Western Washington University

Sustainable Communities Partnership

Website | www.wwu.edu/scp

The Sustainable Communities Partnership (SCP) program arranges courses at Western to tackle sustainability-related projects in a nearby community. The program focuses the energy and ideas of faculty and students upon the issues that communities face as our society transitions to a more sustainable future. SCP partners with one or two communities each academic year, facilitating a program in which many Western courses complete community-based projects that address problems identified by the partner.

A new partner is recruited each academic year, based upon the range of problems the community is hoping to solve, and the extent to which those problems align with the project and community-based learning focus of specific courses. In a typical year, about a dozen courses will tackle a dozen projects, with approximately 250 students engaged. Previous SCP projects included these WWU disciplines: environmental studies, environmental science, GIS, anthropology, economics, computer science, recreation, public relations, sociology, and journalism.

Fun Facts about SCP

The program was launched in collaboration with the Association of Washington Cities (AWC), which remains involved, helping raise awareness about the benefits of the program to cities. AWC President Peter King notes, “Cities throughout Washington strive to improve sustainability and resiliency in their communities. This partnership is a great step forward in providing cities with tools to help plan for the future.”

Year Program Established | 2016
Country | US
Federal Region of Program | 10

Public or Private Institution | Public
Number of students at institution | 15,000

Highlight Articles/Videos

WWU students map flood risk in Stanwood by Mark Wright and Allison Sundell

Community Partners

2016 | Edmonds, WA • Population: 40,000
2017 | Stanwood, WA • Population: 6,500
2017 | Skagit County, WA • Population: 70,000
2018 |City of Monroe, WA • Population: 17,789
2018 |City of Bellingham, WA • Population: 89,045
2018 |City of Ferndale, WA • Population: 14,026

Contact Info

Lindsey MacDonald
Program Coordinator
(360) 650-3824
lindsey.macdonald@wwu.edu