As our society is slowly catching on to the “green” lifestyle, Julian Belity, a UCF collegiate and SGA Sustainability Specialist, is working full force to make our school more economically friendly.
I am proud to introduce you to Mr. Sustainability. See how his passion for sustainable innovations is making our world a better place.
Q: Let’s start off with the basics. Where are you from? Where did you attend high school? What year in school are you? What is your major/minor?
A: I was born in Washington D.C., but I lived in Palm Beach Gardens, FL most of my life. I attended William T. Dwyer high school and spoke French and English around the house, since my family is from France. I plan to graduate this spring with a Marketing major and Information Technology minor, but I have a deep passion for sustainable innovations.
Q: Why did you choose to attend UCF?
A: I chose to go to UCF because of how fast this campus has grown within such a short period of time. The modern architecture, advanced research facilities, sustainable solutions and international involvement are what sold me over the other universities when I first visited this campus.
Q: What made you “go green”?
A: I was first very passionate about technological innovations and new gadgets that were coming into the market, but once I stumbled through several sustainable solutions that generated energy in the most fascinating ways (jumping up and down on a floor, absorbing body heat, tapping the screen on your phone, etc), I started to build a new passion for technologies that could change the world!
Q: What does it mean to be Mr. Sustainability?
A: “Mr. Sustainability” is a name I came up with on my own when I started to realize that all I worked on, talked about, and researched night and day were solutions to implement on campus in order to build a more sustainable university. Since I carried the title as SGA’s Sustainability Specialist, I thought it would have been appropriate to spice up the name a bit!
Relaxing after a long day of work as Mr. Sustainability!
Q: What is the purpose behind the UCF Green movement?
A: Our purpose is to implement more innovative, environmental solutions on campus and to build a stronger green movement by providing a more sustainable infrastructure for the coordination and collaboration between the student body and all of the environmental organizations & departments at UCF.
Q: What different organizations have you created to make the UCF Green Movement possible?
A: I created Innovation 4 UCF last January through IDEAS for UCF as a semester-long Think Tank initiative to promote creative solutions for issues we face on campus pertaining to energy, waste, water, food, or transportation. This new program uses strategic incorporation by spending an intense semester with creative students and faculty from diverse fields of study who want to create sustainable structures and innovative practices through entrepreneurial, community projects! (innovations411.com)
I also created E.Co, the Student Government Association’s Environmental Coalition at the University of Central Florida. Establishing an Environmental Coalition at the University of Central Florida has helped bolster the environmental movement on campus by collaborating students with registered organizations, departments, and operations, promoting structural continuity to accomplish UCF’s Climate Action Plan, providing valuable resources and training, and institutionalizing students’ role in campus environmental change. This has also increased the visibility of environmental efforts on campus, which has drawn in new, passionate student recruits, thus sustaining and strengthening our university’s environmental movement. University of Montreal has already shown interest in starting an identical E.Co on their campus. (ecoucf.com)
I recently started Greeks Going Green, which is an official committee committed to increasing awareness and education among the Greek community. Their mission is to provide opportunities for Greek Students to reduce their impacts and to encourage members to take proactive steps within their respective houses to implement sustainable changes. Our goal is for the Greek community to, together, take a stand towards reducing the environmental footprint of the Greek student body at UCF. We are already in the process of running a Greek L.E.A.F.S. competition (Leading Environmentally Active Fraternity and Sorority) which rewards the Greenest Greek Fraternity and Sorority of the year during the Green Carpet Awards in April!
Q: What are your environmental goals for UCF?
A: We already raised our recycling rate during this years EPA Game Day challenge from 33% to 73% (9.33 tons of aluminum cans recycled during this year Homecoming Tailgate) and beat every other university within the state of Florida! This semester, our goal is to win the EPA’s RecycleMania 8 week Competition!
Q: What are some environmentally friendly events you will be holding this semester?
A: We hold several events throughout the semester, however, our main events will consist of GreenWaves Music Festival (www.ucfgreenwaves.com CHECK IT OUT | April 11), Green Carpet Awards (TBA), Alternative Energy Day, Shack-A-Thon, and many more! If you’re interested, please join us at our next E.Co meeting on February 27 in the Key West Ballroom 218AB.
Q: What can students do to find out more about your organization?
A: Go to the website: www.ecoucf.com
Q: Do you have any advice for students who would like to start living a more sustainable lifestyle?
A: Get involved with the Environmental Coalition on campus. Buy local products, purchase organic foods from your local farmers, recycle anything that is recyclable, support clean energy and learn more about sustainability and what you can do for your community!
Q: What are your plans for the future?
A: I plan to work my way up to create my own Innovative, Sustainable Consulting Firm! Companies today don’t have what it takes to compete within this fast-speed, uncontrollable economy! In order to stay sustainable environmentally and sustainable with your profits all at once, it takes innovative practice and the implementation of non-traditional strategies. I hope to provide this to public corporations one day, and I also plan to provide as many sustainable solutions to our planet as possible. Living my life passionately while following my goals and dreams has always been a priority of mine!
Julian is an extraordinary man doing extraordinary work. He has accomplished monumental things in his four years here at UCF. After graduation, Mr. Sustainability will leave a legacy that will be well-known for years to come. Make sure to check out the GreenWaves Music Festival on April 11! I know I’ll be in attendance.