By : Wagdy Sawahel To counter the negative impact of climate change in North Africa, several higher education initiatives and scientific programmes are producing scientific workforces with the required skills, as well as carrying out research for promoting renewable energy for sustainable development. The North Africa region is particularly vulnerable to climate change because of its geographic and ecological features. The situation is aggravated by the interaction of multiple economic and social sources of stress and further compounded by a low adaptive capacity. Model projections indicate a clear rise in temperature over the next 20 years and this is expected to continue throughout the 21st century, probably at a rate higher than the estimated global average, according to a recent report,'North Africa: The Impact of Climate Change to 2030. Simulations also suggest a drying trend, particularly along the Mediterranean coast, driven by large decreases in summertime rainfall. Because coastal areas historically receive by far the largest amount of rainfall in North Africa, future decreases will likely have a significant and noticeable impact, the report says. Given the ecological and socioeconomic characteristics of the southern Mediterranean countries, the effect of climate change may be more marked than in other regions of the world. The most significant factors are likely to include water resources stress, agriculture, migration, natural disasters, energy and tourism. "Most of the predicted impacts in the region are already occurring regardless of climate change, for example, water stress and desertification. Climate change is expected to exacerbate these trends," the report says.   Green universities Only three universities in North Africa were ranked out of 301 participating higher education institutions located in 49 countries in the 2013'UI'GreenMetric World University Ranking for their sustainability initiatives. These were the American University in Cairo (101) and Kafrelsheikh University in Egypt (130), along with Cadi Ayyad University in Morocco (284). Launched in 2010 in response to the absence of sustainability criteria from existing university rankings bodies, the UIGreenMetric World University Ranking reflects the efforts made by participating institutions to implement environmentally friendly policies and programmes to reduce their carbon emissions and to help combat global climate change. The criteria include baseline information such as the size of the university, spatially and in terms of population, the campus location and the amount of green space; and also information on energy use, transport, water use and recycling and waste treatment, along with efforts being made by the institution towards establishing green policies and management and education programmes.   Teaching and research programmes To deal with climate change challenges, North African countries have hosted several regional initiatives including the following: The Pan African University Institute of Water and Energy Sciences, or PAUWES, at Algeria’s University of Tlemcen, contributes to the development of higher education and sustainable development in Africa. PAUWES offers two world-class graduate programmes, a master of science in water and an MSc in energy, as well as providing training programmes for top students to become engineers and policy analysts, able to address Africa’s most pressing development challenges. The Desertec University Network is an integrated concept which includes energy security and climate protection, as well as drinking water production, socio-economic development, security policy and international cooperation. It focuses on generating sufficient clean power in the world's deserts to supply mankind with enough electricity on a sustainable basis. The Desertec University Network is formed around 20 universities in North Africa and the Middle East and is aimed at the development of know-how and the implementation of programmes related to renewable energy. Among the first steps are plans for tertiary-level degrees in renewable energy to be made available at local universities along with training technical personnel. The Regional Center for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, or RCREEE, is the first regional centre of excellence for capacity building in the field of renewable energy and energy efficiency in the Middle East and North Africa. The centre carries out research and studies on renewable energy resource assessment as well as demonstration, testing and evaluation of different technologies focusing on solar and wind. It also provides consultancy services, promotes knowledge and technology transfer as well as providing training programmes for scientific and technical manpower to settle renewable energy technologies in Egypt and other Middle Eastern and North African countries. In addition, the centre focuses on promoting renewable energy technologies through direct contact with research centres in Europe and takes part in formulating policies related to renewable energy.   