Cornell University is ranked No. 7 in the country in the 2017 Princeton Review’s Guide to Top 50 Green Schools and Guide to 375 Green Colleges.
Cornell is the only Ivy League school in the top 20, and is one of two New York state universities recognized in the top 15 schools.
The Princeton Review chose the schools for this seventh annual edition of its "green guide" based on data from the company's 2016-17 survey of four-year colleges concerning the schools' commitments to sustainability and measures the following as part of its green rating: 1) whether students have a campus quality of life that is both healthy and sustainable, 2) how well a school is preparing students for employment in the clean-energy economy of the 21st century as well as for citizenship in a world now defined by environmental concerns and opportunities and 3) how environmentally responsible a school's policies are.
Cornell achieved a 99/99 rating, recognized for having a public greenhouse gas inventory and commitment to carbon neutrality by 2035, a formal sustainability committee (the President’s Sustainable Campus Committee), and other campus programs including a condensed work week option for employees, bike and car sharing, and support for dedicated sustainability staff.
Details can be found under the Campus Life tab of Cornell’s Princeton Review public page. Princeton Review also uses data from Cornell’s comprehensive AASHE STARS Report. Cornell has achieved a Gold Rating in STARS for 6 years in a row.
The top 15 schools on The Princeton Review's 2017 “Top 50 Green Colleges” list include:
1. College of the Atlantic (ME)
2. State University of New York—College of Environmental Science and Forestry
3. Colby College (ME)
4. University of Vermont
5. Dickinson College (PA)
6. St. Mary's College of Maryland
7. Cornell University (NY)
8. Colorado State University
9. Stanford University (CA)
10. University of California, Davis
11. Saint Michael's College (VT)
12. Santa Clara University (CA)
13. University of California, Santa Cruz
14. Lewis & Clark College (OR)
15. Green Mountain College (VT)
The article originally appeared in Sustainable Campus.
