Colgate publishes Sustainability & Climate Action Plan! Click here to read & comment!
Colgate enters into innovative agreement with Patagonia Sur to create forestry-based carbon offsets: Read about it here.
Colgate receives Second Nature's 2011 Climate Leadership Award!
American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC)
In January 2009, Colgate became a signatory of the American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC), which charges Colgate with taking action towards achieving carbon neutrality. This commitment is self-described as “a high-visibility effort to address global warming by garnering institutional commitments to neutralize greenhouse gas emissions, and to accelerate the research and educational efforts of higher education to equip society to re-stabilize the earth’s climate.”
Colgate is one of more than 660 colleges and universities that have officially recognized a) the role of anthropogenic greenhouse gases in causing global warming, b) the need to reduce these emissions by 80 percent by 2050 and c) the call for immediate action.
By signing the commitment, Colgate pledges to complete an emissions inventory, take immediate short-term action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, make “sustainability” a component of the academic curriculum, and create a two year step-by-step plan with measurable goals including a target date for reaching carbon neutrality.
Colgate's timeline for meeting ACUPCC's requirements:
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ACUPCC tangible actions
By signing the ACUPCC, Colgate agreed to undertake two of seven tangible actions specified by the commitment. Colgate has already committed to the following four tangible actions:
- Adopt an energy-efficient appliance purchasing policy requiring purchase of ENERGY STAR certified products in all areas for which such ratings exist. Colgate is committed to purchase Energy Star certified/ rating products where possible.
- Encourage use of and provide access to public transportation for all faculty, staff, students and visitors at our institution. Colgate's free, community-wide shuttle buses are equipped with EPA-approved low-emission diesel engines. To discourage driving to campus, student parking is restricted. A green bikes program rents bikes to students for a small yearly fee.
- Within one year of signing this document, begin purchasing or producing at least 15 percent of our institution's electricity consumption from renewable sources. Approximately 84 percent of all electric power utilized on campus is hydro-power generated. The other 16 percent is a mix of nuclear, gas, and coal-fired generation. A wood-chip-burning plant provides approximately 76 percent of the main campus's total heating requirement.
- Participate in the waste minimization component of the national RecycleMania competition, and adopt three or more associated measures to reduce waste. In 2010, Colgate participated in RecycleMania for the first time and adopted more than three of the associated measures to reduce waste starting in the 2009-2010 academic year.
Learn more about ACUPCC's Tangible Actions and Colgate's online implementation profile.
Colgate's carbon inventory
In the summer of 2009, Ben Taylor '10 worked with the Sustainability Office to help complete Colgate's first comprehensive carbon inventory.
Colgate's 2008-09 campus carbon footprint is:
Click here to read the full report.
Other noteworthy facts:
In 2010, Colgate reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent. This was accomplished through reductions in fuel oil consumption, electricity, paper use, and landfill waste across campus.
In 2010, Colgate used 23,000 tons of locally-grown wood chips to provide heat and hot water to campus. In addition, the University began experimenting with cropped biomass in the form of an 8-acre willow plot in the hopes of cultivating some of our own energy.
Regarding transportation, in 2010, we expanded our Green Bikes program by purchasing an additional 12 bikes and introduced a new online rideshare program in order to help reduce our employee commuting emissions.
Our Green Office Program, also introduced in 2010, is indicative of our approach. In 2010, 8 teams representing 65 employees registered for and are actively pursuing official Green Office Certification.
In 2010, we also implemented a full-blown electronic waste recycling program with 18 stations located throughout campus, implemented a new composting program, and broke ground on a new half-acre community vegetable garden. Vegetables and herbs from the garden were sold back to the university and served in our dining halls.