1. Establish a policy that all new campus construction will be built to at least the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED Silver standard or equivalent.

Yes: In 2002, Berea College adopted a set of “Ecological Renovation Standards” for all campus renovations in order to maximize resource efficiency and incorporate green design components. The College’s administrative building, Lincoln Hall, is also the first LEED-certified building in Kentucky with Silver Certification. Since Lincoln's renovation was certified in 2004, all campus renovations are implemented according to LEED-Silver criteria (without formal certification).

2. Adopt an energy-efficient appliance purchasing policy requiring purchase of ENERGY STAR certified products in all areas for which such ratings exist.

Yes: Following is an excerpt from the recently updated campus-wide purchasing policy:
"The selection of all products procured for Berea College must carefully consider the anticipated energy use and available energy saving devices. Further, all products, appliances, and equipment purchased by Berea College shall be Energy Star qualified wherever practical and/or possible. Energy Star is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy helping to protect the environment through energy efficient products and practices."

Information Systems & Services (IS&S) already purchases all Energy Star equipment for campus-wide computing needs.

3. Establish a policy of offsetting all greenhouse gas emissions generated by air travel paid for by our institution.

No: No information provided.

4. Encourage use of and provide access to public transportation for all faculty, staff, students and visitors at our institution.

Yes: As a residential College serving low-income students, Berea’s car policy prohibits freshmen from having cars and limits the number of approved student vehicles and campus parking spaces. The Berea College shuttle system is run by Campus Life, consists of one 12-passenger van, operates 4-5 days a week (including evenings and weekends), and transports students to local shopping centers as well as recreational destinations in surrounding communities. In partnership with a local non-profit organization, the City of Berea also offers an affordable public transportation system that operates from 9:00—5:00 on weekdays.

Employee parking areas include designated carpool spaces, and bike racks are available outside most College buildings for use by the entire campus community. Berea Bikes, a student-led community bike program, reclaims abandoned bikes and refurbishes them for use by campus community members. They also offer educational opportunities on bike maintenance and repair and provide a public workshop with bike tools for people to work on their own bikes.

5. Within one year of signing this document, begin purchasing or producing at least 15% of our institution's electricity consumption from renewable sources.

No: No information provided.

6. Establish a policy or a committee that supports climate and sustainability shareholder proposals at companies where our institution's endowment is invested.

Yes: As noted above, the Strategic Planning Council (SPC) formulated the charge and membership for a subcommittee to develop a “Strategic Plan for Sustainability and Ecological Responsibility.” While broader in scope than fulfilling the ACUPCC alone, this group's work will include implementation goals and actions for the ACUPCC. The ad-hoc subcommittee was formed in Fall 2007 and will review all aspects of the College's sustainability efforts involving facilities, policies, academics, land management, and fiscal management.

7. Participate in the Waste Minimization component of the national RecycleMania competition, and adopt 3 or more associated measures to reduce waste.

Yes: Berea College participated in RecycleMania for the first time in 2007, and is participating again in 2008. This is a collaboration between the Sustainability Coordinator's office, Facilities Management/Recycling, and Residential Life. (1) Recycling weighs the total recycling for the competition (in addition to maintaining annual waste total records for the campus), (2) Residential Life implements educational programming about waste reduction and energy/water conservation, and (3) the Sustainability Coordinator provides incentives for the residence hall that recycles/saves the most.

Berea College recently expanded its recycling efforts to include recycling of used batteries, cell phones, and inkjet printer cartridges. Information Systems and Services also recycles electronic waste by stripping usable parts from obsolete or inoperable equipment and then recycling the rest through an external vendor for further breaking down and processing. Food Service works with the College Gardens to compost all pre-consumer food residuals and recently reinstituted a system for post-consumer composting. Facilities Management diverts as much demolition debris as possible from campus renovation projects by reusing materials or recycling materials like scrap metal.

Berea College also "recycles" through the redistribution and/or reuse of usable materials. Facilities Management collects and stores office and departmental surplus such as furniture and equipment, which is available for use by other campus offices/programs or sold in a bi-annual public surplus auction. The Ecological Sustainability Education (ESE) program also operates an Office Supply Exchange by collecting usable surplus office/school supplies and making them available free of charge tostudents, faculty, staff, and local non-profit organizations.