Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 61.13
Liaison Elizabeth Drake
Submission Date March 6, 2020

STARS v2.2

Swarthmore College
OP-11: Sustainable Procurement

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.00 / 3.00 Aurora Winslade
Director of Sustainability
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution have written policies, guidelines, or directives that seek to support sustainable purchasing across multiple commodity categories institution-wide?:
Yes

A copy of the policies, guidelines or directives:
---

The policies, guidelines or directives:

The College has a published vision statement and guiding principles for sustainable purchasing:

Vision Statement
Swarthmore College purchases with environmental and social consciousness, as well as fiscal responsibility. We are committed to being leaders in sustainable purchasing and using best practices in order to reduce consumption and waste production, operate at maximum efficiency, and to have a positive impact on our environment, economy, and society.

Guiding Principles
1. ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY
We are committed to improving our environmental performance through reducing waste, conserving energy, and recycling and disposing of our products responsibly.
2. FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
We are committed to reducing unnecessary cost and expenses by appropriately limiting consumption and waste, promoting energy efficiency, and actively seeking the most financially viable option.
3. SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
We will uphold consideration of the human impacts that are a result of the manufacturing and disposal of our products, and include these considerations in their purchasing decisions.

Website: https://www.swarthmore.edu/purchasing-office/sustainable-purchasing


Does the institution employ Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) when evaluating energy- and water-using products and systems?:
Yes

Which of the following best describes the institution’s use of LCCA?:
Institution employs LCCA less comprehensively, e.g. for certain types of systems or projects and not others

A brief description of the LCCA policy and/or practices:

Swarthmore College requires the use of an LCCA calculator, including a shadow price on carbon, for all major capital projects. Language, shown below, is included in RFPs that requires contractors to use this specific tool:

Life cycle cost analysis on possible pathways will include:
- Net present value calculations
- Clear documentation of assumptions
- The shadow price on projected carbon emissions, currently valued at $100/MTCDE.
- Sensitivity analysis to changing costs and conditions
- Quantification of soft costs and risks where possible, including risks of technology failures, system failures, and fuel availability.
- Documentation of non-quantifiable soft costs and risks.

The tool can be downloaded on our website at: https://www.swarthmore.edu/sustainability/swarthmores-carbon-charge-program


Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating chemically intensive products and services?:
Yes

A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for chemically intensive products and services:

Swarthmore's Environmental Services department has committed to using Green Seal certified products and metered dispensing systems to minimize product waste. https://www.swarthmore.edu/environmental-services


Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating consumable office products?:
Yes

A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for consumable office products:

The College's Purchasing Office website (https://www.swarthmore.edu/purchasing-office/sustainable-purchasing) provides guidelines for buying paper with recycled content, and provides information on buying and recycling toner cartridges.


Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating furniture and furnishings?:
Yes

A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for furniture and furnishings:

In the Furnishings section (Section 12) of the College's published "Design Standards Guidelines", the following sustainability criteria are considered:

1. Prefer Level Certified furnishings as they have been rated against ANSI/BIFMA e3 Furniture Sustainability Standard that considers materials, energy, human and ecosystem health
2. Prefer products that have 3rd party sustainability certifications, such as Green Guard Certification, Environmental Product Declaration, or Health Product Declaration

3. Prefer materials and products that are manufactured and extracted within 500 miles of the campus

4. Prefer products that contain recycled content or are salvaged materials

5. All new wood products should be sourced from FSC-Certified wood


Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating Information technology (IT) and equipment?:
Yes

A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for Information Technology (IT) and equipment:

The College has a published Sustainable Printer Policy, which provides guidelines for purchasing printers and associated supplies. The policy is available at: https://www.swarthmore.edu/purchasing-office/sustainable-purchasing


Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating food service providers?:
No

A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for food service providers:
---

Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating garments and linens?:
No

A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for garments and linens:
---

Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating professional service providers?:
No

A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for professional service providers:
---

Does the institution have published sustainability criteria to be applied when evaluating transportation and fuels?:
No

A brief description of the published sustainability criteria for transportation and fuels:
---

Website URL where information about the institution’s sustainable procurement program or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

This data was assembled by Christopher Kane, Strategic Sourcing Manager. Email: ckane1@swarthmore.edu.


This data was assembled by Christopher Kane, Strategic Sourcing Manager. Email: ckane1@swarthmore.edu.

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.