Expert's views Manar Sabry, an Egyptian higher education expert at the US State University of New York says climate change is a real threat for the North African countries. Sabry says higher education institutions have an important role to play in reducing the risk of these changes. "The first role that universities can play is to establish specialised research centres to study the impact of climate change at the regional, global and local levels. This may include studying the expected impacts of climate change and the risks associated with it,' he says.' "These centres should also bring university professors and form multidisciplinary committees to draft applicable policies, taking into consideration the legal, technical and financial aspects, and the like, that would help prevent further deterioration." Sabry says universities should design courses to educate new generations about the issue including the risks of climate change, methods to face it, and adaptation to climate change. At the local level, universities have a responsibility to educate the public and the local communities about the causes, solutions and adaptation measures. "In short, universities can take a leadership role as well as being a role model in this regard by actively studying, researching and implementing sound solutions that would consider the financial and legal components as well as the technical ones," he says. A Libyan higher education expert, Amal Rhema, who lectures at the Aljabal Algharbi University and at Victoria University in Australia, says higher education institutions have good practical, financial, academic and moral reasons to try to reduce the impacts of climate change. "I would suggest that universities in the North Africa region should work hard at reducing the carbon impact of their campuses, and exercise moral leadership in the fight against climate change," Rhema says. "They can benefit from other successful initiatives and experiences in developed countries, which can serve as a powerful example for those institutions that follow their strategies for confronting the negative impact of climate change." He says North African universities should participate in research and innovation for promoting sustainable development, and ensure provision of a safe, equitable and prosperous future for their students and communities.   Way forward With last month's creation of the'Africa Climate Change Fund by the African Development Bank in Tunis, African universities and research centres have the opportunity to enhance their scientific, teaching and training programmes.' These include support for adaptation and mitigation projects, knowledge management and information sharing related to climate change; and capacity building, recruitment of national and international consultants; as well as training and consultation workshops, and regional and international meetings.   Source :'http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php'story=20140517163225939

By : Wagdy Sawahel The Arab world has been late to join the ? green? universities movement, which strives for lower emissions and less water consumption. Only 12 out of about 500 universities implement environmentally friendly policies and programmes to reduce their carbon emissions and help to combat global climate change. This is the conclusion of the recent?UI GreenMetric World University Ranking which reflects the efforts made by 301 universities located in 49 countries in US, Europe, Asia and Africa to become sustainable. The universities ranking criteria include baseline information such as the size of the university, spatially and in terms of population, the campus location and the amount of green space; and also information on energy use, transport, water use and recycling and waste treatment along with efforts being made by the institution towards establishing green policies and management and education programmes.   Arab green campuses. While Lebanon has only one university in the ranking with the American University of Beirut at number 197, two universities in Palestine and three universities in Jordan were ranked, making Jordan top of the Arab world in establishing green universities ?. Palestine's universities include the Islamic university of Gaza at 87 and An-Najah National University at 94. Jordan's universities include the Jordan University of Science and Technology (113), University of Petra (218), and University of Jordan (279). In North African countries, only three universities were ranked, including the American University in Cairo at 101, and the Kafrelsheikh University in Egypt (130), along with Cadi Ayyad University in Morocco (284). Only two Arab Gulf States-based universities, in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, were included in the green university rankings: King Abdulaziz University (165) and the UAE University (181). This is despite recent studies indicating that the low-lying gulf states could be especially vulnerable to climate change as a result of rising sea levels. These could rise by more than a metre by the end of the century and this could lead to the submerging of thousands of kilometres of the gulf coastline ?. "The UI GreenMetric is a good initiative, but many of the universities doing excellent work in this area are not included in its ranking. It should not be considered a definitive guide," said Ann Kildahl, sustainability manager at the University of Hong Kong. "It may be that some of the Gulf state universities are making progress, but their work is not yet well known outside the region." Kildahl mentioned the 26-building campus of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, opened in 2009, that recycles all its wastewater, uses 27% less energy than a typical campus and was built with 20% recycled content. Also, UAE is setting up Masdar City which is the world's first large-scale carbon-neutral development. This US$18 billion investment in clean technology is creating a new city in the heart of the Middle East's oil country that boasts a research university and acts as incubator for newly emerging green collar industries. Turning universities green Arab universities are lagging behind in adopting a green pathway in their universities because there may be a regional trend toward consumerism, says Melissa Goodall, assistant director in the Office of Sustainability at Yale University in the United States.' "Demand for new products has