| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 80.87 |
| Liaison | Megan Butler |
| Submission Date | Jan. 26, 2024 |
Macalester College
EN-6: Assessing Sustainability Culture
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
Megan
Butler Sustainability Director Sustainability |
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Does the institution conduct an assessment of sustainability culture?:
Yes
Which of the following best describes the cultural assessment? The assessment is administered to::
The entire campus community (students and employees) directly or by representative sample
Which of the following best describes the structure of the cultural assessment? The assessment is administered::
Longitudinally to measure change over time
A brief description of how and when the cultural assessment(s) were developed and/or adopted:
The earliest form of this survey was developed by faculty and adopted in the fall of 2014 as part of the Educating Sustainability Ambassadors initiative. Since then, the survey has been shortened and altered during several rounds of revisions. The most recent version was distributed in April of 2023. Previously, a very similar version was released in August of 2022. Due to the high level of similarity between these two versions, they offer the most useful grounds for comparison. Working with our office of institutional research, the Macalester office has established a system of survey distribution that will allow for longitudinal analysis over time. The latest version of the survey will be implemented every 2 years starting in 2023.
A copy or sample of the questions related to sustainability culture:
A sample of the questions related to sustainability culture or the website URL where the assessment tool is available:
Some examples of questions asked:
Do you consider yourself to be an environmentalist? - True/False
My lifestyle has become more sustainable since becoming part of the Macalester community - True/False
I think about sustainability every day - True/False
Sustainability is important to me personally - True/False
Faculty and staff at Macalester value sustainability - True/False
Do you consider yourself to be an environmentalist? - True/False
My lifestyle has become more sustainable since becoming part of the Macalester community - True/False
I think about sustainability every day - True/False
Sustainability is important to me personally - True/False
Faculty and staff at Macalester value sustainability - True/False
A brief description of how representative samples were reached (if applicable) and how the cultural assessment is administered:
Previously, the survey has been administered through the Macalester daily newsletter and direct outreach on class Facebook pages. In the spring of 2023, the survey was administered by email to all staff, students, and faculty-list-servs and the Mac daily newspaper.
A brief summary of results from the cultural assessment:
Analysis of the Spring 2023 and Fall 2022 survey results indicate a few overarching trends and key observations. First, those who were familiar with a few sustainability office programs were familiar with all or almost all of them. Alternatively, those with little exposure to the sustainability office were significantly disconnected from programming, even if they agreed with the statement that “sustainability is important to me personally.” Across both rounds of the survey, the Macalester community cites environmental justice, systems change (institutional and governmental policy), and ecosystem disruptions as top sustainability concerns. Additionally, suggestions were gathered during the second round of surveying for improvement avenues within the duties of the sustainability office, and students, staff, faculty, and the Macalester Sustainability Office are all enthusiastic about moving these initiatives forward.
Optional Fields
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.