addressed quickly. 

Dalrymple said the Assignment: Earth initiative with the most community engagement was their prevention of over five million plastic bottles being used on campus by installing campus-wide hydration stations and transitioning to reusable containers such as glass and aluminum. He said unlike other initiatives, the plastic bottle prevention program required the participation of everyone on campus. 

“People coming together and everybody being able to express their opinions and their concerns … coming to the table and saying, ‘Let’s figure this out together’ [is] when the real change happens,” Dalrymple said. “The plastic bottle elimination was like a huge positive example of that.” 

Dalrymple also said the University is moving towards implementing a sustainability graduation requirement, wherein students may be required to take three to four units of sustainability in order to graduate. This initiative was pitched so that students of any discipline can aid in sustainability initiatives. USG has recently passed their support for the graduate requirement proposal last January. 

The University implemented a hiring freeze for most staff Monday, which may affect Assignment: Earth’s goal of hiring sustainability faculty to teach. The requirement of sustainability courses will ensure that students receive some form of sustainability training one way or another. 

Dalrymple said he is grateful to President Carol Folt for building Assignment: Earth and said he is confident in the future of the initiative after she steps down as president July 1. He said he is sure the Board of Trustees will have sustainability as a priority when finding a new president. 

Assignment: Earth’s upcoming goals are the continuing integration of sustainability into core curriculum and the reduction of Scope 3 emissions — greenhouse gases that the University is indirectly responsible for, such as gases produced from air travel, commuting, waste and transmission and distribution losses.

As Earth Month approaches, Dalrymple said community members can look forward to over 60 events, including the mini-retreat Mindfulness at the Beach on April 11, a Malibu Grotto Trail hike with Dalrymple on April 12 and a screening of a climate change documentary series “True False Hot Cold” on April 23. 

Dalrymple encouraged students to take the sustainability survey, which is released once every two years so community members can have their voices heard when creating new initiatives and goals for Assignment: Earth. The survey measures sustainability literacy, culture and behavior.

“I think students and others feel like, ‘Oh, my little piece isn’t going to make any difference,’” Dalrymple said. “But there’s no way we can actually get to the goals without everybody doing their part.”

Correction: A previous version of this article stated that USC offset half of all greenhouse gas emissions generated on campus. The article was updated April 2 at 5:36 p.m. to reflect that instead, the University has reduced the emissions by 50% since their 2014 baseline. The Daily Trojan regrets this error.