Sustainable Campus Report from Sustainable Endowments

Source: Inside Higher Ed 4/18/08: Students are more likely to act in environmentally friendly ways (or at least to report that they do) at colleges and universities where campus policies emphasize environmental sustainability, according to a survey of 1,700 students conducted by researchers at the College of William and Mary and released today. The survey, released by the Sustainable Endowments Institute, found that students at institutions that received A grades on the institute’s sustainability “report card” were likelier than those at colleges that scored D’s and F’s to report limiting their energy use, limiting their appliances, and turning off their computers when not in use, among other behaviors. “When students perceive climate change to be a priority for their school, it really affects their individual actions,” Samantha Weston, co-director of the study and a senior at William and Mary, said in a news release about the survey.