legal clinics. Establishing community interaction as core to professional training in terms of practicum based professional degrees ensures sustainability and formal UM support. Additionally, the UM community’s attitudes regarding safety are important, most obviously apparent in language choice in reference to community composition. UM can redefine the campus community to include the greater Baltimore community, which eliminates an “us versus them” framework in speech and attitude. Lastly, UM should avoiding victim-blaming following incidents and should continue to incorporate an attitude of justice and human rights when evaluating the dynamics of crime near UM.
Green Space and Recreation Environmental stewardship and sustainability have recently been in the forefront of planning at colleges and universities around the nation. The evidence of global warming and increasing destruction of the natural environment prompted institutions like UM to examine their carbon footprints and environmental impact. UM is a role model in Baltimore City’s green movement because it upholds a civic commitment to resource conservation, waste reduction, and educational outreach. With the support of President Perman, who is a signatory of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, the UM Go Green initiative addresses UM’s responsibility to lead West Baltimore in environmentally sound practices (UM, 2012). A separate initiative, the UM Wellness and Academic-Life Balance Program, integrates the mission of UM Go Green with student health through seminars and green-related opportunities. The combination of these two movements promotes environmental preservation, wellness, and awareness among UM students, faculty, and staff. Though several opportunities exist for green involvement, such as the UM apiary and a community-supported agriculture program, UM falls short on allocating sufficient natural spaces for its immediate community and visitors.
Evidence suggests that a readily accessible natural environment is reflective of healthy places and communities (Largo-Wright, 2011). Urban green spaces therefore act to promote health on the community level and create visually appealing surroundings. They often come in the form of parks, gardens, and landscaped grounds with seating. In the UM fellows’ web-survey, 921 out of 992 respondents expressed sentiments that certain types of green space would improve the UM 9
