{"id":5940,"date":"2017-02-13T13:36:56","date_gmt":"2017-02-13T18:36:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/?p=5940"},"modified":"2017-02-13T13:36:56","modified_gmt":"2017-02-13T18:36:56","slug":"going-green-earns-plaudits-for-bu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/2017\/02\/13\/going-green-earns-plaudits-for-bu\/","title":{"rendered":"Going Green Earns Plaudits for BU"},"content":{"rendered":"

University ranked country\u2019s 25th most sustainable college<\/h2>\n
\"Boston<\/p>\n

Sustainably sourced food comprises 22 percent of the food served in University dining halls. Green initiatives have landed BU a place on two nationally recognized sustainable university guides. Photo by Cydney Scott.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

BU\u2019s commitment to becoming a more sustainable community has earned accolades from two different organizations. The University was recently ranked the 25th most sustainable college in the United States by\u00a0SaveOnEnergy<\/a>, an online marketplace that helps residential and commercial energy consumers use gas and electricity as efficiently as possible.<\/p>\n

The second tip to BU\u2019s efforts to become greener is inclusion in the\u00a0Princeton Review\u00a0Guide to 361 Green Campuses, 2016<\/em><\/a>, for the sixth consecutive year.<\/p>\n

\u201cRecognition is important. I think BU is doing a lot, and we have a lot to do, but it is always satisfying to be recognized,\u201d says Dennis Carlberg, BU sustainability director. \u201cWhat we are doing successfully is engaging our community in sustainability, changing the culture here, and providing good infrastructure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many of the University\u2019s efforts to reduce its carbon footprint are outlined in\u00a0sustainability@BU\u2019s 2015 Annual Report<\/a>, which notes that in the past decade, BU has reduced it carbon dioxide emissions by 23 percent, increased recycling by 39 percent, increased sustainable food supply in dining halls and on-campus restaurants\u00a0by\u00a0<\/span>22 percent, and reduced waste\u00a0by\u00a0<\/span>13 percent. The report also says that the University offers more than 150 sustainability-related courses and is home to\u00a0two dozen student groups that promote sustainability<\/a>\u00a0in some way.<\/p>\n

To compile its annual list, SaveOnEnergy grades and then ranks the schools listed on the 2017\u00a0US News and World Report<\/em>\u00a0Top 100 Universities. It takes into account the accomplishments cited in sustainability@BU\u2019s annual report, as well as factors like the walkability of the campus, the proximity of the University to farmers markets and parks, and the availability of green jobs in the area. Based on that data,\u00a0BU was given a grade of 60.94 out of a possible 100 points<\/a>, earning the designation of 25th most sustainable among the schools ranked.<\/p>\n

\"SaveOnEnergy\"<\/p>\n

\u201cIt makes me proud to be a part of an institution that cares so much about being green,\u201d says\u00a0sustainability ambassador<\/a>\u00a0Montana Airey (CAS\u201917). \u201cWith our LEED buildings, solar power on SED, the sustainability ambassador program, our composting and recycling, I think that BU stands at the forefront of some of these efforts and is showing other universities and institutions that it is possible. It shows that the university cares, that it is looking out for the good of the environment and the health of its staff, and wants the best for its students.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inclusion in the Princeton Review\u00a0Guide to 361 Green Campuses, 2016,<\/em>\u00a0is determined by factors such as campus policies and initiatives, sustainability-related academic opportunities, and information submitted by BU to the\u00a0Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS)<\/a>, a self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to measure their sustainability performance.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that it\u2019s wonderful that we\u2019ve maintained our ranking,\u201d says sustainability ambassador Antonio Chidiac (CAS\u201917).<\/p>\n

While Carlberg appreciaties the plaudits, he says the University is not content to rest on its laurels, but continues to strive to become even more sustainable.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we\u2019re not performing well in some areas, as compared to our peers, then that\u2019s something for us to have a conversation about,\u201d Carlberg says. \u201cI would much rather use this reporting as a way to inform ourselves about what we do as opposed to trying to chase the prize. It\u2019s really about informing what we\u2019re doing so we can do better.\u201d<\/p>\n

Author, Liz Vanderau can be reached at\u00a0vanderau@bu.edu<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

University ranked country\u2019s 25th most sustainable college Sustainably sourced food comprises 22 percent of the food served in University dining halls. Green initiatives have landed BU a place on two nationally recognized sustainable university guides. Photo by Cydney Scott. BU\u2019s commitment to becoming a more sustainable community has earned accolades from two different organizations. The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7048,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[8],"tags":[168,13,39,165],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5940"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7048"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5940"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5940\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5942,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5940\/revisions\/5942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5940"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5940"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/federal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5940"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}