A Perfect Green Grade

College is one of only seven to earn an A on Sustainability Report Card

October 27, 2010

A photo of Dickinson students enjoying local fruit in the dining hall appears on the homepage of GreenReportCard.org.

For the third straight year, Dickinson College has received the highest grade in the College Sustainability Report Card, an annual evaluation of sustainable practices in campus operations and endowment practices. Following one of the most competitive years so far, Dickinson joined six other schools in receiving an A from the Sustainable Endowment Institute. In the previous two years, Dickinson earned an A-, which had been the highest grade awarded. The other institutions earning an A this year are Oberlin and Pomona colleges, Yale and Brown universities, the University of Minnesota and the University of Wisconsin.

Dickinson was one of only three schools to earn A’s in all nine categories: Administration, Climate Change & Energy, Food & Recycling, Green Building, Student Involvement, Transportation, Endowment Transparency, Investment Priorities and Shareholder Engagement. The college again received recognition as an Overall College Sustainability Leader, Campus Sustainability Leader and Endowment Sustainability Leader.

“These achievements would not be possible if sustainability were not a campus community effort—one that is integrated into every facet of college life and one that has been the focus of consistent effort over many years,”said Dickinson College President William G. Durden  ’71. “Environmental concerns now permeate virtually every issue being faced around the globe and will continue to be important for this generation and those to follow. Dickinson graduates must be prepared to address these and other issues and the college’s leadership in global and sustainability education will ensure that our students are prepared with the knowledge and skills necessary for accomplishment and engagement in the workforce of the 21st  century.”

Designed to identify colleges and universities that are leading by example on sustainability, the College Sustainability Report Card is the only independent evaluation of campus and endowment sustainability activities in the United States and Canada. Now in its fourth year, the Report Card reflects the second highest participation levels to date, with 322 institutions from the U.S. and Canada submitting information. This year also promises to be the most comprehensive with 90 percent of the colleges providing full access to their survey responses online.

“The 322 schools included in this year’s Report Card not only serve as microcosms of the larger society, but also possess a combined total of over $325 billion in endowment assets. This places them in a unique position to model successful integration of sustainability into both campus operations and investment practices,” said  Mark Orlowski, founder and executive director of the Sustainable Endowments Institute. “Ultimately, we hope that the information collected in each edition of the Report Card can serve as a resource beyond higher education by providing a comprehensive overview of best sustainability practices for institutions.”

Dickinson has steadily improved its College Sustainability Report Card grade since it began participating. In 2008, the college received an overall grade of B+ and was singled out as a Campus Sustainability Leader. This changed quickly in 2009 and 2010 when Dickinson improved its overall grade to an A- and earned additional recognition as an Overall College Sustainability Leader and an Endowment Sustainability Leader for both years.

The College Sustainability Report Card is an initiative of the Sustainable Endowments Institute, a special project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. The Institute is a nonprofit organization engaged in research and education to advance sustainability in campus operations and endowment practices.