#green smith

One factor that was really important to me in my college process was how environmentally friendly a school was/is trying to be. A pretty well-researched gauge for that is the Sierra Club Cool Schools ranking, a marker that is updated anually for those schools that participate. In case you don’t know, the Sierra Club is a California-based environmental organization that is focused on environmental advocacy and conservation.

A few days ago, the Sierra Club’s 2017 Cool Schools Ranking came out and this year, Smith is ranked #67 of 227! 

(other consortium schools - UMass: #58, Hampshire: #105, Mount Holyoke: #149. Amherst doesn’t seem to have participated.)

Every year this changes (I believe it was at maybe #60 last year?), depending on the school’s own efforts as well as advancements made by other schools. The ranking factors in things like the efficiency of water and electricity usage, architecture, carbon neutrality and the number of sustainability and environmental science-related programs, classes, and courses of study, among other things.

Smith is aiming to be carbon neutral by 2030, and has a student group called Green Team, as well as the Divest Smith club. There are two concentrations offered, sustainable food and climate change, available, as well as the environmental science and policy major/minor. Smith also has the MacLeish Field Station and the Bechtel Environmental Classroom, which is a certified Living Building (more on that here) and used for studying the natural world and environmental issues. Additionally, the currently-under-renovation Nielson Library is being designed with environmentally-friendly ideals in mind, and adheres to the vision that Frederick Law Olmsted laid out when planning the Smith botanic gardens.

It’s important to note that no school receives a perfect score, even those that are considered forerunners in carbon neutrality and sustainability. There is always room for improvement, particularly at places like Smith that aren’t in the top few! I can’t wait to get involved in these issues on campus over the next four years!