Green College Spotlight: Brandeis University
Just west of Boston, private liberal arts institution Brandeis University stands on a wooded campus with architecture that ranges from sleek and modern to a romantic stone castle. Rated among the nation’s top universities, Brandeis is also starting to get attention for its sustainability efforts, which have steadily increased in recent years.
The Campus Sustainability Initiative at Brandeis aims to reduce the university’s carbon footprint, with many departments, offices, academic disciplines and student groups working together to green the campus. President Reinharz signed the Presidents Climate Commitment, and Brandeis has allocated over $9 million to help reduce energy use. The school is partially powered by renewable energy, and many conservation programs incite students to engage in friendly energy-saving competitions.
Though Brandeis doesn’t currently have any LEED-certified buildings, it will seek a LEED silver rating for any new construction projects and has already begun to implement green features into existing buildings including low-VOC paints and bamboo flooring. When it comes to transportation, students can easily get around campus by shuttle service or a car-sharing service, and the university offers employees the opportunity to buy transit passes with pretax earnings.
The dining hall is where Brandeis’ commitment to green is really blossoming, with organic and fair-trade options as well as cage-free eggs and discounts for students using reusable mugs. A campaign called “Eating in does not mean take out” encourages students to use real china instead of disposables, and waste from the dining halls is composted. Brandeis also has its own farmer’s market where fresh, local produce is sold.
One area where Brandeis definitely stands out is student involvement. A ‘Greening the Ivory Tower’ course has students taking leadership on sustainability projects like a community garden for local children. Conservation and advocacy events are organized by Students for Environmental Action, and an Eco Reps program was started in Fall 2008. The university has also spread its sustainability message to the local community with donation drives, pollution reduction efforts and children’s environmental education projects.
Learn more about Brandeis’ efforts at the Brandeis University Campus Sustainability Initiative.
Link Brandeis University
Related posts:
- Green College Spotlight: University of New Hampshire
- Green College Spotlight: Arizona State University at Tempe
- Green College Spotlight: University of Florida at Gainesville
- Green College Spotlight: Yale University
- Green College Spotlight: Emory University
This entry was posted on Monday, July 13th, 2009 at 10:00 am and is filed under Consciousness, Green Living, Health, Science, Spirituality. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
