{"id":4244,"date":"2022-03-08T09:29:47","date_gmt":"2022-03-08T14:29:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/sustainability\/?page_id=4244"},"modified":"2025-06-26T12:10:42","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T16:10:42","slug":"sustainability-roadmap","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/sustainability\/sustainability-roadmap\/","title":{"rendered":"Sustainability Roadmap"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The Bates College Sustainability Roadmap<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Developed by Bates\u2019 Committee on Environmental Responsibility<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Download the Sustainability Roadmap PDF<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Download the report<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

President’s Letter<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Dear Members of the Bates Community,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am delighted to share with you the Bates College Sustainability Roadmap, developed by Bates\u2019 Committee on Environmental Responsibility \u2014 a team of people from across the college, including students, faculty, and staff. This plan is meant to guide Bates\u2019 sustainability efforts from the present moment through 2030, with the goal of achieving a net positive impact for our community and, by extension, for the wider world. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Photograph by Josh Turner ’21<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The term for this goal is \u201cClimate Positive.\u201d It is the next step after becoming carbon neutral \u2014 a status Bates was one of only seven colleges in the U.S. to achieve by 2019. In the years leading up to 2019, Bates had set out to do as little environmental harm as possible. This included making choices to: use renewable heating fuels, develop the infrastructure to support electric vehicles, reconsider how we retrofit our older buildings and approach new construction, and shift our culture with regard to recycling and reducing food waste. These efforts not only reduced our carbon footprint but also saved the college money, allowing us to redirect resources to higher purposes. Over the past five years, the energy efficiency initiatives enacted by Bates have reduced our annual utility costs by approximately $1 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the same period, the need to take action to slow and reverse climate change has become ever more urgent. The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report<\/a>, released at the end of February, assesses the damage to the planet and the human suffering, particularly among already vulnerable communities, that has already occurred because of human-induced climate change. The IPCC had previously given the world just a decade to reduce its global greenhouse gas emissions by a staggering 50 percent or face a future where we are unable to keep global warming in check. This new report illuminates how much our world has already changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bates will now move from minimizing our negative effects on the environment to creating a net positive impact. We would rather seek to do \u201cmore good\u201d than settle for being \u201cless bad.\u201d  This new roadmap is our path forward. It presents both large aspirational goals and practical next steps, and it will engage the entire community in helping us make progress, both in infrastructure and behavioral changes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We all owe a debt of gratitude to Tom Twist, our sustainability manager, and the Committee on Environmental Responsibility for their tireless and effective efforts to develop this plan, which has been endorsed by the Board of Trustees. The CER has done a deeply impressive job of engaging the entire Bates community in the process, leveraging the commitment and creativity of individuals across the college. It is a powerful example of the impact that a motivated and mission-driven set of diverse stakeholders can have, and it offers a compelling model for the college as it works to address other institutional challenges. It also reinforces our mission to prepare our students to be the leaders of the next generation, bringing the best learning to bear on the most important challenges facing our planet and worlds we share.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I encourage you to spend some time familiarizing yourself with this roadmap and thinking about the ways that you can contribute to the college\u2019s continued progress on sustainability. I will be doing the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All my best,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clayton<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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These efforts are a win-win for Bates: The college has reduced waste and achieved carbon neutrality in a manner that makes sound financial sense.<\/p>\nPresident Clayton Spencer<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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Background<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In May of 2019, Bates College became a carbon neutral campus \u2014 a goal which has been achieved by only a handful of schools nationwide. Envisioned by our Bates community in 2010, when we created our first Climate Action Plan, our goal was to reach carbon neutrality by 2020. This was an ambitious goal at the time, as we had only a rough outline of a plan to get us there and it would represent significant expenditures for the college. Yet through consistent attention from leadership, and advocacy from students, faculty, and staff, we were able to make significant headway, and met our goal one year early. Today, Bates ranks amongst the top 10 greenest schools in the nation. We have been able to accomplish these milestones by prioritizing tangible on-campus actions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Carbon Neutral Campus. As a result of ongoing work on three sustainability fronts \u2014 reducing energy consumption through efficiency measures, strengthening the culture of recycling and sustainability on campus, and switching to renewable energy sources \u2014 Bates achieved carbon neutrality in 2019 (a year ahead of its goal).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Improving Energy Efficiency<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Bates College is located in Maine, which experiences cold, snowy winters, and many of our buildings date back to the post-Civil War era. Historically this has meant that the college expended large amounts of energy to keep its buildings at a comfortable temperature. Our collective work to insulate buildings, improve heat capture from ventilation, and transition to LED lighting has helped reduce the carbon footprint of our campus roughly 30%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Transitioning to Renewable Energy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In 2016, Bates College began to transition its central heating plant away from fossil fuels, and towards a renewable, biomass-based liquid fuel. In 2005, we began to purchase green power. Today 100 percent of our electricity is generated from green sources. In addition, we are in the process of working to build a local solar array which will represent 75% of our electricity usage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Empowering Sustainability Culture<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Bates College students are intimately involved in every aspect of our sustainability initiatives: they crunch numbers for project financing and carbon footprint calculations, they help write grants for electric vehicle charging stations, and they themselves install solar panels on our buildings. We believe by sharing information surrounding sustainability, not only will the hoped-for outcomes be more thoughtful and nuanced, but a greater percentage of our community will feel responsible for our collective environmental welfare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why We Care<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\u201cRenewable energy is a passion of mine,\u201d said Brent Feldman \u201917 as he installed a solar photovoltaic array a few years ago at the Bates Coastal Center, aka Shortridge, in Phippsburg. The Shortridge rooftop array was Bates\u2019 first institutional PV installation. Bates recently entered into a five megawatt solar project that will represent 75% of the college\u2019s current electricity use and plans to target more solar opportunities on campus. (Tom Twist\/Bates College)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

