In 2018, Marquette published its first Campus Sustainability Plan. The plan set out to reduce carbon emissions by 25% by 2025, as well as engage in a campus wide effort to progress sustainability efforts in academics, engagement, operations and planning.
This year, Marquette has registered as a Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS) participant again. A program of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), the STARS is a self-assessment tool used by institutions of higher education to measure their sustainability progress. STARS will help our institution set and meet sustainability goals while fostering collaboration and information-sharing across our campus. STARS will also enable our institution to benchmark with peers. The previous submission was in 2016 and received a silver rating, the third highest out of five possible ratings, and is available to view online. STARS reports are submitted to AASHE as well as The Princeton Review’s Guide to Green Schools.
Participating in STARS requires a substantial amount of data collection in four main categories: academics, engagement, operations, and planning and administration. The STARS Liaison for the university is Chelsea Malacara, sustainability and energy management coordinator, who will be spearheading data collection efforts on campus. The goal is to complete and submit the report by the end of August this year. She looks forward to collaborating across departments during the data collection process, so look out for an e-mail from her in the coming weeks.
With questions, contact Chelsea Malacara.
