Choosing a college or university can feel like a full-time job. There are thousands of schools in the United States—each with its own claim to fame. Prospective students are forced to search through a pool of schools to find one that they can identify with and receive their desired education from. If the environment is a top priority, a new trend is picking up in college ranking systems: the green trend.
Colleges are being examined more and more on eco-related criteria, such as: commitment to reducing carbon dioxide emissions, recycling, investment in renewable energy funds, sustainability, student involvement, environmental curricula, organic farming and food, etc. Some of the greenest universities in the U.S. to look out for with some added highlights (in no particular order) include:
1. College of the Atlantic-Bar Harbor, Maine. Educates a few hundred students in one area of research: human ecology. This field is defined as the study of our species’ relationship to the planet. While being the first carbon neutral campus, it is also committed to green building, historic preservation, land conservation, and elimination of toxins. Locally sourced organic food is served for all meals.1
2. Warren Wilson College-Swannanoa, North Carolina. The school is nearly self-supporting, getting food and lumber from its own organic gardens and managed forests. Warren Wilson runs their vehicles on biodiesel while also providing hybrid and solar powered carts on campus and energy efficient streetlamps.2
3. Evergreen State College-Olympia, Washington. Set amongst woods, forest, and beach, with a 13-acre organic farm. Evergreens buys 100% clean power and houses an extensive composting program.3
4. Oberlin College-Oberlin, Ohio. Home to Ohio’s largest solar display, Oberlin also serves locally produced food in a third of the dining halls, has Ohio’s first car-sharing program, gets half of its electricity form green sources, and tracks its dorms’ energy consumption.4
5. Middlebury College-Middlebury, Vermont. A student group pushed to approve a plan urging the school to go carbon neutral by 2016. Students have also worked to organize action around energy-saving, public transportation, and climate change initiatives.5
6. Berea College-Berea, Kentucky. Hosts an Ecovillage housing complex for students that boasts passive-solar design elements, energy efficient insulation and fixtures, and rainwater collection. The campus also provides campus-raised produce and meat in their dining halls and a solar roof on their Alumni Memorial Building.6
7. University of California system-10 locations. The University of California has pledged to generate ten megawatts of renewable power by 2014, increase use of low to zero-emission vehicles by 50 percent by 2010, and achieve zero waste by 2020 at its ten campuses. Some other highlights from various campuses include agricultural sustainability, bicycle programs, high LEED ratings, and organic kitchens.7
8. Harvard University-Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard has some of the most certified and/or registered structures for the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards. Additionally, millions of dollars in loan funds are going to motion-sensor lights in classrooms and converting recycling trucks to run on vegetable oil waste from the dining halls.8
9. Duke University-Durham, North Carolina. All new buildings and construction on campus require certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. Duke is also collecting more types of recyclables, improving their bike system, and investing in wind and hydropower projects.9
10. California State University, Chico- Chico, California. This campus has a handful of green certified buildings, solar panels, and has installed energy saving software. They were also awarded the National Wildlife Federation’s Campus Ecology Chill Out contest.10
One of the most trusted sources for prospective students to evaluate their prospective college education is the Princeton Review. This year the Princeton Review came out with its first green rating system for universities. After ranking 534 institutions, their “criteria of the rankings cover three categories; student quality of life (is it healthy and sustainable?), student preparation for employment in a world of environmental challenges, and the school’s overall obligation to environmental matters.”11 The top schools that received the highest ranking within the Princeton Review criteria include: Arizona State, Bates, Binghamton University, the College of the Atlantic, Harvard, Emory, Georgia Institute of Technology, Yale, and the Universities of New Hampshire, Oregon, and Washington.
Although the list may seem overwhelming, some other eco-conscious schools to take note of are:
• Northland College in Ashland, Wisconsin
• Connecticut College in New London, Connecticut
• Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts
• Green Mountain College in Poultney, Vermont
• Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington
• University of Vermont in Burlington, Vermont
• University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• New York University in New York, New York.
• Penn State University in various cities within Pennsylvania
• Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon
• University of Colorado-Boulder, in Boulder, Colorado
At a time when environmental awareness is picking up steam, it is refreshing to see this trend also pick up on college campuses. To find out more about specific movements on different campuses, check out the Greeniacs article “College Campus Environmental Movements” at http://www.wordpress-837916-4114959.cloudwaysapps.com/GreeniacsArticles/College-Campus-Environmental-Movements.html.
