Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 66.74
Liaison Jennifer Lamy
Submission Date March 30, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Emerson College
EN-3: Student Life

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.00 / 2.00 Amy Elvidge
Sustainability Coordinator
Campus Services
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution have one or more active student groups focused on sustainability?:
Yes

A brief description of active student groups focused on sustainability:

Earth Emerson is the student-run environmental action organization at Emerson College committed to thinking globally about the environment and acting locally to effect change at our college and in our community.


The website URL where information about the student groups is available (optional):
Does the institution have gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects where students are able to gain experience in organic agriculture and sustainable food systems?:
Yes

A brief description of the gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects:

Emerson contracts Red's Best Seafood for 100% of our seafood. Red's Best is a sustainable seafood provider who relies on local fishermen. Each semester the dining hall features a promotional table with a fisherman from Red's Best and related materials. Every Friday the dining hall menu features Red's Best products.


The website URL where information about the gardens, farms or agriculture projects is available (optional):
Does the institution have student-run enterprises that include sustainability as part of their mission statements or stated purposes (e.g. cafés through which students gain sustainable business skills)?:
No

A brief description of the student-run enterprises:
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The website URL where information about the student-run enterprises is available (optional):
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Does the institution have sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives through which students can develop socially, environmentally and fiscally responsible investment and financial skills?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives:

Emerson College has a Green Fund that is open to donors and student class gifts. Donors and students have the ability to request that specific objects or initiatives receive their funds. Fund money is used by request from student and staff environmental projects.

For website: choose "Student Organizations" then "Emerson College Green Fund"


The website URL where information about the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives is available (optional):
Does the institution have conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience?:
Yes

A brief description of the conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability:

In coordination with the sustainability coordinator, the Bright Lights film screenings feature environmental films.
The Vegan Food Fest features sustainability demos and plant-based diet speakers.
Emerson College will be the New England satellite host for the 2017 Student Leader Sustainability Symposium.


The website URL where information about the conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability is available (optional):
Does the institution have cultural arts events, installations or performances related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience?:
Yes

A brief description of the cultural arts events, installations or performances related to sustainability:

The Green Gala is a student run event featuring sustainable performing art and media. The event is hosted in one of our theaters during April and there are two $1000 prizes for the winning film and performance.

The Up-Cycled Art & Fashion Showcase is an event that promotes creative reuse of items that have already served their purpose. A curated staff and faculty panel judge the student work. There is a reception, runway and cash prizes for winning entries.


The website URL where information about the cultural arts events, installations or performances is available (optional):
Does the institution have wilderness or outdoors programs (e.g. that organize hiking, backpacking, kayaking, or other outings for students) that follow Leave No Trace principles?:
Yes

A brief description of the wilderness or outdoors programs that follow Leave No Trace principles:

Earth Emerson organizes outdoor trips each semester honoring the Leave No Trace principles.
In addition, the Living Green floor hosts a volunteer farm field trip to collect leftover harvest for the local food bank.


The website URL where information about the wilderness or outdoors programs is available (optional):
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Does the institution have sustainability-related themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences (e.g. choosing a sustainability-related book for common reading)?:
No

A brief description of the sustainability-related themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences:
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The website URL where information about the sustainability-related themes is available (optional):
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Does the institution have programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills?:
Yes

A brief description of the programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills:

The Green Room Certification Program and the Green Apartment Checklist help students adopt a more environmentally conscious lifestyle.

Green Room Certification is awarded to students who meet criteria outlined in the Green Room Certification Program Checklist. Having a Green Room means choosing to reduce the amount of energy and water students use, the amount of waste they generate, and the size of their carbon footprint. The program is promoted as a way to live a healthy, creative, cost-effective, friendly and fun four years at Emerson.
Certified students receive a certificate celebrating their achievement to display on their door once certified; Gain entry into the biannual Green Room Certification Program Raffle to win $50 to a sustainability-related store of your choice (Patagonia, Fjallraven, LL Bean, Whole Foods, Apple); and earn a Chipotle party for their residence hall floor when half or more of the rooms on their floor have been certified.

The Green Apartment Checklist provides students with tools for assessing sustainability metrics related to energy, transit, food, water and purchasing for potential apartments.


The website URL where information about the sustainable life skills programs is available (optional):
Does the institution offer sustainability-focused student employment opportunities?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability-focused student employment opportunities offered by the institution:

Emerson Eco-Reps promote campus sustainability through peer-to-peer education, outreach and awareness. Eco-Reps meet weekly with Emerson’s sustainability coordinator to discuss campus sustainability issues and goals, plan activities and events for campus housing, and share challenges, solutions, and successes towards raising awareness.

Eco-Reps are engaged in campus affairs to better understand how individual behaviors affect the local environment and how these behaviors collectively create a significant global impact. Eco-Reps build foundational knowledge surrounding sustainability issues and discuss how to best raise awareness of these issues among their peers. While increasing overall campus awareness of environmental, economic and social justice issues, the Eco-Rep program advances environmentally responsible campus initiatives such as energy efficiency, recycling and composting, sustainable food, and efficient resource use. Through education and activities, Emerson Eco-Reps increase their own environmental literacy in order to become effective sustainability leaders on campus.

The work of this program is based on the value of individual, day-to-day change in improving our relationship with the environment. Currently, the Eco-Rep program includes all of Emerson’s residential halls and campus populations and is recognized as an influential student group on campus. The Eco-Rep program is open to all undergraduate students interested in sustainability, leadership, and campus affairs.

There are eight Eco-Reps positions that represent the Emerson College community—Piano Row (2), the Little Building (2), the Colonial Building, the Paramount Center, off-campus students and graduate students.


The website URL where information about the student employment opportunities is available:
Does the institution have graduation pledges through which students pledge to consider social and environmental responsibility in future job and other decisions?:
No

A brief description of the graduation pledges:
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The website URL where information about the graduation pledges is available (optional):
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Does the institution have other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives?:
Yes

A brief description of the other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives:

Emerson College’s Alternative Spring Break (ASB) Program began as a student leadership initiative in 1998 when six students and two residence directors spent spring break working with the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation sowing wildflower seed beds, installing fencing and performing beach clean-up in Westmoreland State Park in Montross, Virginia. Over the years of ASB at Emerson, this leadership program has blossomed into a popular initiative and a hallmark program of the Office of Academic Engagement and Community Action (AECA).

Across the year, advisors guide student teams as they plan weeklong excursions and raise funds to help defray costs of the program. The program offers site-specific experiences focused on a particular impact issue, depending on a combination of current events and community needs. The AECA chooses at least one national location for service and also operates a Boston ASB through which a cohort of faculty, staff, students, and alumni serve local nonprofits during business hours over spring break. The Boston experience offers opportunities for service to those who may not be able to commit to a week away while emphasizing how easy it is to take ownership of and respond to nearby needs for as much time as they have during the week. All ASBers return to campus and produce a showcase through which they share compelling stories and new consciousness with the Emerson community.

ASB helps Emersonians learn about and from communities as they learn about their own potential to contribute skills, knowledge, and energy to community work. The program emphasizes the school’s core values of moral courage, celebration of diversity of thought and people, and commitment to ethical engagement, collaboration, and meaningful interaction with local and national communities. All of these opportunities let Emersonians practice flexibility while adapting to the unfamiliar—a skill necessary for work and life in the ever-changing 21st century.

Many participants name ASB as one of the most transformative experiences not only of their Emerson careers, but also of their lives.


The website URL where information about other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives is available (optional):
Estimated percentage of students (full-time and part-time) that participate annually in sustainability-focused co-curricular education and outreach programs (0-100):
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.