Sustainability at Bryant University

At Bryant, not only are our top-ranked business programs aligned to the needs of industry and society, but our university is also making strides towards becoming more environmentally friendly! Our campus-wide initiatives focus overall on planning and policy, education and action, and operations. These ideas integrate strategies in leadership and decision making with an efficient use of resources while building an understanding, deepening knowledge, and inspiring careers.

We try to apply these subject matters across ten major areas, including:

• Academics and research
• Energy
• Buildings and land use
• Health and wellness
• Food and dining
• Supply chain management
• Transportation
• Waste reduction and recycling
• Water
• Community engagement 

The Sustainability Committee is headed by Dr. Gaytha Langlois, Ph.D., of the Department of Science and Technology, and guides the process and campus engagement, as well as holds the Bryant community accountable. It is facilitated by EcoMotionInc., a company with more than 30 years of experience developing sustainability initiatives for campuses, cities and corporate communities.

We have several organizations on campus that are involved in maintaining our environmental awareness, including Bryant Enactus' Green Team, the Bryant Environmental Society, the Scientific Community Initiative (a student club that promotes sustainability on and off campus through events, outreach, and collaborations), and the Community Activism and Leadership Organization (CALO) that focuses on directing student effort toward social good. The Bryant University Green Initiative primarily focuses on finding sustainable solutions to environmental challenges and opportunities on campus and in the surrounding community. Additionally, students and faculty collaborate in ongoing academic and research opportunities in immersive programs, outdoor field studies, and internships.

Bryant currently offers 13 courses with a direct focus on sustainability, and 43 courses that are related to sustainability. Campus energy costs are approximately 2% of the entire University budget. Bryant continues to explore opportunities for energy conservation and green buildings as we are currently considering green roofs on campus and means to better measure energy and water consumption. We have taken steps towards sustainability through reaching out to students to make small changes in their daily lives that can lead to major results, such as recycling, saving water, promoting non-wasteful behavior, and offering programs for mental and physical health. We have recently installed water filtration refill systems that allow students to fill water bottles with purified water in order to decrease plastic waste! We encourage students to practice eco-friendly transportation, like taking the RIPTA, using a ZipCar, and carpooling. Bryant strives to coordinate projects with the local community, support community service, increase social media activity and webpage viewership, and host events in order to exchange best practices with other organizations. The University is also considering holding a Farmers Market on campus for students to purchase local goods!

Our Sustainability Plan 2014 explains in further detail the University actions towards preservation of resources and sustainability. 

 

Keep up to date on the latest sustainability news and events on social media:

Twitter: @SustainBryant

Facebook: Sustainability at Bryant

Email: sustainability@bryant.edu 

To learn more, visit: http://www.bryant.edu/about/sustainability/

Author: Bridgette Kosek

Follow me on Twitter! @BridgetteKosek

Stay up to date with all of our activities by following @BryantMKT421 on Twitter!