Dennis Carlberg still remembers when the sustainability movement was just a fad.
‘Then, there were a lot of people that felt strongly that we needed to be doing something about the environment, about energy efficiency, but it was something that wasn’t really supported by the business community,’ he said.
Throughout Carlberg’s almost 30 years in the sustainability industry, he said he watched this fad become a priority for the public. Now, he celebrates the spread of environmental enthusiasm as Boston University’s first-ever sustainability director, set to lead BU and President Robert Brown’s $1 million sustainability initiative into a more environmentally-friendly future.’
‘It’s a great opportunity,’ Carlberg said. ‘I’m thrilled that this is something [sustainability] that has been gaining momentum for the past five years. It’s been a passion of mine for my entire career.’
Carlberg will head the sustainability committee, which is composed of faculty, administrators and students. He said his first challenge will be structuring a plan for the committee to follow.
Another one of Carlberg’s duties includes helping ‘everyone else get the message out about how we’re doing, and how we can improve what we’re doing., Gary Nicksa, the Sustainability Initiative Steering Committee co-chairman, said in an interview with the Daily Free Press in October.
‘The goal is to continue to integrate sustainable initiatives into our campus,’ Nicksa, BU’s Vice President of Operations, said.
Carlberg said he thinks he has the background necessary to serve as sustainability director.
‘I’ve thought about sustainability my entire career,’ he said. ‘I understand where the real benefits are and where the pitfalls are. I’ll bring experience to the table on environmental, social and economic issues.’
Carlberg graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with an architecture degree and immediately jumpstarted his career in sustainability by joining the Solar Energy Research Institute. He continued to earn his master’s in architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he researched ways to bring more daylight into buildings.
Most recently, Carlberg had been serving as the project manager and senior designer for Arrowstreet, the architectural firm that designed the Artists for Humanity EpiCenter, which was the first building in Boston to receive a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Platinum rating.
Carlberg is a LEED Accredited Professional, meaning he can certify buildings meeting LEED’s standards of environmental sustainability. Carlberg said he did not want to comment on BU’s refusal to seek LEED certification for Student Village Phase II.
‘Part of our strategic plan will be to help determine if we need LEED,’ he said. ‘There’s a lot of discussion that needs to go on before we make a commitment to that.’
Though he could not comment on the status of LEED for BU buildings, Carlberg said he is excited to begin an open dialogue with the student environmental groups on campus.
Environmental Student Organization Vice President Hannah Leone said she will be serving alongside Carlberg on the Sustainability Committee, which is composed of administrators, faculty and students. She said she looks forward to working with Carlberg and pushing for more sustainable initiatives.
‘He seemed like he was really open to hearing our ideas and working with student groups because obviously, he’s new to the university and he feels like he should probably talk to us and see how we feel,’ she said. ‘It’s really encouraging that he’s already coming to us for help.’
Carlberg oversaw the placement of four new recycling bins on Bay State Road, but he attributes the majority of the effort to Facilities Management Senior Buyer Mike Lyons.
Carlberg said he sees a lot of potential in what the sustainability committee can achieve at BU.
‘We’ve got a ways to go, but I think BU has been at it and takes it seriously,’ he said.
Staff reporters Garrett Brnger and Taylor Miles contributed to the reporting of this story.
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