Dive Brief:
- The Sierra Club has unveiled its 2014 list of America's greenest colleges. The top five: the University of California — Irvine; American University, Washington, DC; Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA; Loyola University, Chicago; and Lewis and Clark College, Portland, OR.
- The full list was produced with help from the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education and ranks 173 participating schools based on their energy use, waste handling, financial investments and other factors.
- Rounding out the top 10 on the “Cool Schools” ranking are Stanford University at No. 6, followed by the University of South Florida, Green Mountain College, the University of Connecticut, and the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Dive Insight:
UC-Irvine boosts its green cred with three on-site solar power projects and a water recycling program that conserves 210 million gallons per year. American University has Washington DC’s largest solar panel array and 11 electric cars. Dickinson, meanwhile, has a bicycle cooperative and nearly 100 “eco” classes, while Loyola boasts Chicago’s largest geothermal facility, SierraClub.org reports.
Despite outcomes, cost of attendance, and other factors coming into play in rankings from the likes of U.S. News and Forbes, it's important to remember that other factors, like an institution's commitment to sustainability, can come into play for prospective students as well.
