University of Colorado at Boulder
CU Environmental Center

The University of Colorado at Boulder recognizes the need for a clear vision and strategy for addressing environmental challenges currently and in the future. The “Blueprint for a Green Campus” was created in conjunction with the Second Nature organization and is intended to help identify where UC Boulder can improve existing policies and practices in order to set an example of environmental responsibility as an institution. The Blueprint for a Green Campus is an environmental action plan, which proposes solutions for a wide variety of issues that CU faces including increased efficiency rather than consumption of energy. This “Blueprint for a Green Campus” could and should be used by the Mount Holyoke community as a resource and tool for creating our own code of conduct or action plan.

About Wind Power at the University of Colorado at Boulder:

Following the goals outlined in the Blueprint, the University of Colorado at Boulder has taken progressive steps toward energy conservation. Clean Energy Now! was founded in the spring of 2000 by members of the CU Environmental Center to run a wind power campaign on campus. Students were asked to increase their student fees by $1 each semester for four years so the University could purchase wind power to meet a portion of its energy needs. Endless hours of campaigning led to the largest turnout in student election history. An overwhelming majority voted in favor of the wind purchase, making CU-Boulder the largest University purchaser of wind power in the nation at that time. Since then, several Universities and Colleges have used CU’s wind campaign as a model to bring renewable energy to their schools. The 2000-2001 academic year also saw the completion of an emissions inventory for the CU - Boulder campus, the approval of an upgrade to the lighting fixtures in 15 campus buildings, and the passage of an energy resolution by the Environmental Center board, urging the university to comply with the terms of the Kyoto Protocol. To be in compliance, emissions must be an average of 7% below 1990 levels between the years 2007 and 2012. In the spring of 2001, Clean Energy Now! was given $15,000 from Facilities Management to run an energy conservation campaign on campus. Generation Green: An Energy Education Campaign was an extensive educational program to educate students, faculty, and staff regarding energy use. After 6 months, electrical use had significantly lowered on campus due to the educational programs the university employed. Clean Energy Now! also organized a national conference, Thinking Ahead, Energy in a Changing Climate on energy issues and universities. UC Boulder is another example of a university taking action toward educating the community and conserving energy. The Blueprint as well as UC’s energy education campaign are valuable resources MHC can utilize for making our own code and implementing and/or improving our existing energy education programs.