Campus sustainability cannot be achieved without shared decision-making and participation from all areas of the college. Two shared-governance committees bring together students, faculty, staff, and administrators to advise on and implement our Campus Sustainability Plan and our plans to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2030.
President’s Sustainability Council
The President’s Council on Sustainability is charged with furthering the sustainability goals as described in the College’s Strategic Plan and Campus Sustainability Plan. The Council works with the senior administration to approve campus-wide sustainability initiatives, helps develop an annual campus sustainability campaign, and helps ensure effective communication of the College’s sustainability efforts across campus and in the community. The Council works closely with the Office of Sustainability, the Environmental Model Committee and all divisions at the College. The Council is made up of a representative group of the College community - including students, staff, faculty, and alumni.
The Council typically meets 3x per year to receive updates on the Campus Sustainability Plan and address strategic recommendations from the Environmental Model Committee, Facilities and Land Management Committee, Office of Sustainability, Student Government Association or other representative bodies.
Environmental Model Committee
The Environmental Model Committee (EMC) was established in 1969 to provide coordination for the College’s efforts to become a model of environmentalism. The EMC is made up of 13 voting members, including 3 faculty and 3 students. There are also several non-voting “consultants” that serve regularly to provide input and guidance. The EMC has a monthly open meeting and anyone from the campus community is welcome to attend.
The charge of the EMC is as follows:
- The Committee provides leadership in College-wide environmental planning and implementation by developing policies in support of campuswide sustainability goals, initiating programs and overseeing community environmental education. The Committee advocates for College operations that function as models of sustainability by working on environmental initiatives with the appropriate administrative, faculty and student offices, committees and groups.
- The committee is specifically concerned with climate action planning for mitigation of carbon emissions and campus climate resiliency; the conservation of energy, water and other natural resources; the minimization of environmental pollution; and reducing the College’s ecological footprint.