implications for resource extraction, the impacts of manufacturing and transportation of goods, and disposal," Goodall said.' A 2013'report by the Arab Forum for Environment and Development, or AFED, stated that oil and gas revenues accounted for 36% of the total Arab GDP. But Goodall said the implication of this was probably two-fold: 'First, the countries of that area have a vested interest in continued consumption of and demand for fossil fuels; second, fossil fuel-based energy may be more economically viable than renewable energy alternatives." She said that to encourage Arab universities to become green campuses it would be helpful to have support from the institution leaders. If the head of a university announced a commitment to sustainability ' or a sustainability policy ' students and staff members were more likely to take it seriously. Goodall added: "After that, responsibilities and accountability should be clear ' if the university is going to reduce its energy use, how will it do so, and whose job is it to ensure that it happens'Ideally, there is one office or person on a campus that takes on this responsibility and ultimately will have a set of university-level sustainability goals that are measurable and time-bound." As for what should be done on Arab campuses, she said establishing the local and regional contexts for sustainability was imperative. Many Arab nations were currently addressing challenges in terms of access to water and food security ' both of which were likely to worsen with climate change. In addition, much of the oil and gas extracted in Arab countries was exported. Yet, according to AFED, 35 million Arab people did not have access to modern energy services.' "Sustainability efforts on Arab campuses should reflect these imperatives in two ways: first, in commitments to strive for operational efficiencies; second, as priority areas for academic exploration so that local institutions can inform robust regional solutions," Goodall said. Mohamed Abdelraouf, a research fellow in the environmental research programme at the Gulf Research Center in Saudi Arabia, said Arab universities should have their own environmental policies, recycling programmes and environmental education. "However, as a start, there could be a policy mix of tools ' incentives and regulations ' from governments that could include a mandatory request that each university have their own environmental and social safeguards' policy, a policy that defines minimum requirements of their activities, including operational and educational ones.'   Sustainable universities leading green economy. Goodall said the green economy included several key concepts that should be fundamental to the operations and teaching at any higher education institution: equity between peoples and between generations, and committing to policies and practices that balanced people, planet, prosperity and culture. "Beyond this, though, universities have a remarkable and unique role to play. They have the capacity to test and innovate in ways that cities and businesses cannot. Cities are bound by their budgets and their need to provide consistent and reliable infrastructure to their residents. Everything that a business does must be focused on profits.' "The mission of a university, however, is to teach tomorrow's leaders. This requires constantly refreshing ideologies and exploring new solutions to complex problems," she said. Abdelraouf said Arab 'green universities' could also play an important role in promoting green industry and green economy as they represented the tools to accompany this. The tools could range from laws, incentives to education and awareness. 'For example, curricula and research of green universities must aim at subjects related to the green economy to provide the work market with the qualified graduates that fit green jobs,' he said. "If the universities have the above policy and role, the private sector will automatically turn to them for green technology and research."   The way forward. To promote regional exchange of expertise and best practice, Arab science and technology expert Magdi Tawfik Abdelhamid called for the creation of an Arab network for green universities including scientists, technologists, lecturers and policy-makers, as well as universities, technology institutions and centres with green programmes. "The proposed network will support higher education institutions in the exchange of information, ideas and best practices for achieving sustainable campus operations and integrating sustainability in research and teaching," Abdelhamid said.' It should also focus on curriculum innovations, local carbon campuses and targeted training programmes. The network should set up a database for international best practice in campus sustainability and could include, for example, the February 2014report on the International Sustainable Campus Network website on best practices in campus sustainability, which provides an overview of current sustainability initiatives by leading universities and colleges.' A virtual library for green university studies should also be established that included important information for policy makers and higher education experts such as the 2013 UN Environment Programme report'Greening Universities Toolkit: Transforming universities into green and sustainable campuses.' "Developing joint research projects in green technology with regional and international science institutions and organisations is also a must in order to advance scientific progress and enhance knowledge and technology transfer," Abdelhamid said.   Source : ?http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php story=20140513091427533

