24 CONNECTICUT GREEN GUIDE • FALL 2016 www.CTGreenGuide.com
ECSU promotes
clean tech, firms up
waste collection
E
astern Connecticut State University spent 2015 urg-
ing employees and students alike to be more green.
The efforts of Windham-based ECSU's Green
Campus Committee included encouraging employees
to install solar panels on their homes, a showcase event
for electric vehicles and the installation of two public
charging stations, and increasing recycling of discarded
items during dorm move-outs.
ECSU worked with the Connecticut Green Bank to
promote the SolarizeU program. More than 40 employ-
ees received price quotes to install solar panels on their
homes. Six followed through.
The university also performed regular audits of dis-
carded dormitory items, analyzing how it might reduce
the number of full dumpsters contributing to the waste
stream. The effort led to the collection of 1,256 items
with a total value of nearly $4,200, which the school
donated to local charities. It also saved approximately
$30,000 by enabling less frequent dumpster pickups.
Another way ECSU promoted environmental ideals
in 2015 was its second annual campus sustainability
conference, which drew more than 130 attendees in
April. Six months later, the school hosted a campus
sustainability week, with events featuring green yoga
and community gardens.
In November, ECSU's president signed the White House's
American Campuses Act on Climate Pledge, which recom-
mitted the school to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
Eastern Connecticut State University
PROJECT ELEMENTS: Facility-wide; energy & climate
change; material management
START DATE: Jan. 2015
COMPLETION DATE: Dec. 2015
ECSU President
Elsa Nunez
talking at a
kickoff meeting
for SolarizeU,
which encouraged
employees to put
solar panels on
their homes.
PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED
CATEGORY: Universities
GreenCircle Sustainability Awards 2016
