Evergreen Recognized in Succession of Recent Awards for Sustainable Practices

by Evergreen Communications Office
October 31, 2007

From the Governor’s Office to Grist Magazine, Leading Organizations Acknowledge The Evergreen State College for Green Innovation

Sustaining nature requires a sustained commitment, and The Evergreen State College is gaining recognition for four-decades of dedication to environmental leadership and visible action on campus.

In October, Evergreen accepted the Governor’s Award for Pollution Prevention and Sustainable Practices, the state’s top environmental honor.  In presenting the award, Kathleen Drew, the governor’s executive policy advisor on sustainability and Jay Manning, director of Washington State’s department of ecology highlighted Evergreen’s Seminar II building.  Seminar II is Washington’s first publicly funded education facility certified Gold by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. The building makes use of natural ventilation, recycled and sustainable materials, and green roofs. 

The award also recognized Evergreen’s commitment to reducing its carbon footprint and work to achieve a ‘climate neutral’ campus by 2020, including completion of its first greenhouse gas inventory in 2007. 

In September, The Evergreen State College received an honorable mention with the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, Sustainability Leadership Award, a national honor that recognized the college for mitigating 100 percent of its electricity consumption thanks to a self imposed student fee.   The Evergreen State College was one of only six organizations recognized by the association, which also noted that 40 percent of on-campus food at Evergreen is locally grown and/or organic product.  

And in August, Evergreen was recognized as one of Grist Magazine’s Top 15 Green Colleges and Universities for its strong commitment to sustainability, for its organic farm, for its composting program, and for its student-voted commitment to purchasing 100 percent green power. 

Maintaining Momentum

 “We have a long history of concern about the environment at Evergreen,” says College President Thomas L. "Les" Purce, “but our challenge now is to do more to make a difference through commitments to conservation that enrich students’ lives and enhance students’ role in our democracy.”