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SIT Graduate Institute Signs University Presidents Climate Commitment

SIT Joins Growing List of Higher Education Leaders to Fight Global Warming

BRATTLEBORO, VT (June 02, 2008) -- On May 13, World Learning President and CEO Carol Bellamy signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment on behalf of the SIT Graduate Institute. The Presidents Climate Commitment is a national effort to make campuses more sustainable and address global warming by garnering institutional commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on campus. The effort, which is modeled after the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, has garnered over 500 signatories to date.

Carol Bellamy signed the Presidents Climate Commitment at a "Collaborating for the Climate" celebration, meant to honor the collaboration of SIT students, staff, administration, and Brattleboro community partners who have come together to support this effort.

"Climate change is, without question, one of the defining global issues of our times," said Bellamy. "Like HIV/AIDS, poverty, hunger, and warfare it requires a global mindset and global partnerships to solve. We are committed to being part of that solution."

The signing of this document commits the SIT Graduate Institute and its Brattleboro campus to undertaking three major steps, and a defined set of sub-steps, toward climate neutrality:

1. Initiate the development of a comprehensive plan to achieve climate neutrality as soon as possible.
2. Initiate two or more of a set of defined actions to reduce greenhouse gases while the more comprehensive plan is being developed.
3. Make the action plan, inventory, and periodic progress reports publicly available by providing them to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) for posting and dissemination.

Through an Environmental Working Group made up of SIT students, staff, and administrators, SIT has already taken a number of steps over the past year to reduce its carbon footprint and institute more environment-friendly policies, including:

• Conducting a greenhouse gas inventory to gauge campus emissions.
• Replacing 95 percent of all light bulbs with compact florescent bulbs.
• Changing all campus toilets to the low flush models 1.6 gallon units, a twenty thousand dollar investment for the purpose of saving water.
• Subsidizing the local Beeline bus service to the campus to cut down on the consumption of gasoline for commuting.
• Switching to all green cleaning products on campus.
• Expanding composting and recycling programs leading to a dramatic reduction in non-recycled waste.

"Colleges and universities must lead the effort to reverse global warming for the health and well-being of current and future generations," said Michael Crow, President of Arizona State University and a founding member of the ACUPCC Leadership Circle. "On behalf of all the signatories, I welcome Carol Bellamy and SIT to the commitment, we are honored and pleased to have them join us."