The Arab world has been late to join the ‘green’ universities movement, which strives for lower emissions and less water consumption. Only 12 out of about 500 universities implement environmentally friendly policies and programmes to reduce their carbon emissions and help to combat global climate change. This is the conclusion of the recent UI GreenMetric World University Ranking which reflects the efforts made by 301 universities located in 49 countries in US, Europe, Asia and Africa to become sustainable. The universities ranking criteria include baseline information such as the size of the university, spatially and in terms of population, the campus location and the amount of green space; and also information on energy use, transport, water use and recycling and waste treatment along with efforts being made by the institution towards establishing green policies and management and education programmes. Arab green campuses While Lebanon has only one university in the ranking with the American University of Beirut at number 197, two universities in Palestine and three universities in Jordan were ranked, making Jordan top of the Arab world in establishing green universities. Palestine's universities include the Islamic university of Gaza at 87 and An-Najah National University at 94. Jordan's universities include the Jordan University of Science and Technology (113), University of Petra (218), and University of Jordan (279). In North African countries, only three universities were ranked, including the American University in Cairo at 101, and the Kafrelsheikh University in Egypt (130), along with Cadi Ayyad University in Morocco (284). Only two Arab Gulf States-based universities, in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, were included in the green university rankings: King Abdulaziz University (165) and the UAE University (181). This is despite recent studies indicating that the low-lying gulf states could be especially vulnerable to climate change as a result of rising sea levels. These could rise by more than a metre by the end of the century and this could lead to the submerging of thousands of kilometres of the gulf coastline. "The UI GreenMetric is a good initiative, but many of the universities doing excellent work in this area are not included in its ranking. It should not be considered a definitive guide," said Ann Kildahl, sustainability manager at the University of Hong Kong. "It may be that some of the Gulf state universities are making progress, but their work is not yet well known outside the region." Kildahl mentioned the 26-building campus of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, opened in 2009, that recycles all its wastewater, uses 27% less energy than a typical campus and was built with 20% recycled content. Also, UAE is setting up Masdar City which is the world’s first large-scale carbon-neutral development. This US$18 billion investment in clean technology is creating a new city in the heart of the Middle East’s oil country that boasts a research university and acts as incubator for newly emerging green collar industries. Turning universities green Arab universities are lagging behind in adopting a green pathway in their universities because there may be a regional trend toward consumerism, says Melissa Goodall, assistant director in the Office of Sustainability at Yale University in the United States. “Demand for new products has implications for resource extraction, the impacts of manufacturing and transportation of goods, and disposal," Goodall said. A 2013 report by the Arab Forum for Environment and Development, or AFED, stated that oil and gas revenues accounted for 36% of the total Arab GDP. But Goodall said the implication of this was probably two-fold: “First, the countries of that area have a vested interest in continued consumption of and demand for fossil fuels; second, fossil fuel-based energy may be more economically viable than renewable energy alternatives." She said that to encourage Arab universities to become green campuses it would be helpful to have support from the institution leaders. If the head of a university announced a commitment to sustainability – or a sustainability policy – students and staff members were more likely to take it seriously. Goodall added: "After that, responsibilities and accountability should be clear – if the university is going to reduce its energy use, how will it do so, and whose job is it to ensure that it happens? Ideally, there is one office or person on a campus that takes on this responsibility and ultimately will have a set of university-level sustainability goals that are measurable and time-bound." As for what should be done on Arab campuses, she said establishing the local and regional contexts for sustainability was imperative. Many Arab nations were currently addressing challenges in terms of access to water and food security – both of which were likely to worsen with climate change. In addition, much of the oil and gas extracted in Arab countries was exported. Yet, according to AFED, 35 million Arab people did not have access to modern energy services. "Sustainability efforts on Arab campuses should reflect these imperatives in two ways: first, in commitments to strive for operational efficiencies; second, as priority areas for academic exploration so that local institutions can inform robust regional solutions," Goodall said. Mohamed Abdelraouf, a research fellow in the environmental research programme at the Gulf Research Center in Saudi Arabia, said Arab universities should have their own environmental policies, recycling programmes and environmental education. "However, as a start, there could be a policy mix of tools – incentives and regulations – from governments that could include a mandatory request that each