| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 66.21 |
| Liaison | Stephen Ellis |
| Submission Date | June 9, 2023 |
Boston University
EN-5: Outreach Campaign
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Lisa
Tornatore Sustainability Director BU Sustainability |
Has the institution held a sustainability-related outreach campaign during the previous three years that was directed at students and yielded measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability?:
Has the institution held a sustainability-related outreach campaign during the previous three years that was directed at employees and yielded measurable, positive results in advancing sustainability?:
Name of the campaign:
A brief description of the campaign:
Boston University partnered with JouleBug to develop its own branded sustainability mobile application. The app is a way to log your sustainable habits, earn points for what you do, compete in challenges, and share what you're doing with others like you would with social media. Using the app as a platform, we have engaged community members in an annual average of 6 distinct challenges for which sustainable actions are incentivized through points, prizes, and a leaderboard. Challenges included the Sustainability Festival Challenge where participants would get a mug/water bottle if they downloaded the app, a zero waste challenge in Warren Towers (residence hall with primarily first-year students), and challenges with student clubs like Alpha Phi Omega (community service fraternity), the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) and the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE).
http://www.bu.edu/sustainability/howto/track-your-actions-app/
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign:
From August 1, 2016 to June 30, 2022 we have engaged 12,000 users through competitions and daily usage of the app. Through this effort, it is estimated that we have avoided 5,070,632.03 lbs (2,300,000 kg) of CO2 emissions; diverted 348,991.76 lbs (158,300 kg) of waste, and saved 10,461,213.21 gallons (39,600,000 liters) of water.
From July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022 we had 1,466 active users. Collectively, it is estimated that we avoided 250,445.13 lbs (113,600 kg) of CO₂ emissions, diverted 22,487.151 lbs (10,200 kg) of waste, and saved 634,012.93 gallons (2,400,000 liters) of water.
Name of the campaign (2nd campaign):
A brief description of the campaign (2nd campaign):
In March 2011, Boston University launched its Green Office Certification program. Modeled from the US Green Building Council’s LEED green building rating program, BU’s system rates individuals based on daily office practices involving energy conservation, waste reduction, recycling, and communications. Individuals can achieve a Certified, Silver, or Gold rating depending on how many points are earned. Once certified, participants receive a badge that can be displayed on their office name plaques. The Green Office Certification program is a great way for us to teach people about the small actions they can take within their office to be more sustainable.
In addition to individual certifications, the Green Department Certification program encourages individuals to come together to evaluate their impact and set goals for sustainable action in the workplace. Based on a point total earned through the certification process, departments can receive certified, silver, gold, or platinum level status, and these efforts are recognized with a bamboo plaque for the office. Both of these programs were implemented in order to raise awareness, educate, and provide measurable guidelines for greening the office environment and supporting the University's Climate Action Plan.
https://www.bu.edu/sustainability/how-to/green-office-certification/
A brief description of the measured positive impact(s) of the campaign (2nd campaign):
Since 2011, we've directly engaged over 1,884 individuals across 12 departments.
A brief description of other sustainability-related outreach campaigns:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
This represents FY2022 BU Metrics.
This represents FY2022 BU Metrics.
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.