The Top Ten 'Greenest' Schools
By Lea Hartog and Michael Fox, Sierra Magazine. Posted September 11, 2008.
Here are the top 10 colleges and universities that are doing the most to
protect the environment.
Not long ago small private colleges had a near monopoly on campus
environmental initiatives in the United States. But today, supersize public
universities are nipping at the nimble, hemp-shod heels of those pioneers by
adopting green building standards, expanding environmental studies programs
and converting fleets to zero-emission vehicles. This represents a dramatic
shift even from last year, when Sierra ran its first "Cool Schools" roundup
and filled all but two of the top 10 spots with private colleges. In the
following pages, you'll find a diverse mix of institutions -- from North
Carolina's 850-student Warren Wilson College to Arizona State University,
the country's second-largest school with 51,500 students.
The top schools earned points in 10 categories: policies for building,
energy, food, investment, procurement and transportation; curriculum;
environmental activism; waste management; and overall commitment to
sustainability. A perfect score in every area would give a school 100
points.
Like every ranking system, ours is imperfect. To be sure, dozens more
schools deserve praise. But after weeks of reporting and analysis, we're
confident we picked the nation's environmental leaders.
That said, you might ask why the Eco League colleges and the University of
California system -- two environmentally proactive institutions -- don't
rank on this list. Schools in the Eco League consortium, which focuses
solely on environmental studies, hardly play on a level field with schools
that serve students in 150 degree programs. Meanwhile, the 10 campuses of
the UC system -- neither wholly independent nor entirely unified -- could
not in fairness be compared as separate institutions. Sierra decided to
feature them separately as "Shining Stars".
If you're excited about or frustrated with initiatives on your campus or
convinced we've missed a great green school, you can vent or brag in the
comments section. We hope you'll join the conversation -- so we can make
next year's list even better.
-- Lea Hartog
The Top 10 Schools
1. Middlebury College, Middlebury, Vt.: 2,350 students
Another college with Middlebury's record might have taken it easy on green
initiatives this year. After all, Midd's outdoorsy intellectuals had already
earned recognition for such ambitious projects as recycling materials from a
demolished building. But the school pressed on, giving its study-abroad
program a shot of green last fall: A partnership with a renewable energy
company makes it easy for students to offset carbon dioxide emissions
associated with travel. More important, the Panthers now learn how to leave
a lighter footprint on their excursions, and study-abroad students can win
$500 grants to research environmental solutions like geothermal power in
their adopted countries.
Highlight
Energy: A wind turbine supplies 25 percent of the campus recycling center's
energy; a new power plant fueled by wood chips from a local willow farm
could halve fuel-oil use. Waste: Sites for swapping goods encourage reuse.
The campus recycles 60 percent of its waste.
Lowlight
Investments: Despite creating a committee on ethical investing policies and
a fund to support initiatives like environmental research and green campus
buildings, Midd's trustees do not disclose information about current
investments.
If you go: Track down author Bill McKibben. He directs a fellowship program
that brings environmental journalists to campus.
Score: 93
2. University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colo.: 29,000 students
Eight years ago the University of Colorado (CU) became the first U.S.
university to buy renewable energy credits. Today the mile-high school
supports local offset projects. CU does more than buy its way out of carbon
guilt, however.
Highlight
Transportation: Tuition covers city bus passes and loaner bikes. Most campus
shuttles, or Buff Buses, run on biodiesel. Curriculum: Students work at the
forefront of climate and ocean studies through the Cooperative Institute for
Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES).
Lowlight
Energy: Only 7 percent of the school's energy comes from renewables; 85
percent comes from natural gas and the rest mostly from coal.
If you go: Consider spending a semester studying ecology and conservation in
Quito, Ecuador. You'll spend time in a cloud forest reserve and at a women's
artisan cooperative.
Score: 91.5
3. University of Vermont at Burlington, Burlington, Vt.: 10,750 students
Don't know which lightbulb to buy? If you lived on campus at the University
of Vermont, home of the Catamounts, you'd know whom to ask. Dorm volunteers
offer fellow students green guidance.
Highlight
Food: Buys 35 percent of dining-hall food from local farmers. Energy:
Supplies 60 percent of campus power needs with renewable energy. Waste:
Composts more than 20 tons of waste each month. Transportation: Students and
faculty ride free on biodiesel-powered shuttles.
Lowlight
Investments: Recently created a socially responsible investments committee
but hasn't implemented its policies.
If you go: Rent discounted snowshoes, telemark skis or a canoe from the UVM
Outing Club.
Score: 91
4. Warren Wilson College, Swannanoa, N.C.: 850 students
Forgoing football games and frats, Warren Wilson's Fighting Owls work 15
hours per week plowing the college's organic fields or helping with
eco-friendly building projects.
