Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 51.72
Liaison Alex Frank
Submission Date Aug. 1, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Wisconsin-Madison
EN-5: Outreach Campaign

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Alex Frank
Sustainability Analyst
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Has the institution held at least one sustainability-related outreach campaign during the previous three years that was directed at students and yielded measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability? :
Yes

Has the institution held at least one sustainability-related outreach campaign during the previous three years that was directed at employees and yielded measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability?:
Yes

Name of the campaign:
Green Greeks

A brief description of the campaign, including how students and/or employees were engaged:

Along with providing resources to guide waste and energy reduction habits within individual chapters, the Green Greeks program is structured around a system of positive competition, which aims to educate and empower Greek organizations. The program's goal is to introduce chapters and members to sustainability initiatives in an effort to encourage positive lifelong habits and environmental awareness. Through their partnerships with Greek life, they hope to leave a lasting impact on the UW–Madison campus and the surrounding community.

Students are engaged to become Sustainability Ambassadors functioning as the liaison between the Office of Sustainability Greek Greeks program and their Chapter. As a Sustainability Ambassador students are responsible for:
- Providing the Office of Sustainability team with information regarding sustainability measures being taken at their house
- Working with the Office of Sustainability to coordinate sustainable initiatives
- Helping oversee such initiatives inside the chapter
- Updating other members of their chapter about their efforts and agenda at chapter meetings


A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign:

The Green Greek program began in 2018 and to date has worked with two chapters to identify, support, and guide implementation of chapter sustainability initiatives including:
- Improving and organizing waste and recycling management
- Implementing composting
- Transitioning to LED lighting
- Engaging with community organizations
- Improving HVAC efficiency
- Initiating meatless dinners


The website URL where information about the campaign is available:
Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
Green Office Certification Program

A brief description of the campaign, including how students and/or employees were engaged (2nd campaign):

The Green Office Certification program helps campus offices of any size to become more sustainable workplaces through a three-step certification process. The program is designed to give UW–Madison employees the information and tools they need to learn about sustainability, better understand the impacts of their practices, and create healthy and sustainable work environments.

For each level of certification, participating offices receive an educational presentation from the Green Office team, a checklist of action items to complete, and a two-week check in to discuss their progress and how to move forward.


A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign (2nd campaign):

Since 2017 a total of 43 offices have participated in the Green Office program, with 16 completing Bronze level activities, 4 completing Silver level activities, and 2 obtaining certification at the Gold level. The remaining offices are actively working to achieve certification.

Achieving the Bronze level requires an office to improve waste and recycling practices, such as:
- Improve waste and recycling bin locations and signage
- Educate office employees on waste collection practices
- Set-up collection systems for specialty waste products (e.g., batteries, print cartridges, small electronics, etc.)
- Set printers to default to double-sided printing
- Offer reusable dishes and silverware

Achieving the Silver level requires an office to improve energy and water management, such as:
- Educate office employees on energy and water use best practices
- Complete an energy audit
- Install LED or CFL light bulbs
- Install motion-activated lighting
- Install switched-activated power strips
- Set-up water saving practices such as minimizing coffee making and dishwasher runs

Certification at the Gold level requires an office to institute sustainable purchasing policies, such as:
- Central storage of communal office supplies
- Plan purchases to limit deliveries
- Buying recycled paper and other products
- Choosing non-toxic cleaners
- Buying local, whenever possible
- Partnering with a local non-profit to pursue community engagement opportunities


The website URL where information about the campaign is available (2nd campaign):
A brief description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns, including measured positive impacts:
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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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.