Steven Bellona, associate vice president for facilities and planning, is The Chronicle of Higher Education's "Buildings & Grounds" guest blogger for January. Bellona's first blog, "How to Help Sustainability Survive the Downturn," addressed the most effective way in which to keep sustainability efforts at the forefront despite financial challenges.

According to Bellona, "being a good steward of the environment requires solutions that have staying power and can be inculcated into our daily routines." He reflected on environmentally conscious initiatives begun in the 1970s that ultimately failed. "Conservation programs were mandates that lacked any educational justification."