UCLA awarded gold 'GreenGround' certification as UC seeks systemwide biodiversity model
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Summary
UCLA officials told the Regents' Public Engagement Development Committee that the campus achieved gold‑level GreenGround certification by rewilding over 90% of grounds, cutting pesticide use and saving water; leaders urged the UC system to scale the approach and expand student research and training.
UCLA has become the first campus in California to earn a gold‑level GreenGround certification from the nonprofit Rewild Your Campus, the university’s chief sustainability officer told the University of California Public Engagement Development Committee.
"We wanted to see how far we could go with an organic approach to campus management," said Nareet Katz, UCLA’s chief sustainability officer. She said the gold designation recognizes campuses that have transitioned 90% or more of their grounds away from synthetic pesticides and fertilizers.
The presentation highlighted multiple turf‑to‑native conversions across campus that Katz said conserved "millions of gallons" of water and earned rebates through the utilities turf replacement program. Katz also cited student‑led projects and grants — including work by the Bruin Birding Club and a National Audubon grant — that transformed ivy and underused lawn into pollinator gardens and outdoor study spaces.
Katz linked campus practice to research and policy, noting UC research on urban ecosystems and references to global assessments from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and IPBES. "Neither [climate change nor biodiversity loss] will be successfully resolved unless they're tackled together," she said, and described campus efforts that include tribal collaboration and a systemwide integrated pest‑management policy.
Regents and administrators responded with praise and calls to scale the approach. "This is something that you have proven we not only should do, but can do," Chair Saracen said. Regent Lieb, who pointed to student founder Mackenzie Feldman, urged other campuses to pursue certification; Katz noted that other UC campuses, including Berkeley, are pursuing or have achieved gold level.
The committee heard questions about certification methodology and verification. Katz described the process as an application and review with Rewild Your Campus and emphasized training for grounds staff and campus‑specific challenges. Faculty representative Scott encouraged stronger ties with UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) and its integrated pest‑management experts to expand living‑lab research and technical support.
The committee did not take formal action on the presentation; regents asked for continued engagement and offered to visit campuses for tours. Katz said UCLA could host future landscape and ecology tours and that the campus plans to continue student‑engaged research on biodiversity and ecological medicine.
The presentation underscored systemwide policy connections — Katz cited UC participation in California’s 30x30 conservation goal and collaborations at international fora — while presenters emphasized student leadership, staff training and measurable resource savings as central benefits.
