Sustainability | Mount Holyoke College
Source: http://www.mtholyoke.edu/why-mount-holyoke/sustainability
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:11
Sustainability | Mount Holyoke College
Home
Why Mount Holyoke
Sustainability
Sustainability
Mount Holyoke College recognizes that climate change is threatening people and ecosystems around the globe and that without intervention centered around justice that impact will continue to escalate. We all, especially those of us privileged in the industrial world, share a responsibility to seek solutions to prevent future devastating consequences to our natural world and our lives.
As an educational institution, we are in a position to lead by educating students and the broader community on the science of climate change, as well as on the political, economic and social factors influencing it. We are committed to reducing our environmental impact on the planet and have set the goal of
carbon neutrality by 2037
, the College’s 200th anniversary.
We also have a responsibility to environmental sustainability, and to understanding its connection to multiple communities — locally and globally — both in terms of the people moving through the institution and the resources it consumes. With the support of the
Miller Worley Center for the Environment
, we are committed to advancing our core education and research to impact leadership in local and global sustainability and to foster a culture of responsibility on campus.
Participate in the Campus Plan for Sustainability, Action and Justice for the Environment
Related programs
Environmental Studies
Restoration Ecology
Five College Sustainability Studies
Related links
Campus Living Lab
Climate commitment
Geothermal energy project
Miller Worley Center for the Environment
Sustainability in dining
Resources
Environmental grant offerings
Environmental policies and procedures
Miller Worley Center podcast
Sustainability data archive
Living and working green
We are committed to reducing the environmental footprint of campus operations and student life on campus. While all community members play a role in this effort, students who call Mount Holyoke home for much of the year have a particularly significant opportunity to green it.
Our climate commitment
Climate change is a defining issue of our day. The threat of global warming and its associated catastrophic impacts (including but not restricted to rising temperatures, extreme weather events, forest fires, rising sea levels, biodiversity loss and much more) demands both serious study and decisive action to protect our Earth and its inhabitants. We share a collective responsibility to work toward a greener and more equitable world.
In January 2018, the Board of Trustees set the goal of becoming a carbon-neutral campus by 2037, Mount Holyoke’s bicentennial. We are pursuing this goal through a strategy of investing in energy efficiency, promoting energy conservation, retrofitting historic buildings and transitioning to carbon-neutral heating and electricity sources.
Carbon neutrality is achieved by reducing the amount of carbon released to the atmosphere, primarily by reducing consumption, converting to renewable energy sources and increasing energy efficiency. It is also achieved by balancing the remaining carbon released with an equivalent amount sequestered — that is, removed from the atmosphere.
We are pursuing our goal of reaching carbon neutrality by the College's bicentennial through a strategy of transitioning to renewable energy, electrification, investing in energy efficiency, promoting energy conservation and retrofitting our historic buildings.
Learn more about our climate commitment
Waste reduction and recycling
Mount Holyoke is committed to recycling and waste reduction and recycling and has a long-standing recycling program. Central bins for recycling, trash, and composting are located on each residence hall floor, typically in kitchenettes. Each student room comes equipped with recycling bins.
Responsible building
Mount Holyoke College is committed to building, renovating, and maintaining its campus buildings to maximize energy efficiency and minimize other environmental impacts of the construction, renovation and ongoing use of campus buildings. To support this goal, specific objectives include:
designing all new construction to LEED™ silver or the equivalent with an emphasis on minimizing lifetime energy use
renovating buildings using Mount Holyoke’s Environmentally
Responsible Building Principles and Guidelines
utilizing an integrated design approach will be used to identify green design options at the early stages of the design process
conducting energy modeling on all new construction
commissioning new construction and establishing a schedule for the re-commission of those buildings
Several buildings on campus have already been built or renovated to conform to LEED™ standards.
Creighton Hall.
Built in 2008, Creighton Hall is the newest Residence Hall on campus and meets LEED Gold Requirements.
Community Center
. Completed in fall 2018, the Community Center facility was designed and constructed to LEED Silver equivalent standards.
Science Center.
Completed in 2003, the Science Center is a LEED certified building.
Sustainability in dining
Mount Holyoke Dining Services is committed to protecting our global and local resources by continuously exploring options to increase environmentally sustainable purchasing and practices. We aim to provide healthy and nutritious food while reducing waste, increasing our local purchases, and minimizing our impacts on the environment.
Learn more about our efforts in sustainable dining
SAJE
MHC’s continued commitment to Climate Action is clear
Mount Holyoke College is committed to environmental responsibility and climate action. We are making significant progress toward our 2037 carbon neutrality goal through the geothermal project, updated endowment policies, and daily campus sustainability efforts. A Plan for Sustainability and Justice for the Environment (SAJE) will build upon both the Campus Comprehensive Plan (CCP) and MHC Forward outcomes as a foundational focus for this work. Our SAJE strategies will align with the strategic campus vision.
SAJE Timeline
2025-2026 Academic Year:
Plan socialization, insight and participant gathering to inform the next year’s working group actions. Draw out connections from CCP and MHC Forward to inform the working groups. TRUST facilitation for organizational change ½ day remote session for working group chairs and facilitators to gain training and resources for the work. In-person kick-off for all SAJE participants, and a student-facing engagement during Pangy Day.
2026-2027 Academic Year:
Consistent facilitation of thematic working group sessions across the four focus areas. Meeting three times in the fall semester and once in the spring semester. SAJE Forum to take place in Feb 2027 for all working group focus areas to share out, engage with the broader campus community and gain insights. Presentation to the BoT in May.
SAJE Working Group Focus Areas
Broad Action in Scope 1 & Scope 2 -
Broadening action areas across Scope 1 and 2 emissions with a focus on energy use reduction, efficiencies, and capital project guidelines.
Bold Action in Scope 3 -
Bold progress on Scope 3 emissions with a focus on purchasing, waste, and commuting.
Community & Resilience -
Framing how the built and natural environment supports the activities of the campus into the future while expanding our responsibility as members of a broader community.
Curricular Development -
Furthering academic engagements on campus that provide experiential learning and curricular enhancements that develop sustainability practitioners across disciplines.
SAJE Guiding Principles (in progress) -
These will be finalized by the MHC Sustainability Steering Committee. Initial discussions have recommended including the following principles to guide the overall process and inform the outcomes.
Transparency (financial, procedural, prioritization, timelines)
Justice-centered
Community-informed practices
Questions: email the planning team at
saje@mtholyoke.edu
Happening at Mount Holyoke
Sustainability in the news
Climate Justice Lab launched at Mount Holyoke
The Daily Hampshire Gazette recently explored the new Climate Justice Lab initiative of the Miller Worley Center for the Environment at Mount Holyoke College.
Tags:
Academic Excellence
Activism and Social Justice
Faculty
Mount Holyoke in the News
Sustainability and the Environment
New Climate Justice Lab announced at Mount Holyoke College
The new Climate Justice Lab integrates climate justice across the curriculum at Mount Holyoke College.
Tags:
Academic Excellence
Activism and Social Justice
Sustainability and the Environment
Second Nature lauds climate justice work at Mount Holyoke
Second Nature reported on Mount Holyoke College’s Community Commitment to Climate Justice, a grassroots initiative that empowers students and staff to cocreate equitable sustainability solutions.
Tags:
Activism and Social Justice
Community
Mount Holyoke in the News
Sustainability and the Environment
More sustainability news
More in
Sustainability
Climate Commitment
Sustainability Steering Committee
Sustainability in Dining
Contact us
The Miller Worley Center for the Environment
Creating a greener and more equitable world, the Miller Worley Center for the Environment prepares environmental leaders for today and the future by promoting a culture of environmental sustainability and justice on campus and beyond.
millerworley@mtholyoke.edu
413-538-3091
Dwight Hall
@sustainablemhc
Quick links
Visit Mount Holyoke
Request Information
Apply
Home
Why Mount Holyoke
Sustainability
Sustainability
Mount Holyoke College recognizes that climate change is threatening people and ecosystems around the globe and that without intervention centered around justice that impact will continue to escalate. We all, especially those of us privileged in the industrial world, share a responsibility to seek solutions to prevent future devastating consequences to our natural world and our lives.
As an educational institution, we are in a position to lead by educating students and the broader community on the science of climate change, as well as on the political, economic and social factors influencing it. We are committed to reducing our environmental impact on the planet and have set the goal of
carbon neutrality by 2037
, the College’s 200th anniversary.
We also have a responsibility to environmental sustainability, and to understanding its connection to multiple communities — locally and globally — both in terms of the people moving through the institution and the resources it consumes. With the support of the
Miller Worley Center for the Environment
, we are committed to advancing our core education and research to impact leadership in local and global sustainability and to foster a culture of responsibility on campus.
Participate in the Campus Plan for Sustainability, Action and Justice for the Environment
Related programs
Environmental Studies
Restoration Ecology
Five College Sustainability Studies
Related links
Campus Living Lab
Climate commitment
Geothermal energy project
Miller Worley Center for the Environment
Sustainability in dining
Resources
Environmental grant offerings
Environmental policies and procedures
Miller Worley Center podcast
Sustainability data archive
Living and working green
We are committed to reducing the environmental footprint of campus operations and student life on campus. While all community members play a role in this effort, students who call Mount Holyoke home for much of the year have a particularly significant opportunity to green it.
Our climate commitment
Climate change is a defining issue of our day. The threat of global warming and its associated catastrophic impacts (including but not restricted to rising temperatures, extreme weather events, forest fires, rising sea levels, biodiversity loss and much more) demands both serious study and decisive action to protect our Earth and its inhabitants. We share a collective responsibility to work toward a greener and more equitable world.
In January 2018, the Board of Trustees set the goal of becoming a carbon-neutral campus by 2037, Mount Holyoke’s bicentennial. We are pursuing this goal through a strategy of investing in energy efficiency, promoting energy conservation, retrofitting historic buildings and transitioning to carbon-neutral heating and electricity sources.
Carbon neutrality is achieved by reducing the amount of carbon released to the atmosphere, primarily by reducing consumption, converting to renewable energy sources and increasing energy efficiency. It is also achieved by balancing the remaining carbon released with an equivalent amount sequestered — that is, removed from the atmosphere.
We are pursuing our goal of reaching carbon neutrality by the College's bicentennial through a strategy of transitioning to renewable energy, electrification, investing in energy efficiency, promoting energy conservation and retrofitting our historic buildings.
Learn more about our climate commitment
Waste reduction and recycling
Mount Holyoke is committed to recycling and waste reduction and recycling and has a long-standing recycling program. Central bins for recycling, trash, and composting are located on each residence hall floor, typically in kitchenettes. Each student room comes equipped with recycling bins.
Responsible building
Mount Holyoke College is committed to building, renovating, and maintaining its campus buildings to maximize energy efficiency and minimize other environmental impacts of the construction, renovation and ongoing use of campus buildings. To support this goal, specific objectives include:
designing all new construction to LEED™ silver or the equivalent with an emphasis on minimizing lifetime energy use
renovating buildings using Mount Holyoke’s Environmentally
Responsible Building Principles and Guidelines
utilizing an integrated design approach will be used to identify green design options at the early stages of the design process
conducting energy modeling on all new construction
commissioning new construction and establishing a schedule for the re-commission of those buildings
Several buildings on campus have already been built or renovated to conform to LEED™ standards.
Creighton Hall.
Built in 2008, Creighton Hall is the newest Residence Hall on campus and meets LEED Gold Requirements.
Community Center
. Completed in fall 2018, the Community Center facility was designed and constructed to LEED Silver equivalent standards.
