The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education Association (AASHE) has announced that Concordia received a Silver rating from the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS).
AASHE is the leading association for the advancement of sustainability in higher education and STARS is a comprehensive sustainability rating system for colleges and universities that addresses the environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainability.
“We achieved a Silver STARS rating by taking a comprehensive approach to integrate sustainability efforts into college operations,” said Jackie Maahs, sustainability coordinator.
Maahs said that individuals from every department and division on campus contributed information about how they are integrating sustainability efforts into their work. From Facilities Management to Orientation to Academic Affairs to Dining Services, the work of the entire campus community contributed to this achievement.
Some key drivers of the most recent rating include:
• Concordia’s annual greenhouse gas emissions tracking and carbon reduction planning
• The college’s recent Bee Campus certification
• The construction of the LEED Gold certified Integrated Science Center
• The college’s transition to more sustainable cleaning products
• Integration of sustainability resources into employee orientation
• Concordia’s key role in launching the Moorhead Community Resilience Task Force
“The Silver rating moves the college up from our previous two Bronze ratings,” Maahs said. “This is very exciting news and is attributed to a huge team effort of entities across the college contributing time, effort, and dedication to prioritizing sustainability and the data collection process. It’s a way for us to lift up that work in a tangible way.”