Created in the Spring of 2015, Lehigh’s Sustainable Office Program is a voluntary, self-guided program designed for faculty and staff to take the lead on promoting sustainable practices in the workplace. By taking action in a variety of topic areas, faculty and staff reduce their environmental footprint, are responsible stewards of the university’s resources, build a strong community, and contribute to Lehigh’s sustainability goals and commitments.
Offices receive Sustainable Office Program certification based on the total number of sustainable actions the office is able to complete — bronze (30 actions), silver (60 actions), gold (90 actions), and platinum (120 actions). To date, 25 offices have been certified, including ten bronze, eleven silver, three gold, and one platinum.
One of the goals within the Campus Sustainability Plan 2020 is specifically tied to the Sustainable Office Program. The goal is to extend the faculty and staff peer-to-peer sustainability outreach program to reach an additional 8 percent of faculty and staff by adding 10 new offices per year.
How is the Sustainable Office Program at Lehigh doing? Is it on track to meet this goal?
During the first year of the Sustainable Office Program, the program served 129 people — approximately 7 percent of full-time faculty and staff. This was just shy of the goal of reaching an additional 8 percent of faculty and staff per year.
A two-phase plan was created to improve outreach strategies and expand the program. Phase one involved revamping the website, adding resources, redesigning the baseline survey and checklist of actions, leading more campus outreach events about the program, and hiring an additional student intern. Phase one was completed in December 2017. Phase two involves analyzing data and using the data for effective marketing, revising the program to fit the needs of bigger office spaces, and gaining support from administration. Phase two began in January 2018 and will wrap up in August 2018. Through these expansion efforts, the program has increased by approximately 241 percent and is now serving 440 people — approximately 25 percent of full-time faculty and staff. As a result, the program has surpassed the 8 percent per year goal.
Looking ahead, the Sustainable Office Program has a very promising future. The program will continue to refine its strategies to increase environmental awareness and create a culture of sustainability in as many offices as possible on campus. Offices big and small are welcome to participate!
If your office would like to make a difference by contributing to Lehigh’s sustainability goals and commitments you can register for the program here, or email sustainability@lehigh.edu to learn more.