As the college acceptance letters start rolling in this February, there's a lot for parents and their college-bound kids to sort through when making the big decision of where to go. Here's one important question well worth adding to the list: Just how green are the schools' campuses?
In recent years, college and university campuses have proven crucial leaders in the movement to make large-scale, resource-demanding institutions more environmentally friendly. Many have implemented projects that promote alternative energies, energy efficiency, and environmental sustainability. But not everyone's jumped on the eco-bandwagon. So who's doing what? When picking the place you'll spend the next four or five years (or, for parents: the place you'll send your child and dollars), it helps to know which colleges are moving forward and which are slow to change. Here are a few questions to ask, and resources to help you answer them.
Does the college make the sustainability grade?
The Sustainable Endowments Institute, a project of the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, has turned the tables on grade-givers by handing out report cards to universities and colleges. With the College Sustainability Report Card,
the institute evaluated 100 schools across the country on a litany of
green factors, such as "climate change & energy" and "food &
recycling." More than a few universities were given an "F" for a lack
of public statements and for failing to make endowment holdings or
shareholder voting records available. Only four on the institute's
roster received an A- (the highest grade earned). Meanwhile, the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education
(an association of US and Canadian colleges) is keeping a list of
schools' "campus sustainability profiles." Check out the association's
site for its annual Campus Sustainability Leadership Award winners,
complete with links detailing the schools' sustainability projects.
Is the campus vegetarian friendly?
Scavenging
for vegetarian items at a restaurant every so often is doable, but
having to scrape together a hodgepodge of meatless items the entire
four years at college can be down right difficult. People for the
Ethical Treatment of Animals has compiled a list
of colleges the group thought did a stellar job of providing vegetarian
meals with diversity in mind. On the coattails of the release of that
list,
Slashfood
added a handful of colleges that had veggie-friendly college towns to
make foraging for food off-campus a bit more fulfilling for the
vegetarian belly.
Does the cafeteria food come shipped in from miles away or is it grown locally?
The Community Food Security Coalition's Farm To College website
provides a map and a list of schools that participate in programs that
help facilitate a relationship between universities and local farms.
Taking the connection one step farther is New Farm's guide to working farms on campus. The project, funded by the Rodale Institute,
lists on-campus farms that provide hands-on, small-scale farming
experience to undergraduate and graduate students (the site also
provides information on programs for children and the general public).
How effective are college activist groups?
Another way to read the eco-friendly meter is to check out what student-activist groups are doing on campus. Each year
Mother Jones posts a round-up of college activism that merits note. Another great resource is the Worldwatch Institute's list of Campus Greening Initiatives, which features efforts like Macalester's installation of green roofs on some buildings. A group project called the Campus Climate Challenge
brings together more than 45 youth organizations to support a long-term
movement to reduce pollution from colleges through upgrades and clean
power initiatives. The outfit's website links to a bevy of resources,
with aids including everything from a map of schools that have groups
participating in the challenge to a "Power Directory" with tips on how to figure out where your school's electricity comes from.
Go there >> College Sustainability Report Card
Go there, too >> The "Big 10" College Cafeterias
And there >> Farm to College
And there >> Extra Credit: Campus Activism 2006
Related Links:
- New Jersey Higher Education Partnership for Sustainability
- College Campuses Are Going Green
- Green Colleges
Have Some Class: College Sustainability Report Card
Related Links from the Utne Reader Archives:
