Establish a Sustainable Office Program & Certification

This initiative proposes to implement a Sustainable Office Program and Certification to educate and incentivize university offices in achieving sustainability goals through a tier-based certification system. Offices will be recognized with varying levels of certification—such as Bronze, Silver, and Gold—based on their environmental practices in waste management, energy use, and purchasing. The program aims to encourage offices to reduce their environmental footprint and offers opportunities for offices to improve and be recertified annually. Actionable items include:

• Establish a tier-based system (e.g., Bronze, Silver, Gold) for Green Office Certification, defining specific sustainability practices required for each level.
• Design an application form for offices to describe their sustainability practices and a point system to rank these practices consistently. Include in-person checks and annual evaluations by the Office of Sustainability.
• Provide offices with opportunities to recertify and improve their certification tier by enhancing their sustainability practices and participating in educational presentations.
• Gradually develop additional tiers (e.g., Platinum) and increase program competitiveness to motivate more offices to engage in sustainable practices.
• Offer educational materials and presentations on sustainability to participating offices, and provide incentives for engaging in these educational opportunities.