Higher Education Sustainability Rating System
Organizations and Tools
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AASHE (Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education): Empowers higher education faculty, administrators, staff, and students to be effective agents and drivers of sustainable innovation. AASHE developed STARS, a global sustainability standard for higher education. AASHE has over 900 members across 48 U.S. states and beyond.
stars.aashe.org
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ACTS - Australasian Campuses Towards Sustainability: A non-profit, member-based organization representing higher and further education institutions in Australia and New Zealand. ACTS primarily aims to promote and support best practices in sustainability within the education sector.
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AISHE - Assessment Instrument for Sustainability in Higher Education – Netherlands: Established in 2000 by the Dutch Foundation for Sustainable Higher Education (DHO). AISHE is both an assessment tool, as suggested by its name, and a strategic tool for the development of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). AISHE 2 has been developed in recent years with a modular structure by an international group of universities.
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Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges, EAUC - United Kingdom: EAUC oversees sustainability campaigns for universities and colleges across the UK. EAUC’s mission is to promote sustainability in higher education.
Tool: Sustainability Leadership Scorecard
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Sustainable Campus Assessment System – Japan: Developed by Hokkaido University’s sustainable campus, it is the first tool to evaluate sustainability in higher education within campus life.
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UI Green Metric
UI GreenMetric, launched in 2010 by the University of Indonesia, is a green campus and environmental sustainability ranking system. GreenMetric assesses 39 indicators across six different criteria.
Green Building Rating Systems
Green building rating systems can differ in their approaches to measuring a building's performance. Some are prescriptive-based, specifying minimum or maximum values for various elements in construction. Others are performance-based, where the desired outcome is modeled in software and compared to a baseline. Additionally, outcome-based verification, which measures energy use in the completed building over a one-year period, is becoming more common to confirm that the project meets the rating system's requirements.
There are five key areas common to all green building rating systems:
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Site and Location: The location of a building has a direct impact on many aspects of its performance. Local climate, shading, solar access, and building orientation can affect energy, ventilation, and lighting needs. Many rating systems encourage construction on brownfield sites to improve the natural environment through site cleanup, restricting development on greenfield sites to limit the built environment's encroachment on natural settings like forests, protected areas, or wetlands sensitive to stormwater runoff.
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Water: Freshwater makes up only 2.5% of the water on our planet, with an even smaller percentage accessible for human use. As the world’s population grows and water becomes scarcer, the ability to use water efficiently is incredibly important. Each rating system considers how a building can reduce water use during construction and within its surroundings. Alternatives to using potable water for flushing toilets and landscaping are recommended, such as on-site rainwater harvesting and closed-loop systems that recycle and reuse water.
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Energy Efficiency and Consumption: Energy efficiency and consumption are primary focus areas for all rating systems. By reducing energy use and generating energy on-site, a building can achieve net-zero or even net-positive energy consumption. Eliminating a building’s contribution to climate change is a key goal for all green building rating systems. A net-zero or net-positive energy building eliminates operational CO2 emissions to the atmosphere.
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Materials: The types and quantities of materials used in construction can have major impacts on the planet. The greenhouse gas emissions produced by transporting materials globally, such as from China to Istanbul, contribute to a significant carbon footprint. Locally sourced and sustainable materials are thus prioritized. The toxicity and off-gassing of materials also play an important role. Certain materials are already banned due to their polluting properties.
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Air Quality: On average, people spend about 90% of their time indoors. Sick building syndrome is a well-documented phenomenon related to harmful indoor air environments. The overarching goal of rating systems is to ensure optimal indoor air quality and environments free from aggressive substances.