The PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center has honored Allegheny College and other higher-education institutions in the Commonwealth for achieving key energy sustainability goals.
The Policy Center issued its report in August as part of the nationwide survey of “America’s Top Colleges for Renewable Energy 2020: Who’s Leading the Transition to 100% Renewable Energy on Campus?” The report ranks campuses in three categories: shifting to renewable electricity, repowering buildings with clean energy, and adopting electric vehicles.
Allegheny’s Steffee Hall supports an array of solar panels.
The report lauds the Pennsylvania colleges and universities, including Allegheny, that rank in the top tier nationwide for obtaining 100 percent of their electricity from renewable sources, such as wind and solar power. The others include Carnegie Mellon University, Swarthmore College, Chatham University, Bryn Mawr College, Lebanon Valley College, and Northampton Community College. Susquehanna University was honored for transitioning 50 percent of its fleet to clean vehicles.
“College campuses are natural leaders when it comes to transitioning to 100 percent clean, renewable energy,” said Ashleigh Deemer, deputy director at PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center. “We’re excited to celebrate the fact that so many colleges and universities in Pennsylvania are leading the way in doing just that.”
Earlier in 2020, Allegheny became one of the first two colleges in Pennsylvania — and one of the first 10 in the United States — to achieve carbon neutrality, according to Second Nature, a national organization committed to accelerating climate action in, and through, higher education. A carbon-neutral institution first reduces its operational carbon footprint and then balances remaining emissions by investing in projects that will remove an equal amount of carbon from the atmosphere.
Carbon neutrality efforts demonstrate urgent climate action to reduce the concentration of climate-changing gases in the atmosphere dramatically, said Allegheny Director of Sustainability Kelly Boulton. Learn more about Allegheny College’s commitment to sustainability here.
The PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center is a statewide non-profit environmental group dedicated to protecting the Commonwealth’s water, air and open spaces. It investigates problems, crafts solutions, educates the public and decision-makers, and helps the public make their voices heard in local, state and national debates over the quality of the environment and people’s lives. To learn more, visit the PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center website.