university have their own environmental and social safeguards’ policy, a policy that defines minimum requirements of their activities, including operational and educational ones.” Sustainable universities leading green economy Goodall said the green economy included several key concepts that should be fundamental to the operations and teaching at any higher education institution: equity between peoples and between generations, and committing to policies and practices that balanced people, planet, prosperity and culture. "Beyond this, though, universities have a remarkable and unique role to play. They have the capacity to test and innovate in ways that cities and businesses cannot. Cities are bound by their budgets and their need to provide consistent and reliable infrastructure to their residents. Everything that a business does must be focused on profits. "The mission of a university, however, is to teach tomorrow’s leaders. This requires constantly refreshing ideologies and exploring new solutions to complex problems," she said. Abdelraouf said Arab ‘green universities’ could also play an important role in promoting green industry and green economy as they represented the tools to accompany this. The tools could range from laws, incentives to education and awareness. “For example, curricula and research of green universities must aim at subjects related to the green economy to provide the work market with the qualified graduates that fit green jobs,” he said. "If the universities have the above policy and role, the private sector will automatically turn to them for green technology and research." The way forward To promote regional exchange of expertise and best practice, Arab science and technology expert Magdi Tawfik Abdelhamid called for the creation of an Arab network for green universities including scientists, technologists, lecturers and policy-makers, as well as universities, technology institutions and centres with green programmes. "The proposed network will support higher education institutions in the exchange of information, ideas and best practices for achieving sustainable campus operations and integrating sustainability in research and teaching," Abdelhamid said. It should also focus on curriculum innovations, local carbon campuses and targeted training programmes. The network should set up a database for international best practice in campus sustainability and could include, for example, the February 2014 report on the International Sustainable Campus Network website on best practices in campus sustainability, which provides an overview of current sustainability initiatives by leading universities and colleges. A virtual library for green university studies should also be established that included important information for policy makers and higher education experts such as the 2013 UN Environment Programme report Greening Universities Toolkit: Transforming universities into green and sustainable campuses. “Developing joint research projects in green technology with regional and international science institutions and organisations is also a must in order to advance scientific progress and enhance knowledge and technology transfer,” Abdelhamid said.   Resource : http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20140513091427533

Rector of the University of Indonesia (UI), represented by the Secretary of the University, Prof. Dr. Ir. Tommy Ilyas, M. Eng. received the "The Global Green Award 2014" from Otherways Management Association Club, Paris, Monday (03/31/2014). The award was accepted on UI gait in environmental field. UI received the award because of the role of attention problems in environmental sustainability through UI Greenmetric program. UI is considered to have been a pioneer that invites other universities around the world to pay attention to environmental issues. Earlier, in June 2013, on gait in the same field, UI was awarded "Indonesia Green Award 2013" for Forest Conservation category from La Tofi School of CSR.

The University of Nottingham is the greenest university in the world, according to a new study. The latest 2013 Greenmetric rankings compiled data within six categories from 301 universities across 61 countries to find that Nottingham had performed the biggest strides in campus sustainability and environmentally friendly management. The categories combined efforts at setting and infrastructure, energy and climate change, waste management, water usage, transportation and education from information submitted by the institutions via an online survey. Nottingham achieved a score of 7,328, placing it top in the world for a second time, after it originally scooped the title back in 2011. The University of Bradford also featured in the top ten in fourth place, whilst the University of Plymouth was ranked seventh. Nottingham has committed itself to becoming a leading university in green energy with environmental sustainability among one of the nine principles in the institution’s Strategic Plan. Andy Nolan, the university's Director of Sustainability, said: “We welcome the announcement and the report that has come out. I think it’s an important area to measure the scale and look at what the university has taken to reduce its impact on the environment and the benefit that it can bring to both the university community and the town. “We’re responsible for around 60,000 tonnes of carbon emissions every year, so it’s a big deal for us to tackle that. This remains a high priority for us. We recognise that sustainable buildings are the future.” He added that Nottingham would be building on this achievement by looking at ways of producing power and heat more sustainably, particularly by reducing the use of natural gas. Universities from Namibia, Egypt and Estonia were among those that took part in the survey which has been in operation annually by Universitas Indonesia since 2010.   Resource: http://www.independent.co.uk/student/news/nottingham-voted-greenest-university-in-the-world-9083528.html

