Explore, Enjoy and Protect the Planet
August 20, 2009
Contact: Orli Cotel, (415) 977-5627,
orli.cotel@sierraclub.org
Sierra Magazine Names America’s Top 20 “Coolest” Schools
Sierra magazine has named the nation’s top 20 “coolest” schools for their efforts to stop global warming and operate sustainably. From Harvard’s 17 LEED-certified buildings to Penn’s biodiesel recyclers, the magazine’s September/October cover story spotlights the schools that are making a true impact for the planet, and marks Sierra’s third annual listing of America’s greenest universities and colleges. The complete scorecard is available online at www.sierraclub.org/coolschools.
“We're thrilled to see these schools making a real commitment to greening their campuses,” said Carl Pope, the Sierra Club’s executive director. “The next generation of students cares deeply about stopping global warming, and schools that take the initiative to become environmentally responsible are doing the right thing for the planet and are better poised to attract the best students.”
This year’s top-20 coolest schools are taking dramatic steps to curb climate change.
Whether it’s UCLA, with 38,476 students, or College of the Atlantic with 321, Sierra’s list shows that schools of all sizes are taking action.
Sierra’s Top 20 coolest schools of 2009 are:
1. University of Colorado at Boulder (Boulder, Colorado)
2. University of Washington at Seattle (Seattle, Washington)
3. Middlebury College (Middlebury, Vermont)
4. University of Vermont (Burlington, Vermont)
5. College of the Atlantic (Bal Harbor, Maine)
6. Evergreen State College (Olympia, Washington)
7. University of California at Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, California)
8. University of California at Berkeley (Berkeley, California)
9. University of California at Los Angeles (Los Angeles, California)
10. Oberlin College (Oberlin, Ohio)
11. Harvard University (Cambridge, Massachusetts)
12. University of New Hampshire (Durham, New Hampshire)
13. Arizona State University at Tempe (Tempe, Arizona)
14. Yale University (New Haven, Connecticut)
15. University of Florida at Gainesville (Gainesville, Florida)
16. Bates College (Lewiston, Maine)
17. Willamette University (Salem, Oregon)
18. Warren Wilson College (Asheville, North Carolina)
19. Dickinson College (Carlisle, Pennsylvania)
20. New York University (New York, New York)
In addition, the magazine gave other schools “extra credit” schools with particularly unique sustainability initiatives: Emory College, Carleton College, University of Pennsylvania, Berea College, and Pomona College are the five that earned the distinction.
Sierra magazine has 1.2 million readers and is a publication of the Sierra Club, the nation’s oldest and largest grassroots environmental group. For full descriptions of each winning school’s green efforts, visit Sierra magazine online at: www.sierraclub.org/coolschools
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