University of Oregon

Sustainable City Year Program

Website |sci.uoregon.edu/sustainable-city-year-program

The Sustainable City Year Program (SCYP) harnesses the innovation and energy of University of Oregon students and faculty to provide ideas that will address critical projects, and support progressive and sustainable initiatives. This working relationship puts university talent to work to strengthen Oregon communities

Our work addresses sustainability issues from the regional level down to the building. Creating a sustainable city cannot happen within a single discipline.

The Sustainable Cities Initiative focuses on sustainability-based research and teaching opportunities through SCYP and Research Themes. We share this expertise with scholars, policymakers, community leaders, and project partners through our Expert-in-Residence Program. We develop academic courses, professional training, and certification through the Educational Partnerships for Innovation in Communities Network (EPIC-N). Our work connects student passion, faculty experience, and community needs to produce innovative, tangible solutions for the creation of a sustainable society.

Fun Facts about SCYP

SCYP is the original EPIC program. Find out how it all started, here. In SCYP’s partnership with Oregon’s capital, Salem, a group of business students’ work saved the city a recurring $800,000 per year. In SCYP’s Redmond partnership, 15 of 17 student ideas to improve bicycle transportation were adopted and implemented within three months. In some cities, students worked directly with members of the marginalized Latino community, which led directly to increased participation in boards, commissions and other public roles.

Year Program Established | 2009
Country | U.S.
Federal Region of Program | 10

Public or Private Institution | Public
Number of students at institution | 35,000

Highlight Articles/Videos

SCYP Partners with City of Salem
SCYP Partners with City of Troutdale
Keep up to date with our latest news stories here.
Read about the impacts of SCYP since its beginnings here.
UO SCYP starts a small city partnership in La Pine, OR. 
Past SCYP Partnerships

City Partners

2010 | Gresham • Population: 111,500
2011 | Salem • Population: 167, 500
2012 | Springfield • Population: 61,800
2013 | Lane Transit District
2014 | Medford • Population: 81,600
2015 | METRO, Multnomah County, Troutdale, and Gresham
2016 | Redmond • Population: 29,300
2017 | Albany • Population: 50,200
2018 | TriMet
2018 | La Pine • Population: 1,800
2018-19 | Springfield • Population: 62,077
2018-19 | Dunes City • Population: 1,237
2018-19 | Gresham • Population: 110,494
2018-19 | Eugene • Population: 168,302
2019-20 | Silverton • Population: 10,242
2019-20 | Lane Transit District
2020 | Hood River • Population: 7,715
2020-21 | Troutdale • Population: 16,466
2021 | Talent • Population: 6,503
2021-22 | Hermiston• Population: 19,455
2022-23 | Sisters• Population: 3.081
2023-24 | Salem• Population: 177,723

Contact Details

Megan Banks
SCYP Program Manager
(541) 346-6395
mbanks@uoregon.edu

Marc Schlossberg
SCI Co-Director
schlossb@uoregon.edu

Nico Larco
SCI Co-Director
nlarco@uoregon.edu

Sustainable Cities Initiative
6206 University of Oregon
Eugene , OR 97403-6206
(541) 346-3582
sci@uoregon.edu