BYU receives gold rating from higher ed sustainability association
Every year, BYU makes 2,000 tons of mulch: grass clippings, wood chips and food scraps that sequester carbon, reduce organic waste and save the university money. It’s an effort that often goes unnoticed, and it’s one of many highlighted in a new report on sustainability at BYU.
Thanks to these and other campus-wide efforts by students and employees to be better stewards of the environment, BYU has been recognized as a STARS Gold Institution by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.
The sustainability report considers BYU’s commitment to sustainability in academics, student and public engagement, operations, planning and administration, as well as its unique approach to earthly stewardship. BYU is one of only 140 institutions in the country to have been awarded a gold rating by AASHE.
“At BYU, sustainability is important to us and an integral part of our faith,” President Shane Reese wrote in BYU’s report. “Through service and leadership, the members of our campus community show love for Jesus Christ by following the prophetic counsel of President Russell M. Nelson to both ‘care for the earth....and care for one another.’ Increasingly, this means conserving water, investing in cleaner air, and reducing waste; priorities shared by our sponsoring institution, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”
The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System is a transparent, self-reporting framework used by universities worldwide. Through AASHE, institutions can earn a bronze, silver, gold or platinum rating, or recognition as a reporting institution. After gathering data from hundreds of employees and dozens of departments, BYU submitted its first STARS report and earned the gold rating just as the 2024-25 academic year began.
Building on decades of stewardship, BYU appointed a university sustainability officer, hired a sustainability manager, and created the Sustainability Office in recent years. It has also appointed a vice president of belonging and created the Office of Belonging as steps toward fulfilling its responsibility to care for the earth and one another.
Some other highlights from BYU’s new sustainability assessment:
- BYU’s net emissions from combustion, university fleets and purchased electricity fell 26% between 2015 and 2022.
- BYU faculty have developed roughly 400 sustainability-related courses, such as Sustainable Reporting for Accountants, Sustainable Infrastructure, and Climate Change: Science & Solutions. Sustainability-related courses represent 6% of BYU’s course catalog.
- Of employees who conduct research, some 200 were identified as engaged in sustainability research. They represent about 70% of academic departments.
- When BYU eliminated trays at dining locations, waste per person fell by 29%. At the Cannon Center, smaller portions are served to encourage diners to eat what they take.
- From 2005 to 2022, BYU’s potable water use per weighted campus user fell by 53%.
- In 2022, nearly half of BYU’s waste—48%—was diverted from the landfill or incinerator through recycling, composting, donating, or reselling.
In the realm of social and economic sustainability, BYU also offers affordable tuition, generously subsidized by the Church, as well as scholarships and work-study opportunities that cultivate a culture of debt avoidance and fiscal responsibility. Some 80% of students graduate without student loan debt and a record 16,000 students held campus jobs in Winter 2024.
BYU sustainability officer Carr Krueger notes that while the university is pleased with its rating, the data matters more.
“Our primary objective was to gather data for informed decision making and sustainability enhancements, now and in the future,” he said. To that end, the Sustainable BYU 2030 Plan will be released this fall, timed to coincide with a BYU academic conference on interdisciplinary research that benefits the world.
Krueger recognized the contributions of many employees and students who have worked publicly and privately to advance sustainability across the university, rooted in gospel principles of earthly stewardship and love. More information about sustainability at BYU can be found at sustainability.byu.edu.
