America’s Greenest Universities

Colleges across America are making sustainability a priority both in their academic offerings and their campus life. Institutions are doing everything from collecting fryer oil to use in campus vehicles to expanding environmental studies programs. The Princeton Review rated almost 700 colleges and universities from around the country based on their commitment to environmental issues. Institutions were graded on a scale of 60 to 99. The 15 schools in the following slideshow were all awarded a perfect score of 99. The ratings are based on 2008 amd 2009 school data on environmentally related policies, practices and academic offerings. For more information on the ratings criteria, visit The Princeton Review. By Brooke SopelsaPosted August 4, 2009»Slideshow: Green Cities of the Future»Slideshow: Hottest States For Green Jobs

Photo: Schwnj Tempe, Arizona Green fact: ASU’s Tempe campus has the largest collection of energy-providing solar panels on a single US university campus.

Photo: Jradjarhead Lewiston, Maine Green fact: Eighty-two percent of Bates’ food waste is either composted, recycled, sent to a pig farmer or donated to a food bank.

Photo: Wadester16 Berkeley, California Green fact: UC Berkeley has more than 80 academic degrees, 90 research centers and 25 student-run organizations with an environmental focus.

Photo: Morris K Bar Harbor, Maine Green fact: College of the Atlantic has been carbon neutral since 2007. All its electricity comes from renewable hydropower.

Photo: coloradocollege.edu Colorado Springs, Colorado Green fact: Colorado College’s “aCClimate 14” conservation campaign saved the school close to $100,000 in utility costs and cut greenhouse gas emissions by 378 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.

Photo: A. Pierce Bounds '71 Carlisle, Pennsylvania Green fact: Students at Dickinson College collect used fryer oil to produce 1,500 gallons of biodiesel annually for use in the college’s trash truck, lawn mowers, farm equipment and even the president’s car.

Photo: Goldom Olympia, Washington Green fact: The Evergreen State College purchased more than 16 million kilowatt-hours of green power, representing 100 percent of the school’s annual electricity usage.

Photo: TheCustomOfLife Atlanta, Georgia Green fact: Georgia Institute of Technology’s cleaning equipment uses 70 percent less water and 90 percent less chemicals than traditional equipment.

Photo: Atilin Cambridge, Massachusetts Green fact: Harvard has 62 building projects underway that will receive LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification.

Photo: Middlebury College Middlebury, Vermont Green fact: Middlebury is home to the country’s oldest undergraduate environmental studies program.

Photo: alumni.unh.edu Durham, New Hampshire Green fact: The University of New Hampshire launched a unique EcoGastronomy dual major in 2008, integrating sustainable agriculture, hospitality management and nutrition.

Photo: Jpm32 Boston, Massachusetts Green fact: Northeastern recently replaced 70,000 traditional lamps with fluorescent lamps that will reduce carbon emissions by 686 tons annually.

Photo: binghamton.edu Binghamton, New York Green fact: An energy conservation contest at SUNY Binghamton pits residential communities against each other to see who can reduce energy consumption the most over a nine-week period. The 2009 contest resulted in a 7.5 percent overall reduction in electricity consumption.

Photo: AP New Haven, Connecticut Green fact: Yale has implemented solar and wind projects to provide renewable energy. It also has its own co-generation power plant and is building another.

Photo: washington.edu Seattle, Washington Green fact: The University of Washington is now the pilot site for the first compostable cup designed specifically for soft drinks. The plastic used in this cup is made from plants and could reduce by 150,000 the number of cups sent to local landfills.»Replay Slideshow»Slideshow: Green Cities of the Future»Slideshow: Hottest States For Green Jobs

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