Virginia Commonwealth University
EN-5: Outreach Campaign

Part 1. Student outreach campaign

Institution holds at least one sustainability-related outreach campaign directed at students that yields measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability. The sustainability-related outreach campaign may be conducted by the institution, a student organization, or by students in a course.

Part 2. Employee outreach campaign

Institution holds at least one sustainability-related outreach campaign directed at employees that yields measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability. The sustainability-related outreach campaign may be conducted by the institution or by an employee organization.

The campaign(s) reported for this credit could take the form of a competition (e.g., a residence hall conservation competition), a rating or certification program (e.g. a green dorm or green office rating program), and/or a collective challenge (e.g., a campus-wide drive to achieve a specific sustainability target). A single campus-wide campaign may meet the criteria for both parts of this credit if educating students is a prime feature of the campaign and it is directed at both students and employees.

Measurable, positive results typically involve reductions in energy, waste or water use, cost savings and/or other benefits. To measure if a campaign yields measurable, positive results, institutions should compare pre-campaign performance to performance during or after the campaign. Increased awareness or increased membership of a mailing list or group is not sufficient in the absence of other positive results.

This credit applies to all institutions.

Each part is scored independently.

Part 1

An institution earns the maximum of 2 points available for Part 1 of this credit for having one or more sustainability-related outreach campaigns that are directed at students and yield measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability. Partial points are not available for Part 1 of this credit.

Part 2

An institution earns the maximum of 2 points available for Part 2 of this credit for having one or more sustainability-related outreach campaigns that are directed at employees and yield measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability. Partial points are not available for Part 2 of this credit.

Timeframe

Report on the most recent campaign(s) for which data is available from within the three years prior to the anticipated date of submission. Campaigns held more than three years prior to the anticipated date of submission are not eligible for this credit.  

Sampling and Data Standards

Institutions may use a representative sample to measure pre-campaign baseline and post-campaign performance.