University Heights, OH — John Carroll University has earned a “B-” on the 2011 Sustainability Report Card released this week by the Sustainable Endowments Institute. The grade represents significant improvement over the course of the past three years since the University initially completed the report card assessment.
The Report Card provides the only independent evaluation of sustainability in campus operations and endowment practices. It gives detailed school profiles and grades for 322 colleges and universities, representing all 50 U.S. states and eight Canadian provinces.
Carol Dietz, the University’s associate vice president for Facilities and chair of JCU’s Sustainability Committee, says “It’s great to know that all of our hard work to conserve natural resources and reduce waste, energy usage and our overall carbon footprints is being recognized as we continue to ‘go green’ at JCU. Also, students appreciate the fact that we now have more green space with the Hamlin Quad; preserving the environment matters a great deal to us.”
The University’s Sustainability Committee was launched in 2010 to inspire a culture of sustainability at the University and to improve the education and the communication of green initiatives on campus and in the larger community. Over the last few years there have been a number of sustainability and green projects at John Carroll, including the establishment of a bicycle co-op. The University also recently became a member of the Association of Advancement for Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).
Report Card Highlights
John Carroll’s most notable achievements are in the categories of “Climate Change & Energy” and “Food & Recycling:”
· Climate Change & Energy
John Carroll reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 22.3 percent from 2005 to 2008, and the University is in the process of developing a formal plan for emissions reduction. Half of campus buildings have been retrofitted with an energy management system to optimize efficiency.
· Food & Recycling
Dining services spends 17 percent of its annual food budget on local items, purchases sustainably harvested seafood, and serves exclusively fair trade coffee. All dining halls are trayless, and the University has completed a food waste audit. The University composts pre- and post-consumer food scraps as well as landscaping waste, and recycles used cooking oil for biodiesel production.
For details about John Carroll’s grade, visit:
http://www.greenreportcard.org/report-card-2011/schools/john-carroll-university.
Learn more about JCU’s Sustainability Committee at http://sites.jcu.edu/sustainability/.
About the Sustainable Endowments Institute
The Sustainable Endowments Institute is a Cambridge-based nonprofit organization engaged in research and education to advance sustainability in campus operation and endowment practices. Founded in 2005, the Institute is special project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors and has received funding from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, United Nations Foundation, V. Kann Rasmussen Foundation, Kendall Foundation, Surdna Foundation, and the Nathan Cummings Foundation, among others.
John Carroll University, founded in 1886 as Saint Ignatius College, is located in University Heights, Ohio, in suburban Cleveland. The University was renamed in 1923 to honor America’s first Catholic Bishop, John Carroll of Maryland. Its Jesuit Catholic mission inspires individuals to excel in learning, leadership, and service in the region and the world. John Carroll University is recognized nationally for an exceptional four-year graduation rate, teaching excellence, and a commitment to living a faith that does justice as central to its mission. John Carroll is one of 28 Jesuit colleges and universities in the United States.