A central challenge of our time is sustaining the world’s developing population while minimizing damage to the environment. The Campus as a Lab (CaaL) Initiative uses Chicago’s own campus as a test bed for creating innovative solutions and developing skills in analyzing systems of energy and resource flows. CaaL involves education in quantitative environmental analysis, research into practical energy management strategies, and communication that explains our campus and environment. Projects reflect our core values: data-driven and quantitative analysis, implementable solutions, and open-source tools and data.

A central challenge of our time is sustaining the world’s developing population while minimizing damage to the environment. The Campus as a Lab (CaaL) Initiative uses Chicago’s own campus as a test bed for creating innovative solutions and developin…

Campus as a Lab is...

Who: undergraduates, graduate students, faculty, and Facilities staff working in collaboration.

When: ongoing (launched in Spring 2016)

What: data hackathons on campus energy and resource, demonstration events on waste and energy, and opportunities to be involved in research on campus energy, water, and waste. Focus areas include operation of campus facilities and infrastructure, economics of U Chicago’s energy purchases, building retrofit suggestions, transportation planning, and behavioral incentives.

How to Get Involved:

Check out the upcoming events listed below! If you're interested in helping out, have a question, or want to be added to the Campus as a Laboratory listserv, email:  CampusAsALaboratory@uchicago.edu. To learn more about winning a competitive research fellowships, come to the first hackathon.

Upcoming Campus as a Lab Activities

Campus-chiller-plant.jpg

Summer Quarter 2020: Undergraduate Research Assistant Positions
Come learn about paid research opportunities to study sustainable urban development on campus and beyond.

EFCampus: Virtual Overview of RA Projects
Wednesday, March 25th
12 pm - 1:30 pm

Hosted with Environmental Frontiers - a new initiative bringing together University of Chicago faculty, students, and staff to collaborate around finding innovative ways to build a more sustainable future. EFCampus enables students to use campus data to explore and enhance aspects of environmental sustainability, with an eye toward broader impact and applicability beyond the campus context.

Applications are due March 26th. Learn more and apply!

Past Events

Featured
Fall Hackathon - Campus total energy use and building control
Fall Hackathon - Campus total energy use and building control
Read More →
Spring 2016 - Hackathon - Orientation to Energy Usage on Campus
Spring 2016 - Hackathon - Orientation to Energy Usage on Campus

Campus as a Lab kicked off on May 20th with a Spring Hackathon, where a packed room in the Saieh Hall for Economics heard about UChicago’s current energy procedures and challenges, then split into small teams and worked with real data on campus buildings.

Read More →

This event is organized in partnership with the University of Chicago Office of the Provost , UChicagoSustainability, UChicago Facilities, and the Energy Policy Institute  at the University of Chicago.