strategic plan

Georgia Tech Earns STARS Silver Rating for Its Campuswide Contributions to Sustainability

admin — Fri, 24 Jan 2025 17:51:41 +0000

Georgia Tech Earns STARS Silver Rating for Its Campuswide Contributions to Sustainability admin Fri, 01/24/2025 - 12:51

Georgia Tech recently achieved a STARS silver rating by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). STARS stands for Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System and is awarded based upon measured success in five key areas of sustainability in higher education – Academics, Engagement, Operations, Planning and Administration, and Innovation and Leadership. The rating system helps benchmark achievements and identify opportunities where faculty, administrators, staff, and students can be effective change agents.

“The STARS report represents the cumulative work of sustainability performance and leadership across Georgia Tech’s academics, research, engagement, and business operations,” said Anne Rogers, project lead and associate director of Campus Sustainability. “Our silver rating is an important milestone as we continue to demonstrate strategic leadership in sustainability and alignment with the Institute’s strategic plan.”

Sustainability is a common theme throughout the strategic plan, which demonstrates a shared commitment to being thoughtful stewards of our resources – social, environmental, and economic. It is one of many ways Georgia Tech will lead by example in how we deliver on our educational and research mission. STARS will help inform and guide decisions on where to invest resources to achieve our sustainability goals.

Georgia Tech’s recent silver rating is the result of a 22-month effort, led by the Office of Campus Sustainability in partnership with Serve-Learn-Sustain, Facilities Analytics and Communications, and Institute Research Planning, to compile more than 1,300 unique information or data inputs about our sustainability-related actions. More than 150 people were engaged across 100 departments, demonstrating how sustainability is truly interwoven throughout Georgia Tech's operations, research, and educational functions.

Summary of results from the STARS report:

Academics

The Academics category includes both curriculum and research offerings. Georgia Tech scored with 89% of academic departments offering courses in sustainability and 73% of departments conducting research related to sustainability.

Engagement

Engagement includes both campus and public outreach. Georgia Tech has a robust student programming portfolio of sustainability groups and numerous activities centered around gardening, farming, urban agriculture, and wilderness programs. These exist alongside opportunities for students to learn life skills through sustainable employment practices, workshops, conferences, speaker series, and cultural arts events. Staff professional development and training also contributes, with such efforts as the Sustainable Facilities Forum produced each year by Facilities employees. The forum highlights innovative projects and practices Georgia Tech uses to maintain its built environment.

Operations

Measuring sustainability within Operations involves energy usage, food and dining, procurement, commuting modes, fleet, waste, and water. Data in these categories is easily trackable and used regularly by the Institute to make operational decisions. Report data includes the following:

12% reduction in total source energy consumption per unit of floor area from a baseline from fiscal year 2010.

41.44% of total annual food and beverage expenditures are on plant-based foods.
62.43% of expenditures are on cleaning and janitorial products that are third-party certified.
29.75% of materials are diverted from the landfill by recycling, composting, donating, or reselling.
25% of campus fleet vehicles are electric.

Planning and Administration

Sustainability within Planning and Administration includes the categories of access/affordability, investment/finance, and work/well-being. Georgia Tech’s graduation rate for low-income students is 84%. Work/Well-being ratings range from employees receiving a living wage to educational resources related to healthy eating, stress relief, and mental health.

Innovation and Leadership

The Innovation and Leadership categories in which Georgia Tech scores high include sustainability standards such as:

Bicycle-friendly campus status.
Availability of a campus food bank.
Green cleaning practices.
Grounds certification.

“The Institute’s strategic plan clearly outlines that Georgia Tech be a leader in sustainability. STARS is one framework to measure and track continuous improvement, and to motivate us to achieve more,” Rogers added.

The STARS silver rating will help define the future actions and resources needed to achieve even higher ratings in the years to come. The goal is to revisit this rating system every two years. To read the full report, click here.

Summary sentence

Georgia Tech recently achieved a STARS silver rating by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).

Summary

Georgia Tech recently achieved a STARS silver rating by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).

Dateline

Fri, 07/02/2021 - 12:00

Contact

Anne Rogers
Associate Director
Campus Sustainability

Keywords

stars

campus sustainability

silver rating

strategic plan

Facilities Management

News room topics

Campus and Community

Earth and Environment

Mercury ID

648523

Source updated

Fri, 01/24/2025 - 12:50

Georgia Tech Moves Up in Free Speech Ranking

admin — Thu, 14 Sep 2023 15:26:31 +0000

Georgia Tech Moves Up in Free Speech Ranking admin Thu, 09/14/2023 - 11:26

Georgia Tech rose to No. 27 in the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE)’s annual 2024 College Free Speech ranking. The Institute was ranked No. 90 last year.

The ranking is based on student responses, of which Georgia Tech had 284 for this year’s ranking. Final rankings are a composite of 13 areas, six of which assess student perceptions of freedom of speech on campus.

