Sustainability Initiatives at Institutions of Higher Learning in the Southeast
This report provides a look at sustainability initiatives at colleges and universities in the southeast, with a focus on Minority Academic Institutions (MAI). Colleges and universities have always been key partners in helping the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) achieve its mission to protect human health and the environment. EPA works with colleges and universities to promote research, explore solutions, and help produce the next generation of environmental leaders. In 2006,EPA created the MAI program to ensure that MAIs are full partners in EPA programs. The hope is that this report on college sustainability efforts will encourage institutions to improve their sustainable practices and curriculum. The featured initiatives can provide ideas that other campuses can apply to their operations.
Scope of this report
Information in this report primarily comes from institutions that have a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with EPA Region 4. The MOUs are designed to encourage schools to support environmental awareness on campus and expand their academic offerings in science and environmental-policy-oriented courses. The MOUs focus on environmental matters that include areas such as water conservation, energy conservation, recycling, green building construction, and green renovation. In addition, the MOUs include environmental outreach to the communities the institutions serve. This report covers colleges and universities in EPA Region 4 in the southeastern United States, with a particular focus on MAIs. EPA Region 4 includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. EPA’s MAI Program includes Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islanders Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs). Although there are no TCUs or AANAPISIs in Region 4, future versions of this report will be expanded to include examples from TCUs and AANAPISIs around the country.
This report is not a complete summary of all sustainability initiatives at every school in the southeast. Rather it is a snapshot of initiatives that illustrate environmental leadership at schools in the southeast. Future versions of the report will include more comprehensive information and will look at schools across the country.
