What Are Colleges Doing to Go Green?

Solar Power Panels

• Colleges are increasingly installing solar panels that harness energy from the sun. They support daytime energy use without emitting harmful carbon dioxide. For example, Rutgers University in New Jersey purchased 7,600 solar panels from a Chinese solar panel maker to convert solar energy into electricity. The solar energy is transferred to a grid that stores the energy for later use, making sunlight a renewable energy source as well.

  Other colleges with solar panels mounted to the ground and various department rooftops include California State University-San Bernardino, the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Delaware.

Recycling Competition

• A small competition between two colleges in Ohio developed into a 93-college competition in 2011. All competition entrants are committed to recycling trash generated over the course of a school year. In 2011, 91 million pounds of material was composted or recycled. Participating schools included California State University-San Marcos, Rutgers University and Union College in New Jersey, Antioch University of Washington, the Rhode Island School of Design, Brandeis University in Massachusetts and Florida's Valencia Community College and Stetson University.

Wind Turbine Power

• Similar to solar power, harnessed mechanical wind energy replaces the need for gas and coal fuel to generate electricity. Laramie County Community College in Wyoming estimates that if the United States used wind energy to generate 20 percent of the country's electricity by 2030, then natural gas consumers could save from $86 billion to $214 billion nationwide.

  Colleges that use wind turbines to harvest the wind include LCCC, Redstone College in Denver and Minnesota's St. Olaf College and Carleton College.

Green Curricula

• Redstone College and Laramie County Community College have programs that train wind turbine technicians to operate and maintain the functionality of wind turbines.

  Other schools are incorporating green education into their programs in different ways. Rhode Island's New England Institute of Technology has incorporated green classes, including photovoltaic, hydro and solar power; geothermal, gray water and technology; rainwater harvesting; and alternative fuel vehicles.

  New Jersey's Essex County College offers certification in green building management. Students learn how to maintain and manage green facilities and manage energy for commercial and residential buildings.