Manipal University has once again been ranked at number two overall and first in suburban category among Indian universities in the Universitas Indonesia's Green Metric Ranking for world universities 2012. The results are computed from information provided by universities online. The information relates to six main categories and their weightings are: Green Statistics (15%), Energy and Climate Change (21%), Waste management (18%), Water usage (10%), Transportation (18%), and Education (18%). In the global rankings, Manipal University was placed at 118 among the 215 universities from 49 countries in the overall, 37th in the suburban and 87th in the comprehensive categories respectively. IIT, Madras was the best among the Indian Universities and was ranked 62nd globally. IIT, Bombay was ranked third best in India and 142nd in the world. University of Connecticut was first in the world rankings in the overall and comprehensive categories and the University of Bath topped in the suburban category. Universities from the US, the UK, Japan, and countries in Europe, Palestinian, Chile, Czechoslovakia, Romania and South Africa, China, Fiji, Finland, Greece, Hong Kong, Mexico, and South Africa took part in the survey. The UI Green Metric Ranking is innovative in that it is the first world-wide college-based commitment to the development of sustainable infrastructure, education and research. The ranking methodology is based on a widely accepted principle that measuring sustainability should involve three things: Environment, Economics and Equity (the 3 Es). The ranking not only helps to raise awareness about these issues, but is also proving to be a catalyst to put in place 'green' campus management policies around the world. It is drawing the attention of university leaders and stake holders to combat global climate change, energy and water conservation, waste recycling, and green transportation.   Resource: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/Green-Ranking-Manipal-University-holds-on-to-second-position-in-India-once-again-/articleshow/18162355.cms

International workshop on UI Greenmetric 2013 was hosted by University of Indonesia and held at its Campus in Depok, in greenery of the rain forest in the outskirt of Jakarta. The aim of this conference is to provide an opportunity for universities that get top position in UI Greenmetric to explain their university’s excellence in UI GreenMetric and also to provide an opportunity for cooperation in sustainability management in campuses. In this conference, universities with best position and achievement in UI Greenmetric shared their efforts in improving sustainable environment in their campuses. The conference program was comprised of keynote talks, invited speakers talks, and discussion among many universities. International Workshop on UI Greenmetric was held on Cinema Room, Universitas Indonesia Central Library, Depok, Indonesia. For more information you can click this link http://iwgm2013.ui.ac.id/ .

Subject: Invitation to participate in UI Green Metric World University Sustainability Ranking 2013 Dear Sir/Madame, It gives us a great pleasure to invite your institution to participate in our world ranking of university sustainability ? Green Metric. This initiative was launched on 2010 in order to draw the attention of university leaders and stake holders to combat global sustainability issues and to provide more attention to sustainability of the environment, as well as economic and social problem related to sustainability. In order to realize Sustainability Development Goals, the university plays an important role in particular with regard to sustainability including energy and climate change, setting and infrastructure, water consumption, waste management and especially education. We hope that the rankings will be useful to university leaders in their efforts to put in place eco-friendly policies and manage behavioural change among the academic community at their respective institutions. There are a number of benefits for participating universities. Participation can help you in sharing your experience in sustainability to other universities. You can measure your sustainability policies and compare results with other institutions on the ranking. You can also see the criteria that need to be improved. This ranking also could be a platform for future cooperation. Submitting data for the ranking is easy and is currently done on line. The criteria are also presently set at a threshold which is attainable by the majority of higher education institutions. There is no fee for taking part. We do hope your institution will be able join us. Please let me know as soon as you can whether you can make it. We hope to see you with us. Please do not hesitate to email any questions you may have to greenmetric@ui.ac.id. Yours sincerely, Prof. Dr. Ir. Muhammad Anis, M. Met Rector rektor@ui.ac.id

