The Lighter Side of Sustainability

Wisconsin-based Gundersen Health System partners with its local solid waste department to pump enough landfill gas to run a 350,000-square-foot facility. It runs a dairy-digester system (including 2,000 cows) at three local farms in order to produce its own electricity, and because it now produces more electricity than it needs, it sells the surplus to local utilities. In 2014, Gundersen became the nation's first energy-independent health system, producing more fossil fuel than it consumes. Gundersen thus depends on a certain systems-based strategy discussed in the text. What is it? Why isn't it the strategy of choice for more health care systems? How might your school take advantage of this strategy?