The list of Climate Change & Energy Leaders is comprised of 29 schools that earned "A" grades in this category. Below is a sample of seven very different institutions that all earned high marks. These summaries are based on data from each school's profile page.
Amherst College’s new 1,750-kilowatt cogeneration facility reduces carbon emissions to 5 percent below 1990 levels. Since 2003, Amherst has invested $200,000 per year in energy conservation projects. The school purchases enough renewable energy credits to offset the emissions from student computer use. Some residence facilities have solar hot water systems.
Arizona State University–Tempe (ASU) has a strategic plan to reach carbon neutrality. As a part of this plan, the campus recently completed the ASU Energy Conservation Project, which retrofitted more than 80 campus buildings to increase energy efficiency. The project reduces annual carbon emissions by 70 million pounds. Furthermore, the school is installing 2 megawatts of solar arrays on campus roofs, with a planned expansion to 7 megawatts, meeting 7 percent of campus electricity needs.
Bates College is pursuing its commitment to climate neutrality by purchasing 100 percent renewable electricity for main campus buildings, and by using B5 biodiesel blend to heat some campus residences. Bates consistently seeks to decrease its energy consumption via efficiency upgrade projects, as well as energy conservation programs. The college has successfully reduced its emissions to below 1990 levels.
Colby College has reduced carbon emissions by 23 percent from 1990 levels on a per square-foot basis, exceeding an initial goal of 9 percent per square-foot of building space by 2010. The college purchases 100 percent renewable power, as well as renewable energy credits for a total of 115 percent green electricity. A cogeneration plant produces about 10 percent of campus electricity. The EPA's College & University Green Power Challenge named Colby the 2007-08 Individual Conference Champion for purchasing more green power than any other school in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC).
Middlebury College has conducted a carbon emissions inventory, established an annual greenhouse gas monitoring and reporting system, and committed to being climate neutral by 2016. The college has also invested in solar arrays, a demonstration wind turbine, and is currently constructing a biomass facility that will use woodchips to generate power.
Oregon State University–Corvallis (OSU) has completed a greenhouse gas inventory, which it plans to update annually. Subsidized by a student-approved designated fee, OSU also purchases 75 percent of its power from renewable resources, cutting greenhouse gas emissions by about 50 percent.
Santa Clara University has committed to reducing its carbon emissions to 20 percent below 1997 levels by 2010. The university purchases 11,256 megawatt-hours of wind energy, and new solar panels will generate 89 megawatt-hours of electricity per year. Despite significant growth in size, the university has experienced relatively little growth in energy consumption since 2000.