Universities of every stripe are uniting under a green banner, and college ranking programs have begun to take notice by rating a school’s environmental friendliness for the first time.
The Princeton Review has developed a green rating system set to appear in the 2009 editions of its books, according to a Princeton Review press release. Kaplan, Inc. is also including an environmental awareness evaluation among its school profiles, Executive Director Jason Palmer said.
“Boston University didn’t quite make our Top 25 green schools,” Palmer said. “But BU is profiled in the guide as a University that is forward-thinking on environmental issues and sustainability.”
BU did not make the Princeton Review Green Rating Honor Roll either, and BU officials are looking to improve the school’s sustainability status. In his 2008 matriculation address, President Robert Brown introduced a $1 million sustainability initiative focused on waste reduction, decreased energy consumption and efficient buildings.
“We have an opportunity to play a key role in examining how changes in our way of life and in how we operate the university can contribute to greater energy efficiency and an environmentally sustainable future for all of us,” Brown said in his speech.
A committee co-chaired by BU geography and environmental science professor Cutler Cleveland and Vice President of Operations Gary Nicksa will be responsible for allocating the funds, Brown said.
Groups of faculty, administration and student organization members will cover communications, construction, building operations and waste management to execute committee projects, Nicksa said. Raising community awareness, expanding recycling and implementing a more accurate means to measure energy consumption are among future committee undertakings.
The newest buildings on campus contain motion sensors to control lighting and automatic temperature regulation, and the committee hopes to renovate Warren Towers with the same technology, Nicksa said.
“We have been very successful in managing our energy and waste and being cognizant in what the best and most beneficial practices will be,” Nicksa said. “We haven’t been good about talking about it. On a grassroots level, people are unaware of how much has been done.”
“If we have all these resources, but no one knows about them, then nothing is going to come of it,” Environmental Student Organization Vice President Hannah Leone said. “We need to find creative ways to show people how important going green is.”
ESO Vice President Rachel Weil said BU’s recycling program has expanded significantly since last year. The company through which the school recycles, “Save That Stuff,” now accepts cardboard, and recycling bins will also be placed in more locations this fall, she said.