Ball State University

College Sustainability Report Card 2010

President Gora was a founding member of the Leadership Circle of the ACUPCC and signed the Presidents Climate Commitment in December 2006. The university has mandated that all administrative units across campus develop unit-level sustainability plans. The Council on the Environment leads sustainability initiatives and comprises faculty, staff, students, and community representatives.

The university has completed a carbon emissions inventory and has committed to a 50 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions within the next five to seven years. The reduction will be achieved by installing a campus-wide geothermal heating and cooling system. Ball State is continually replacing motors with variable-speed drives and replacing or retrofitting air handling systems with more efficient units.

Two of Ball State’s ten dining locations are trayless. Thirty percent of food is from local sources, and dining services offers fair trade coffee and chocolate. Freshmen are provided with a free reusable shopping bag, and vendors offer discounts to patrons who bring a reusable beverage container. The university composts coffee grounds and donates leftover food to a food bank.

The university requires LEED Silver certification for all new construction and renovations. Two campus buildings are LEED Silver-certified, and the school will seek LEED-EB certification for the renovation of its student center.

Student groups include Students for a Sustainable Campus, USGBC Emerging Green Builders, and the Natural Resources Club. Office-based sustainability internships are also available. During new-student orientation, housing and dining staff share information with parents and students about the in-hall recycling program and about sustainability efforts in the dining halls.

The majority of the Ball State fleet is either hybrid or E85- or biodiesel-fueled. The university also owns an electric car and 25 hybrid vehicles, of which 19 are passenger cars and 6 are buses. A campus shuttle provides transportation around campus, and faculty, staff, and students can ride on the local transit system for free.

The university makes a list of all holdings available only to trustees and senior administrators. A list of votes cast on proxy resolutions on a company-specific level, including the number of shares, is available only to trustees and senior administrators.

The university aims to optimize investment return and is currently invested in renewable energy and community development funds in the areas of health care, technology, and housing.

The university asks that its investment managers handle the details of proxy voting.