Science Center.
Completed in 2003, the Science Center is a LEED certified building.
Sustainability in dining
Mount Holyoke Dining Services is committed to protecting our global and local resources by continuously exploring options to increase environmentally sustainable purchasing and practices. We aim to provide healthy and nutritious food while reducing waste, increasing our local purchases, and minimizing our impacts on the environment.
Learn more about our efforts in sustainable dining
SAJE
MHC’s continued commitment to Climate Action is clear
Mount Holyoke College is committed to environmental responsibility and climate action. We are making significant progress toward our 2037 carbon neutrality goal through the geothermal project, updated endowment policies, and daily campus sustainability efforts. A Plan for Sustainability and Justice for the Environment (SAJE) will build upon both the Campus Comprehensive Plan (CCP) and MHC Forward outcomes as a foundational focus for this work. Our SAJE strategies will align with the strategic campus vision.
SAJE Timeline
2025-2026 Academic Year:
Plan socialization, insight and participant gathering to inform the next year’s working group actions. Draw out connections from CCP and MHC Forward to inform the working groups. TRUST facilitation for organizational change ½ day remote session for working group chairs and facilitators to gain training and resources for the work. In-person kick-off for all SAJE participants, and a student-facing engagement during Pangy Day.
2026-2027 Academic Year:
Consistent facilitation of thematic working group sessions across the four focus areas. Meeting three times in the fall semester and once in the spring semester. SAJE Forum to take place in Feb 2027 for all working group focus areas to share out, engage with the broader campus community and gain insights. Presentation to the BoT in May.
SAJE Working Group Focus Areas
Broad Action in Scope 1 & Scope 2 -
Broadening action areas across Scope 1 and 2 emissions with a focus on energy use reduction, efficiencies, and capital project guidelines.
Bold Action in Scope 3 -
Bold progress on Scope 3 emissions with a focus on purchasing, waste, and commuting.
Community & Resilience -
Framing how the built and natural environment supports the activities of the campus into the future while expanding our responsibility as members of a broader community.
Curricular Development -
Furthering academic engagements on campus that provide experiential learning and curricular enhancements that develop sustainability practitioners across disciplines.
SAJE Guiding Principles (in progress) -
These will be finalized by the MHC Sustainability Steering Committee. Initial discussions have recommended including the following principles to guide the overall process and inform the outcomes.
Transparency (financial, procedural, prioritization, timelines)
Justice-centered
Community-informed practices
Questions: email the planning team at
saje@mtholyoke.edu
Happening at Mount Holyoke
Sustainability in the news
Climate Justice Lab launched at Mount Holyoke
The Daily Hampshire Gazette recently explored the new Climate Justice Lab initiative of the Miller Worley Center for the Environment at Mount Holyoke College.
Tags:
Academic Excellence
Activism and Social Justice
Faculty
Mount Holyoke in the News
Sustainability and the Environment
New Climate Justice Lab announced at Mount Holyoke College
The new Climate Justice Lab integrates climate justice across the curriculum at Mount Holyoke College.
Tags:
Academic Excellence
Activism and Social Justice
Sustainability and the Environment
Second Nature lauds climate justice work at Mount Holyoke
Second Nature reported on Mount Holyoke College’s Community Commitment to Climate Justice, a grassroots initiative that empowers students and staff to cocreate equitable sustainability solutions.
Tags:
Activism and Social Justice
Community
Mount Holyoke in the News
Sustainability and the Environment
More sustainability news
More in
Sustainability
Climate Commitment
Sustainability Steering Committee
Sustainability in Dining
Contact us
The Miller Worley Center for the Environment
Creating a greener and more equitable world, the Miller Worley Center for the Environment prepares environmental leaders for today and the future by promoting a culture of environmental sustainability and justice on campus and beyond.
millerworley@mtholyoke.edu
413-538-3091
Dwight Hall
@sustainablemhc
Quick links
Visit Mount Holyoke
Request Information
Apply