The University of California, Irvine, has become one of only four campuses on earth to win a platinum rating from STARS.
Before making the award, the association undertakes a comprehensive evaluation, considering the environmental performance of the school overall, including sustainable campus operations, community engagement, academic courses, environmental programs, and scientific research. STARS' evaluations look at 20 different topics, and take more than 850 qualitative and quantitative measurements before coming to a decision.
Among the accomplishments that earned UCI its platinum status are the fact it converted its bus fleet to run exclusively on electricity, becoming the first university to do so. The fleet, known as the Anteater Express, comprises 20 vehicles that are funded and run by students. The service provides over two million rides per year, all of them free of pollution.
Sensors throughout the campus take 465,000 data measurements every five seconds, monitoring building system performance, indoor air quality, and energy management. In addition, the university teamed up with the Irvine Ranch Water District and changed the school's central cooling plant to a more environmentally friendly model. The switch will save over 80 million gallons yearly of potable water.
An accomplishment like this is important and worthy of showcasing, so university officials might want to work with a brochure printing company to revise their school materials to include it.