The University of Connecticut tops 215 universities from 49 countries listed in Universitas Indonesia’s third annual GreenMetric World Ranking. UConn moved up to first place from third last year with a score of 7,569 points, and was followed by last year’s ‘greenest college,’ the University of Nottingham, England, with 7,375, and University College Cork/National University of Ireland with 7,301. Results were computed from information that participating universities submitted online. For 2012, responses were evaluated in six weighted categories including: green statistics (15 percent); energy and climate change (21 percent ); waste management (18 percent); water usage (10 percent); transportation (18 percent); and education (18 percent). President Susan Herbst says she is proud of UConn’s top ranking on the international GreenMetric list because it reflects the University’s long-term commitment to environmental stewardship. “It’s great to be number one,” she says, “but our commitment is about much more than rankings. It’s about fulfilling our mission as a land and sea grant university and setting the right example, by moving forward with our Climate Action Plan (CAP), reducing our carbon footprint, conserving energy and water, and raising environmental awareness.” This past year, UConn became the first university in the nation to include a Climate Adaptation Section in its CAP to help communities better understand and prepare for the effects of climate change. In addition, construction was completed on a $30 million reclaimed water facility that will conserve up to 500,000 gallons of water a day. Richard Miller, director of UConn’s Office of Environmental Policy, says the University’s responses to the GreenMetric survey were based on information originally compiled for the Sustainability Tracking Assessment and Reporting System (STARS) that was developed by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. The rigorous STARS reporting format is used by groups like the Sierra Club and the Princeton Review to ensure more uniform standards for campus sustainability rankings. Miller notes that Environmental Policy staff, including himself, a graduate student sustainability coordinator, and several undergraduate interns, worked nearly 300 hours to complete the STARS format last spring. “It was time well spent,” he says. “As a result, our response to the GreenMetric survey was more thorough and accurate, plus STARS data has helped us identify gaps from last year and take steps to improve.” According to Miller, UConn’s GreenMetric score in the education category was more than double those of most other universities listed and clearly helped propel UConn to the top of the list. The education score considers not only sustainability courses and funded research, but also related publications, websites, events, and student organizations. Miller says that in 2012, UConn hosted an inaugural week-long series of speakers and events known as CIMA, or Climate Impact, Mitigation and Adaptation, in addition to the usual Earth Day Spring Fling in April, football and basketball “Green Game Days,” and the annual EcoMadness inter-dorm energy and water conservation competition. Other efforts that enhanced UConn’s score include a ‘Sustainable UConn’ blog that was added to UConn Today to complement an existing Office of Environmental Policy sustainability website, Facebook page, and newsletter. And the EcoHusky student group, which works in conjunction with the Office of Environmental Policy, often collaborates with students from other environmental clubs and the EcoHouse living and learning community, whose emphasis on community service has steadily increased student involvement in all sustainability-related activities and events on campus. The methodology used by Universitas Indonesia is based on the principle that measuring sustainability should involve evaluation of the environment, economics, and social equity. Universitas Indonesia professor Gumilar Rusliwa Somantri notes that the ranking is unique because it uses a methodology and standards that make it possible for universities in developing countries to see how they measure up against the world’s best, while also providing a starting point for institutions that are less experienced in maintaining high environmental standards. In 2012, universities completing the survey came from as far afield as South Africa, Japan, China, Fiji, Chile, and Mexico, as well as the United States, the United Kingdom, and multiple countries in Europe. In the first year of the program, 95 universities took part; last year the total was 178; and this year, 215. The ultimate goal is to have 2,000 institutions of higher learning participating in the future.   Resource : http://today.uconn.edu/2013/01/uconn-earns-top-score-in-third-annual-greenmetric-world-ranking/

Universitas Indonesia (UI) released the results of its GreenMetric Ranking of World Universities on 8th January 2013. This is the third year of this ranking which compares universities efforts towards campus sustainability and environment friendly university management. The results were announced by the university Rector, Prof. Djoko Santoso , Vice Rector of UI Prof. Muhamad Anis, Prof Gunawan Tjahjono, and the Chairperson of UI Greenmetric Prof. Riri Fitri Sari at the UI Balairung (Graduation Ceremony Building), Depok, by the UI lake side. This year, 215 universities from 49 countries took part, which is an increase from last year with 178 universities from 42 countries. University of Connecticut in USA was ranked first with a score of 7,569, followed by University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom (score 7,375) and third by University College Cork National University of Ireland (score 7,301). Apart from the US, the UK, Japan, and countries in Europe, the 2012 results include universities as far afield as Palestinian, Chile, Czechoslovakia, Romania and South Africa, China, Fiji, Finland, Greece, Hong Kong, Mexico, and South Africa. The results are computed from information provided by universities online. These year the information are organized under Six (6) main categories. These categories, and their weightings, are: Green Statistics (15%), Energy and Climate Change (21%), Waste management (18%), Water usage (10%), Transportation (18%), and Education (18%).