Campus Efforts

Although it is not comprehensively publicized, Bryn Mawr and Haverford Colleges are excreting big efforts in carrying out sustainability planes in their campuses. There is definitely a room for development for both sustainability plans and sustainability communication. Nevertheless, highlighting the history and current initiatives and efforts is important and plays a big factor in carrying out future plans and encouraging further development, as well as promoting the green image of the Bi-Co’s community.

History of Bryn Mawr

Bryn Mawr has been carrying out sustainability plans for long time. Even though some of them were not aimed directly to sustainability.

In the late nineteenth century, Bryn Mawr’s campus used to be be a farm and it did not have many trees and the green landscape we witness now. There was a College General Plan that aimed to planting several trees on campus to improve the campus’ aesthetic value and to develop green landscaping on campus. As a result, many trees were planted, nourished, and taken care of over 135 years

There have also been architectural and structural sustainability efforts:

The Schwartz Gym, which was built in early 1980s, is designed and built to have a self-sufficient heating system; this system allows the pool to store and take heat from air in the summer to cool the gym and take heat from the pool to heat the building in the winter. In addition, some of the building—Ward, Cambrian Row buildings, and Dalton— are built on LEED Sliver standards.

Rhoads Before

Rhoads After

In efforts to develop flood prevention and on-campus storm water management, Rhoads pond has been built in 2003 to aid with water aeration and cleaning, temperature change, and wildlife support.

College Footprint Progress

Charts from brynmawr.edu/sustainability

Bryn Mawr has been seeking development in their energy planning. The college Carbon Footprint progress is apparent in the pie-chart diagram.

A major achievement that is apparent in the chart is Bryn Mawr’s accomplishment in reducing their electricity footprint from 46% to 0% in 8 years by purchasing their electricity from sustainable energy providers (wind energy from PECO). Nonetheless, electricity conservation hours have been scheduled in all dorms and buildings based on staff’s and students’ activity hours in the building. Heat conservation was also achieved by reducing the heating set point in all building by two degrees.

Bi-Co's Community and Students Efforts

Sustainability efforts in the Bi-Co was not only restricted to large scale and college general planning, many other efforts were directed toward smaller, but effective, sustainability actions and plans.

Both colleges have a community garden, where Bryn Mawr and Haverford community and students nourish and take care of their community garden. Students can grow vegetables, take care of small crops and feel more engaged with the environment.

Bryn Mawr Green Ambassadors and Haverford Committee on Environmental Sustainability plan an annual dorms wide competitions (Bryn Mawr's Unplugged and Haverford's Do it in the Dark) that aim to promote energy conservation and reduce energy consumption for one month.

Haverford College has designed a website that communicates electricity consumption in all buildings and dorms. This data visualization is a very helpful method in communication strategies that promotes inclusivity with sustainability issues and incentives community members to take actions. It is also very helpful during Do it in the Dark, Haverford's dorms conservation competition, where students can check their progress and feel more motivated conserve energy and win the competition.

Haverford also issues a monthly electronic newspaper, The Green Squirrel, that announces the campus's green and sustainability events for the month.
Lately, both colleges have been confirming at least one sustainability-related resolution in their plenaries.
One of Haverford's recent resolution is to plan for a carbon-free campus by 2035 instead of 2050.
The Bi-Co's dinning centers are currently implementing composting in their system.
Haverford College organizes an annual charity run, Joe Schwartz Memorial 3K run, where they have included voluntarily-plogging in the nature trail.

Questions to consider:

Should we be satisfied with our current sustainability measures? What can we develop and how can we better communicate the issue and publicize our efforts?
Is it enough to have 100% of our electricity carbon-free? Bryn Mawr College had the resources and the ability to buy all their electricity from renewable energy providers, but what about other communities that don't have this privilege to do this? Should we develop a plan for a project in our surrounding community?

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