Tech also recently received a green light in FIRE’s Spotlight Rankings. The green light indicates that an institution maintains no policies that seriously threaten free speech.

The rise in Tech’s FIRE ranking coincides with an effort to bolster freedom of expression on campus. President Ángel Cabrera addressed this need during his recent Institute Address on Aug. 31.

“We must protect freedom of expression for every member of our community,” he said. “We need to create a space where we are routinely exposed to new and different ideas, where we protect each other’s right to express our views, and where we cherish the practice of listening to one another with curiosity and respect.”

Georgia Tech ranked particularly high in Admin Support, which measures a student’s perception of their college’s support for free speech. Read more about the FIRE ranking methodology.

Summary sentence

Georgia Tech rose to No. 27 in the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE)’s annual 2024 College Free Speech ranking.

Summary

Georgia Tech rose to No. 27 in the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE)’s annual 2024 College Free Speech ranking.

Dateline

Thu, 09/14/2023 - 12:00

Contact

Kristen Bailey

Institute Communications

Keywords

free speech

freedom of expression

strategic plan

News room topics

Campus and Community

Mercury ID

669669

Source updated

Thu, 09/14/2023 - 11:21

Week of Events Highlights Sustainable Development Goals

bwaye3 — Thu, 24 Feb 2022 15:21:04 +0000

Week of Events Highlights Sustainable Development Goals bwaye3 Thu, 02/24/2022 - 10:21

Sustainable Development Goals Action and Awareness Week 2022 is Feb. 28 – March 4. The campus community is invited to participate in a variety of events that increase awareness of and encourage actions that advance the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The SDGs were adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015 as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. They address the world’s most monumental challenges, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, and peace and justice. Some of the objectives are improved industry, innovation, and infrastructure; affordable and clean energy; and sustainable cities and communities. The SDGs appear by name in the Institute’s strategic plan as long-term goals that should guide teaching, research, and operations.

SDG Action and Awareness Week 2022 will begin with an interactive campus discussion, titled Engaging With the SDGs Across Campus, focusing on how the goals are being realized across the Institute and ways to better work together across disciplines and departments to amplify our impact. President Ángel Cabrera will moderate the discussion with participants from the College of Sciences, Serve-Learn-Sustain, Interdisciplinary Research, and Engineers Without Borders.

Other events during the week include a Tech Dining Sustainability Showcase, a panel on Infrastructure and Sustainability, Changing Relationships: You and Your Aging Parents, Toilet Talk With Shan and Shannon, A Healthy Georgia: Exploring the Impact of the Energy Transition on Public Health, the Association for Sustainable Investment Podcast Club Kickoff, and Engaging With the SDGs to Advance Sustainability in Atlanta. View a full listing of the week’s events.

In Fall 2020, a panel discussion and keynote address by Cabrera introduced the Tech community to the 17 goals. The event covered their relevance to the Institute and emphasized how Georgia Tech can lead the region in implementing and advancing these goals.

“If we are committed to improving the human condition, then we should embrace the SDGs to guide our actions as a university,” Cabrera said when introducing the SDGs.

SDG Action and Awareness Week is part of a larger global effort through the University Global Coalition, whose partners are hosting a variety of online events that are open to all.

Summary sentence

The campus community is invited to participate in a variety of events that increase awareness of and encourage actions that advance the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Summary

The campus community is invited to participate in a variety of events that increase awareness of and encourage actions that advance the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Dateline

Thu, 02/24/2022 - 12:00

Contact

Victor Rogers

Institute Communications

Location

Atlanta, GA

Associated importer

Keywords

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG

SDGs

cabrera

strategic plan

News room topics

Campus and Community

Earth and Environment

Science and Technology

Society and Culture

Week of Events Highlights Sustainable Development Goals

bwaye3 — Thu, 24 Feb 2022 15:21:04 +0000

Week of Events Highlights Sustainable Development Goals bwaye3 Thu, 02/24/2022 - 10:21

“If we are committed to improving the human condition, then we should embrace the SDGs to guide our actions as a university,” Cabrera said when introducing the SDGs.

SDG Action and Awareness Week is part of a larger global effort through the University Global Coalition, whose partners are hosting a variety of online events that are open to all.

Summary sentence

The campus community is invited to participate in a variety of events that increase awareness of and encourage actions that advance the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Summary

The campus community is invited to participate in a variety of events that increase awareness of and encourage actions that advance the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Dateline

Thu, 02/24/2022 - 12:00

Contact

Victor Rogers
Institute Communications

Location

Atlanta, GA

Associated importer

Keywords

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG

SDGs

cabrera

strategic plan

School of Biological Sciences

News room topics

Campus and Community

Earth and Environment

Science and Technology

Society and Culture

strategic plan

Georgia Tech Earns STARS Silver Rating for Its Campuswide Contributions to Sustainability

Summary of results from the STARS report:

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Georgia Tech Moves Up in Free Speech Ranking

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Week of Events Highlights Sustainable Development Goals

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Week of Events Highlights Sustainable Development Goals

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