LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The University of Louisville has become the first college in Kentucky to achieve a gold rating in sustainability from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher ֱ.
UofL scored 65.12 for 2016 in the , the global standard AASHE uses to gauge progress in environmental, social and economic stewardship.
No other Kentucky college or university has a gold STARS rating, and UofL is one of only 92 gold schools in the world. Only five other ACC schools have a gold rating.
“The University of Louisville is committed to accountability: academic accountability, financial accountability and environmental accountability. We continue to be a leader in sustainability issues,” said UofL President James Ramsey. “Achieving measurable gains in campus sustainability is part of UofL’s strategic plan, and I am proud of the progress being made here.”
UofL’s score is more than seven points higher than its 2013 silver score of 58.29. UofL also earned a silver in 2011 with a score of 50.11.
“I’m thrilled with the progress we’ve made in recent years and eager to tackle the challenge of moving UofL toward a platinum – the highest – rating,” said Justin Mog, assistant to the provost for at UofL.
Among the efforts that helped push UofL to gold were new nutrition education plans; the recently added preferred name option, which allows students to be identified by the name they use, rather than their legal name; and the biannual , a $50,000 award for renewable energy or energy efficiency ideas or achievements.
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