At Bates, our mission statement speaks of a commitment to responsible stewardship of the wider world. We believe that we have a moral imperative to have a net positive impact in this arena and that we can and should do so through our academics, community, and our environmental footprint. At Bates, every individual has a role to play in making our community more sustainable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report gives the world just a decade to reduce its global greenhouse gas emissions by a staggering 50% or face a future where we are unable to keep global warming in check. We are already seeing the effects of unchecked climate change in the form of increased drought, dangerous heat waves, forest fires, heightened severity of hurricanes, sea level rise, political destabilization from climate refugees, and the beginnings of ecosystem collapse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the ethical imperative to become more environmentally benign, Bates and schools around the country are also getting strong business signals to become more sustainable. A recent Princeton Review<\/em> survey found that 78% of incoming students consider an institution\u2019s level of commitment to sustainability as a factor in making their college decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From an admissions perspective, the upside to an ambitious climate commitment is enormous. At Bates, almost 75% of our revenue comes from tuition, and so maintaining the size and interest of the applicant pool is vital to our future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A strong sustainability plan also helps connect the college to engaged alumni, and presents multiple avenues for pairing current students with alumni- managed businesses, increasing their career opportunities. The UN Council on Climate Change estimates that by 2030, the sustainability sector will grow to a $9 trillion annual industry worldwide. Alumni that feel well and wisely supported in such a burgeoning field will be more likely to stay connected to Bates in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A thoughtful sustainability plan can create savings for any business or institution. Over the past five years, the energy efficiency initiatives enacted by the college have reduced our annual utility costs by approximately 1 million dollars. We recognize that future variables could decrease those savings, but the energy investments we\u2019ve made are already paying for themselves. There can also be opportunities for novel revenue streams. Bates is partnering on a ground-mounted solar array project that is expected to generate enough electricity to represent 75 percent of the college\u2019s total power use, opening up opportunities not only for future savings, but revenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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the new solar array will represent three-quarters of our total power use<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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\"$2,000\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

the maximum grant for Green Innovation projects<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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\"$1M\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

reduction in utility costs each year<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Green Innovation Grants<\/h6>\n\n\n\n
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The Green Innovation Grant program encourages Bates folks to become active stakeholders in advancing sustainability at the college. It does so by awarding microgrants to students, staff, and faculty for projects that make Bates more environmentally sustainable \u2014 often in surprising ways, like Henri Emmet \u201921\u2019s $240 grant to raise larvae of the beetle species Zophobas morio<\/em>, which not only eat styrofoam but are nourished by it and reduce it to harmless organic matter.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

Recommended Initiatives<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Having hit our goal of becoming carbon neutral, we believe Bates should not break stride in its efforts toward greater sustainability. Carbon neutrality was an extremely important milestone to reach. It represents an effort for the college to cause as little environmental harm as possible \u2014 in short, to be \u201cthe least bad\u201d that we can be. We believe the next logical step is to move from minimizing our negative effects to moving toward having a net positive impact. It is not enough to settle for \u201cless bad\u201d when we can seek to be \u201cmore good.\u201d Bates College is already having a net positive impact in a whole host of fields, from student life, to academics, to our broader community. This aspiration would bring our environmental footprint in line with our overall mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One term for a net positive relationship with the planet is Climate Positive. It refers specifically to taking in more greenhouse gases than an individual, business or institution produces. But it points to a much broader mindset of taking responsibility not just for our corner of the world, but for others as well. Climate Positive means being restorative for our climate, our ecosystems, and our people. Though this is a lofty aspiration, we have compiled a number of recommended initiatives and approaches which are practical, grounded, and will move the college towards our goal in a way that is consistent with our staffing and resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These initiatives fall within five major areas:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Energy and Climate:<\/strong>
Combine very low energy-use buildings with renewable energy sources to become Climate Positive by 2030.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Academics:<\/strong>
Educate a new generation of sustainability leaders by providing a combination of deep understanding of the environmental issues facing our time, as well as tools with which to seek solutions to our current challenges.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Operations:<\/strong>
Fully integrate sustainability practices into college operations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Culture:<\/strong>
We aim to continue and expand upon the dynamic of an engaged community by institutionalizing the ethos that anyone who wants to learn about sustainability should feel completely encouraged and welcome within our community.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Governance and Tracking Progress<\/strong>:<\/strong>
Create robust governance structures that ensure integration of sustainability practices across campus.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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\"Round<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Energy and Climate<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Combine very low energy-use buildings with renewable energy sources to become Climate Positive by 2030.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buildings<\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Create buildings that improve the overall quality of life. Increase the energy efficiency of our built infrastructure, including adopting Energy Use Intensity targets (how much energy a building uses per square foot), and updating our standards for all new construction and renovation projects. Avoid materials that contribute to human illness or exacerbate climate change.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

New Buildings<\/h4>\n\n\n
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Bonney Science Center opened in 2021. All renovations and new construction projects have a high level of efficiency with a focus on energy performance. (Phyllis Graber Jensen\/Bates College)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n