Who We Are

Sustainability Office

Jeremy Friedman - Coordinator, NYU Sustainability Task Force - provides communications and policy support for a range of administration-led and grassroots campus greening initiatives. His primary role is to facilitate the work of the Sustainability Task Force, a body of students, faculty and administrators tasked with developing and implementing initiatives to improve environmental performance and foster a campus culture of ecological literacy.   Jeremy completed a degree in Environmental Values and Public Policy at NYU's Gallatin School, where his studies emphasized intersections between environmental philosophy, politics and design as they impact the institutional change management process. He was a co-founder of the Green Arch Initiative, a coalition of sustainability advocates that has helped to build support for the greening of NYU.   His favorite charismatic megafauna is the lamentably-extinct Giant Ground Sloth, which doubtless would endorse his commitment to sustainability, were it alive today.

Cecil Scheib - Director of Sustainability and Energy - founded Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage on 280 acres in rural Missouri with the goal of building a new village as an ecological demonstration project, shortly after receiving a Civil and Environmental Engineering degree from Stanford University. Since then, DR has grown to be 40 people living in 16 off-grid solar and wind powered straw bale houses that collect rainwater for drinking. Village residents grow food organically and run shared co-op cars on biodiesel while pursuing their dream lifestyle in the country.

A Bronx native, Cecil returned to New York City after 14 years at Dancing Rabbit to lead NYU's sustainability, energy and resource conservation efforts for the division of Operations. Areas of responsibility include reducing NYU's energy use, NYU Recycling, NYU Garden Shop / Landscaping, and water conservation..

Dianne Anderson - Sustainable Resources Manager - brings her experience and enthusiasm for sustainability to NYU from California. She manages the Recycling Shop and energy and water reduction projects with a goal of improving NYU's environmental impact. Prior to NYU, Dianne was the Resource Conservation Specialist for the County of San Mateo, where she taught building design workshops, launched a Green Business Program, and led outreach campaigns on resource reduction and recycling. She worked closely with local government officials to create policy to support these efforts. Dianne is passionate about living green and will gladly tell you about her Wriggly Wranch Vermicomposting (worm) Bin.

Sarah Boll - Recycling Coordinator - comes to NYU most recently from Parallel Products, a national recycling company that operates a facility in the Bronx. Having attained a Masters in Environmental Protection and Management after spending six years as an Officer in the US Navy, she is excited to coordinate NYU's Recycling Shop, leading reuse, reduction and recycling projects throughout the campus. Living proof that there are New Yorkers not from the city, Sarah grew up on dairy farm south of Buffalo.

George Reis- Supervisor of Sustainable Landscaping, NYU Garden Shop - studied horticulture and garden design at the New York Botanical Garden. He became motivated to seek out a natural systems approach to plant care after being licensed to apply restricted-use pesticides by the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation. A member of MetroHort and the Ecological Landscaping Association, George joined the Northeast Organic Farming Association in order to adapt their methods of organic land care to the urban gardens of NYU.

George came to NYU as a gardener in 1995 and studied Portuguese and Brazilian literature in NYU's College of Arts and Science. His translation of a Portuguese poem appeared in Mantis, a literary journal at Stanford University. He has begun translating selected writings of Roberto Burle Marx, the great Brazilian landscape architect. George and his wife Ethel live in leafy Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

Zoe Abram - Program Assistant, Sustainability Advocates and NYU Green Grants - is a student in NYU's Gallatin School, studying Environmental Policy and Food Systems. She received a Green Grant to start NYU's Community Agriculture Club, and is especially interested in intentional communities, politics, and developing a Green Canteen lunch stand on campus. Most days, she hopes to attend law school and pursue a career in Agricultural Policy. But on the other days she wants to farm. Before she started this job, Zoe went to sea for a semester and once did not see land for three weeks in a row. While not busy in the Sustainability Office, Zoe can most often be found cooking with friends, learning to be more aggressive on her bike, or engaged in a competitive game of Boggle.

Mike Sandmel - Project Assistant, Energy and Transportation - is a student in NYU's Gallatin School of Individualized Study. His work is centered in environmental studies, economics, and urban studies. He was previously responsible for the NYUnplugged dorm energy contest. He is currently working on several projects to reduce non-renewable energy use and to improve access to sustainable transportation across campus. Before coming to NYU, he worked as a mechanic for Bikes Not Bombs, an international cycling and sustainability organization, headquartered in Boston. When not studying, organizing, or mechanic-ing, Mike enjoys making pizza, eating pizza, and loud guitar noises.

Jelani John - Project Assistant, Sustainability Website - is a graduate student in the Interactive Telecommunications Program at the NYU Tisch school of the arts. When not riding wild tigers and wrestling bears, he can be found hovering over the east village, keeping NYC running through sheer willpower. Jelani likes warm things - like sunlight, bees, and honey. Etcetera.

Shane Crary-Ross - Program Assistant, Outreach and Engagement - is a junior in the School of Social Work doing a double major in Social Work and Economics. She is especially interested in public health and environmental justice. Besides working in the Sustainability Office, she co-chairs the Sustainability Task Force's Food and Purchasing Working Group, and also leads Sustainable Silver, the School of Social Work’s greening initiative. When she’s not studying, scheming, or working on sustainability at NYU, you’ll find Shane cooking, gardening, or reading science fiction.

Su-Anne Huang - Project Consultant, Climate Action Plan – graduated with an Environmental Studies and Psychology dual degree at NYU. She seeks to improve environmental standards and performance in urban settings, hopefully one day back in her hometown Singapore. Suanne wants to figure out how to change people’s perceptions on climate change and what will inspire them to take collective action. When not trying to reduce NYU’s energy use, Suanne can be found painting with bright colours, attempting to cook, or ogling over small furry animals.

Sustainability Task Force

The Sustainability Task Force is an advisory body composed of students, faculty and staff, tasked with developing recommendations for new policies and practices that advance NYU's long-term future as a sustainable university.

The Task Force represents as many key university constituencies as possible, while also drawing upon participants with specific expertise or interest in environmental issues. It includes graduate and undergraduate students, faculty, administrators, and staff; representatives hail from nine NYU colleges, and from many different student clubs, administrative departments, and university governance bodies.

Past Student Employees