Highlight
Offsets: Purchased renewable energy credits that offset 100 percent of
campus electricity use.
Lowlight
Investments: No transparency or reported sustainable-investing policies.
If you go: Stop by the Cow Pie Cafe, a student-run vegetarian eatery that
serves mostly foods grown on campus.
Score: 88.5
5. Evergreen State College, Olympia, Wash.: 4,400 students
Evergreen first made headlines for getting rid of grades and majors in the
1970s. Now the college creates buzz with its environmental policies, which
include a mandate that all new building projects comply with silver-level
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards. Less than a
quarter of students use their intercity bus passes (included with tuition)
to get to school, but new bus shelters with solar-powered lighting may help
them get jazzed about public transit.
Highlight
Student activism: At least nine campus organizations take on environmental
and social justice issues.
Lowlight
Investments: No transparency or reported sustainable-investing policies.
Score: 88
6. Arizona State University at Tempe, Tempe, Ariz.: 51,500 students
With the nation's second-largest student population, Arizona State
University can make a big impact with small changes. Although the Sun Devils
have not switched entirely to xeriscaping with native plants, they have
phased out wasteful flood irrigation from more than 70 percent of the campus
and now water most of the grounds at night. Last fall ASU inaugurated its
School of Sustainability, where students learn about -- and create --
land-use and urban-planning models that minimize harm to the environment.
Highlight
Waste: Partnered with a nearby farm to compost organic waste. Purchasing
policy: Requires paper products to have at least 30 percent post-consumer
recycled content
Lowlight
Energy: Although it intends to buy carbon offsets, ASU has not drafted a
plan to reduce its carbon footprint.
Score: 87
7. University of Florida at Gainesville, Gainesville, Fla.: 50,000 students
With the 2007 national football and basketball championships under their
belt, the Gators went on to become winners in environmental policy. A water
facility processes 3 million gallons of reclaimed water per day and serves
more than 90 percent of the campus. While most university fleet vehicles run
on E85 ethanol (85 percent ethanol, 15 percent gasoline), some chug along on
used oil from campus cafeterias.
Highlight
Waste: Campus recovers 40 percent of its waste and aims to divert, reclaim
or reuse 100 percent by 2015. Student activism: The last three student body
presidents won with sustainability platforms. At least 15 student groups
work on environmental issues. Green buildings: Two gold-LEED-certified
structures, 32 silver-LEED-certified renovation projects.
Lowlight
Energy: Relies on a local utility that uses a mix of sources, including 40
percent coal. Investments: No transparency or sustainable-investing
policies.
Score: 86
8. Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio: 2,200 students
Last spring Oberlin students competed in the Ecolympics to reduce their
energy use and waste. Even in the Ecolympics off-season, they stay at it.
Last fall eight students secured university funding for a new themed
residence dedicated to green, energy-efficient living.
Highlight
Energy: Although half the school's energy comes from a local utility that
relies primarily on coal, the campus now sources the other 50 percent from
renewables.
Lowlight
Transportation: No free public transit; isolated location encourages
students to use cars.
If you go: Take a class with David Orr, a Lyndhurst Prize winner best known
for promoting environmental literacy in higher education.
Score: 85
9. University of Washington at Seattle, Seattle Wash.: 39,250 students
The home of the Huskies is one of the few universities whose overall energy
use has decreased (by 10 percent between 2000 and 2005) despite campus
growth. All the university's energy comes from renewable sources (including
hydropower), and 14 buildings are slated for construction or renovation in
compliance with LEED standards.
Highlight
Investments: Endowment funds support renewable energy and LEED-certified
development projects.
Lowlight
Student activism: Environmental advocacy remains a fringe activity.
If you go: Sign up for courses in the College of Forest Resources -- many of
them include field trips to the Pacific Northwest's awe-inspiring woodlands.
Score: 84
10. Tufts University, Medford, Mass.: 8,500 students
Often teased for being an Ivy League wannabe, Tufts surpassed its
prestigious peers in environmental stewardship years ago. Recent eco-moves
include joining a program that lets students help pay for renewable energy
projects in Massachusetts through their electricity bills and creating a
campus printing service that uses soy-based inks and recycled paper. Tufts
is also publishing a new guide to campus life with an eco-map of places
where students can find such greenery as free compact fluorescent
lightbulbs, recycling bins and Zipcars.
Highlight
Investments: Created a $100 million microfinance fund for investments in
developing countries. Overall commitment to sustainability: Developed the
United States' first university-wide environmental policy in the 1990s.
Originated the Talloires Declaration, an international campus sustainability
agreement signed by more than 300 schools.
Lowlight
Transportation: With no subsidies for public transit in suburban Medford,
the 50 percent of students living off campus receive no incentives to
commute green.
If you go: Visit
tuftslife.com to get the scoop from students on local
activities.
Score: 82
