Athletic Business Services in Stabler Arena was the first office at Lehigh University to participate in the Office of Sustainability’s Sustainable Office Program. In February 2015, they completed the Sustainable Office Program and officially received Silver Certification. Now, one year later, they applied for re-certification and completed 105 sustainable actions to re-certify from silver to gold certification!
The Sustainable Office Program was launched at the beginning of the Spring 2015 semester. It is a voluntary, self-guided program designed for staff to take the lead on promoting environmental practices in the workplace. By taking action in a variety of topic areas, offices like Athletic Business Services can reduce their environmental footprint, be responsible stewards of university’s resources, and contribute to Lehigh’s sustainability goals and commitments.
A gold certification indicates that the office has completed over 90 of the sustainable office actions. These actions are categorized by ‘Participation & Engagement,’ ‘Climate & Energy,’ ‘Food & Dining,’ ‘Purchasing,’ ‘Community Building & Social Equity,’ ‘Transportation,’ ‘Waste,’ Water,’ and ‘Events & Meetings.’ In order for a department or office to be certified, they must complete actions in each of these categories.
Each certified office appoints a Sustainable Office Representative. Jason Gall, the representative for Athletic Business Services in Stabler Arena, was the person who enthusiastically signed Stabler Arena up to be the first participating office in the program. Since then, he has continued to motivate the team to further develop their sustainable habits and implement sustainability in their workplace such that the office is now gold certified. When asked why his office went for recertification Jason said, “Athletics is always looking to be competitive and trying to raise the bar to the next level. This re-certification fits into the philosophy of the Athletics Department and sustainability.”
In addition to taking up actions provided by the Sustainable Office Program, Stabler Arena partners with the Office of Sustainability once a semester on “green” athletic events. In the fall, Lehigh participates in Game Day Challenge, which is a recycling competition between colleges and universities nationwide. Schools select one home football game to promote waste reduction and record their waste and recycling rates. The schools are ranked by waste diversion rate and total amount of recycling. In the spring, Lehigh participates in a similar program called Game Day Basketball. This is part of the larger intercollegiate recycling competition called RecycleMania, which is a national waste diversion and recycling competition where colleges and universities compete throughout February and March.
There is a visible environmental consciousness on the Lehigh campus, as exhibited here by the success of this program. As the Sustainability Program Manager, I am very optimistic about the future of the Sustainable Office Program. I encourage Athletic Business Services to celebrate the good news by sharing their accomplishments in the Sustainable Office Program online and with co-workers! I look forward to seeing more offices and departments joining the program.
Let us know your office is interested in the program by filling out the registration form. A Sustainable Office team member will further discuss the program with your office before beginning.