Welcome to the new weekly column entitled Sustainability: Inside Scoop/Outside Scoop! We are here to keep you informed of what’s going on in the world of sustainability on and off campus. Check here for updates on the present and future status of sustainability at Rensselaer.
If you were to call one of your friends at another competitive university, chances are they could tell you their campus has a sustainability program. Chances are also good that their school is also a member of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. Among AASHE’s 430 four-year and 135 two-year colleges are Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University, Cornell University, Duke University, Johns Hopkins University, Carnegie Mellon University, and California Institute of Technology, just to name a few.
AASHE defines itself as “an association of colleges and universities in the U.S. and Canada working to create a sustainable future.” Acting as a communications hub, it holds seminars and workshops on the best practices for greening a university’s campus, curriculum, and culture. It also posts the policies and past experiences of its member institutions on its website, so members and the general public can browse through the best examples of green cleaning, sustainable dining, green building, and more to pick the best model for improving their relationship with the environment. Every week one of the best practices is spotlighted. This week the University of Idaho was recognized for irrigating over 90 percent of its campus land with treated gray water, or sterilized water reclaimed from dish-washing, laundry, and showers.
AASHE’s two biggest projects are the American College and University President’s Climate Commitment and Sustainability Tracking and Rating System. ACUPCC has 754 signatories, each committing their university to taking specific steps towards climate neutrality to eliminate their contribution to global warming. STARS, which is currently being piloted in select universities, is an in-depth indicator for a university’s sustainability performance, and when released will allow universities to accurately judge themselves against one another.
The size of AASHE indicates that sustainability is no longer an innovative practice on college campuses, but instead a required aspect of university life at any major institution. Though AASHE membership does not automatically make a university sustainable, there are still over 500 American colleges that have made the environment a top priority in the 21st century.
