It’s the time of year when colleges and universities wind down the semester and hand out grades and assessments. It’s also when rewards and recognition are being given to colleges for their commitment to sustainability.

As providers of sustainable furniture asset management services, we’ve worked in the education market for almost four decades. In that time we’ve worked with dozens of colleges across the USA, from Alabama and Arizona to West Virginia and Wisconsin. So we take note of the institutions that have been recognized for their sustainable efforts. We support their mission to be environmentally-responsible decision makers that want to make a difference to the future.

We would like to applaud some recently recognized programs, which include a number of colleges that The Refinishing Touch has worked with:

• The University of Notre Dame earned a gold rating for its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. Through the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS), Notre Dame has earned a score of 68.52, improving its sustainability score by 17.25 points over the past three years.
• Illinois’ North Central College‘s commitment to environmentally-friendly practices hasearned gold-level recognition through the Illinois Campus Sustainability Compact. The college is recognized especially for its geothermal heating and cooling, LED lighting, electric vehicle charging stations and composting efforts.
• The University at Buffalo’s efforts to restore and preserve Western New York’s natural environment has been recognized by the U.S. Green Building Council, naming the school as one of the “Best of Green Schools”.The university’s won in the collaboration category for its decade-long work in building cohesion among Western New York’s environmental organizations.
• Washington state’s Bellevue College has been honored with a “Champion of Sustainability” award from McKinstry, an energy consulting firm. Comparing August 2013 to August 2014, Bellevue College has saved nearly $10,000 in electricity costs.

As advocates of sustainability initiatives of every possible kind, we commend these institutions for continuously working to reduce their impact on the environment. Education plays a vital role in changing attitudes, and institutions proving their own commitment to be more sustainable are also educating the decision makers of the future.

It’s promising that each year we see more colleges and universities pursue initiatives towards certifications, green accolades and sustainability achievements. We see the commitment to green initiatives in higher education continue in its momentum, and look forward to more colleges and universities earning ‘A’s’ for their efforts.

To find out more about how The Refinishing Touch can help your college or university make green strides, please contact us today.