A Guide to Sustainable Living
Getting Around Boston
Boston is a walkable city and BU’s campuses are no exception. We encourage you to leave your car at home and instead use one of the many forms of sustainable transportation available to you.
Transportation Navigate to this main landing page to find answers to all your parking and transportation questions.
The BU Bus webpage offers real time updates on bus schedules and transit lines.
Terrier Transit App is a great app to download on your devices to locate the nearest stop throughout campus, and when a bus or the T will be heading your way so you are not late to any important meetings.
BU Cycle Kitchen, often referred to as the BUCK, offers free instruction in bicycle maintenance, repair, and all things bike-related. The BUCK also offers regular weekly commuter coffee, group rides, and other events.
Bluebikes is another great app to download to find bike racks and real time availability to navigate across campus and beyond.
BU Maps Navigate to parking and transportation locations for bike racks, trash and recycling locations
Sustainable Dining
Our commitment to sustainability also extends to the food on your plate. Our dining halls and restaurants purchase locally-grown food to support New England farms, fishermen, food businesses, and the local economy. In addition to local food, BU also sources its food sustainably with 6 Certified Green Restaurants on campus.
Stay up to date with dining hours, menus and events through the BU Dining webpage. You can also provide feedback to our dining staff.
Choose to Reuse is BU Dining’s award-winning reusable takeout container program. The innovative reusable container program is designed to reduce packaging waste in support of BU’s Zero Waste Plan.
On Tuesdays from June to October, BUMC students can visit Boston Medical Center’s weekly farmers market in the Shapiro Lobby at 725 Albany St. All produce is harvested from their rooftop farm!
Zero Waste
In 2021, BU released its Zero Waste Plan, a bold and collaborative initiative that seeks to redesign BU’s approach to waste and eliminate as much as possible.
Boston takes composting seriously, and you can visit the City of Boston’s Food Waste site to learn more about services where you are living and how to compost during your time at BU.
RecycleSmart is a one stop shop to look up any item in their database and understand where and how it can be recycled. It is a handy webpage to bookmark.
Don’t know where to recycle batteries? Look at this map to find locations across campus.
Community
Want to get involved in sustainability-focused communities on campus? Make a change and meet like-minded friends through any of our student organizations.
Have an idea to make BU more sustainable? Projects that seek solutions to sustainability challenges can receive funding through the Sustainability Innovation Seed Grant Program and research projects through the Campus Climate Lab. There are also ample opportunities for students to work with BU Sustainability, including internships, Resident Sustainability Leaders (RSL), and Sustainability Ambassadors.