About the Center

The Center for Sustainability is the focal point for Santa Clara University’s Justice and Sustainability Strategic Priority and contributes to creating a more just, humane, and sustainable world.

Mission:

The Center for Sustainability advances academic and public understanding of the ways in which social justice and sustainability intersect by integrating principles of social, environmental, and economic sustainability into campus operations, academic and student life, and outreach programs.

Pillars:

The Center for Sustainability aims to help the University:

Achieve Climate Neutrality by the end of 2020

This goal consists of the reduction of the University's use of electricity and natural gas, as well as single-occumpany vehicles on campus.

Example metrics: annual greenhouse gas emissions inventory, local offset initiatives

Practice mindful consumption

This means we help improve the understanding of their impact of purchasing/ consumption of resources (e.g. water) and materials (e.g. personal stuff). We also strive to engage the campus to partake in conservation, resource reduction, or voluntary simplicity, as well as recycling, composting, and creative reuse/ upcycling strategies.

Example metrics: food source miles, sustainable purchasing policies, and waste diversion rates.

Develop a culture of sustainability among students, faculty, staff, alumni, & visitors

We strive to expand the campus community's ability and desire to partake in sustainable behaviors that contribute to a more resilient and regenerative world.

Example metrics: number of individuals involved in sustainability-related co-curricular and employee programs, assessments of the campus community's perceived value and intrinsic motivations for sustainable behaviors.

Use the campus as a living laboratory for developing global solutions

We support solutions-based coursework and research to solve local and global problems using the campus as a demonstration test-bed.

Example metrics: number of sustainability-related and focused courses, number of students and faculty engaged in sustainability-related research, number of students engaged with community members at BUG sites.

Awards & Recognition
Santa Clara University has been awarded and recognized for many of its sustainability projects and initiatives.

History
The Center for Sustainability was once a small office located on the outskirts of campus. Here is how we evolved.

News
Read the latest news about the faces of sustainability and recent projects on campus.

Our Team
Our awesome team members work on the Center for Sustainability's pillars through their specific focus areas of campus life.

Partners
The Center for Sustainability collaborates with stakeholders on and off campus in order to acccomplish University goals.

Support Sustainability
You can make a gift to any of the Center for Sustainability programs, including the Forge Garden and the Bronco Urban Garden (BUG) programs.