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Organic salad bars in campus dining facilities, like this one at Crossroads, are one of many environmentally friendly actions taken by UC Berkeley. (Steve McConnell/UC Berkeley photo)

Campus environmental record earns top score in Princeton Review 'Green Ratings'

By Sarah Yang, Media Relations | 27 July 2009

BERKELEY — The University of California, Berkeley, is one of only 15 colleges in the country to have earned the top score for environmentally friendly policies in an evaluation released today (Monday, July 27) by The Princeton Review, a provider of education services to help students get into college.

The Princeton Review's second annual "Green Ratings" includes scores for 697 colleges and universities that are based upon whether students have a healthy and sustainable campus quality of life, how well the school is preparing its students for employment and citizenship in a world defined by environmental challenges, and the school's overall commitment to environmental issues.

UC Berkeley has taken global warming and environmental protection seriously, establishing new energy-related research centers and setting new requirements for campus conservation, with students directly involved in the process. (3:00 Flash video, produced by Roxanne Makasdjian)

Berkeley's Lisa Bauer honored as UC's 2009 'sustainability champion'

Institutions were judged on measures ranging from energy use, recycling, food, buildings and transportation, to academic offerings, such as the availability of environmental studies degrees and courses. Schools also needed to report on action plans and goals concerning greenhouse gas emission reductions. Scores, based on data for the 2008-2009 academic year, ranged from 60 to a maximum of 99. UC Berkeley, which earned a score of 99, was the only university in California named to the Green Honor Roll.

"We appreciate this latest recognition of UC Berkeley's deep commitment to a greener campus - and a greener world," said Vice Chancellor for Administration Nathan Brostrom. "Our collective action toward sustainability is a result of leadership shown from every corner of campus. Years of work and creativity have brought sustainable change and progress at UC Berkeley, and we aren't done yet."

Illustrating UC Berkeley's leadership among universities in climate action planning was the announcement in 2007 by Chancellor Robert Birgeneau that the campus had committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2014, six years earlier than required by the state of California.

In 2006, Cal Dining, UC Berkeley's primary food service operator, was the first in the country to receive organic certification, and organic salad bars are now a staple at campus dining facilities. Last year, the Haste Street Child Development Center on campus received a coveted silver Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) designation. It was the first freestanding LEED-silver certified child care center in the state. And this past June, Lisa Bauer, UC Berkeley's manager of Campus Recycling and Refuse Services, was honored as the University of California 2009 Sustainability Champion.

Watch us go green

A trio of handsome retro-style posters, promoting easy steps that individuals and departments at Berkeley can take to conserve energy and water, are now available for download and reproduction.

Original wartime poster

The "Watch Us Go Green" posters were created by two students — energy and water outreach intern Marshall Geck '09, and graphic designer Chad Kunert, now a senior — in collaboration with Facilities Services and the Office of Sustainability. The creators updated World War I- and II-era government posters — adding Cal imagery, contemporary visual details, and a list of conservation tips, from "turn off your lights" to "drink tap water instead of bottled water."

Campuswide, there are more than 80 academic degrees, 90 research centers and 25 student-run organizations with an environmental focus. "Our student-initiated classes include creative topics such as 'The Joy of Garbage,' while student projects have reduced energy consumption on campus by at least 8.5 million kilowatt hours and water usage by 3 million gallons," said Lisa McNeilly, who joined the campus in January 2008 as its first director of sustainability.

Other notable efforts to reduce UC Berkeley's environmental footprint include:

Alternative transportation programs that helped reduce fuel use from commuting and fleet vehicles by 20 percent since 1990.
More efficient irrigation, low-flow fixtures, and other improvements that have reduced total campus water use by 10 percent since 1990, with per square foot use down nearly 30 percent.
A more than tripling since 1990 of the amount of waste that has been recycled and/or composted.
University long-range planning documents that now include the campus's climate target, and green building practices that are standard for all new construction and renovations.

"The 'green' movement on college campuses is far more than an Earth Day recycling project. It is growing tremendously among students and administrators alike," said Robert Franek, vice president and publisher of The Princeton Review, in a press statement.

Franek added that students are increasingly interested in attending colleges that practice, teach and support environmentally responsible choices. "We are pleased to play a role in helping students who care deeply about these issues identify, get into and study at these schools," he said.

Details about the Princeton Review rankings, including profiles of all 697 schools in its Green Rating survey, are available online.

Additional information about UC Berkeley's sustainability efforts is also available online.

More stories about green achievements at UC Berkeley: