The College of William and Mary announced Monday that it has become a member of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. The association seeks to increase sustainability efforts on college campuses by sharing successful initiatives and supporting green movements at universities.
“We are pleased to become a member of AASHE,” Lynda Butler, co-chair of the College’s Committee on Sustainability said in a press release. “Among its many benefits, membership offers every individual at the College access to AASHE’s vast resources on sustainability.”
AASHE also provides resources for universities to meet their sustainability goals, fosters professional development in green initiatives and creates a sustainability network of peer institutions.
“We are delighted to have the College of William and Mary on board and participating in the campus sustainability community,” Paul Rowland, executive director of AASHE said. “This shows a real commitment to playing a leadership role in some of the biggest challenges of our time, and provides the campus community with access to thousands of examples of best practices in campus sustainability.”
AASHE utilizes a program called the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System to adjudicate schools as they progress toward their sustainability goals. STARS also allows for schools to look at particular criteria at which they are succeeding or need improvement.
AASHE is also one of the organizations supporting the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, which seeks to make included institutions climate-neutral. Currently, more than 650 universities have signed the commitment. The College has not yet signed on to the commitment.