For the second year in a row, The Sustainable Endowment Institute has given Vanderbilt a C+ rating for its efforts in making the university more sustainable. It is a jarring statistic, and the green initiative on campus certainly has problems, but the movement is stronger on campus than many students might think.
Andrea George, director of the sustainability and environmental management office, attributed the poor rating to the lack of transparency in the university’s endowment investments and shareholder engagement.
Should Vanderbilt do more to encourage faculty and staff to live a “green” lifestyle? More importantly, should Vanderbilt go to greater lengths to meet modern environmental benchmarks?
To what degree should Vanderbilt implement green technologies and policies in face of the drawbacks they pose? The campus cannot simply go green to suit public opinion. There needs to be a healthy blend of practical development and eco-awareness, with the hope the two can coincide. In response to the recent low evaluation, George said, “Vanderbilt’s sustainability has been focused on making meaningful environmental improvements that make sense for our university, not on what would makes us ‘look good.’”
While furthering transparency could pose problems for the investment program, managing public perception toward the school’s green initiatives remains essential. Admittedly, there are other advantages to green policies outside media exposure. George points out that “sustainable behaviors and investments have now become an important way to reduce not only our environmental impact but also Vanderbilt’s long-term expenses.”
And that’s the key. In the current economic climate, pursuing cost effective methods of operation has become increasingly important. The Owen School of Management has reduced energy usage by 15 percent with the implementation of a new lighting system. Furthermore, if students individually reduced consumption of electricity and water, over an extended period of time the university could cut operational costs significantly. Unsurprisingly, Vanderbilt intends to participate in Earth Hour on March 28 and turn off lights on campus along with an estimated 1 billion individuals across the planet.
