UNT ranked as one of the top universities by The Princeton Review's "Guide to 353 Green Colleges"

Thursday, April 23, 2015 - 13:57
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DENTON (UNT), Texas – The University of North Texas was ranked in the top 50 sustainable universities by The Princeton Review's 2015 edition of "Guide to 353 Green Colleges." This is the fifth year UNT has been included in the guide.

The guide recognizes institutions of higher education in the U.S. and Canada that demonstrate notable commitments to sustainability in their academic offerings, campus infrastructure, activities and career preparation. The guide is released in collaboration with the U.S. Green Building Council – the organization that oversees the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design ranking system.

In recent years, UNT has made efforts to increase the sustainability of the campus in several ways. Six electric vehicle charging stations were installed on campus, three wind turbines were raised near Apogee Stadium and four LEED certified buildings were opened – UNT's Business Leadership Building, Apogee Stadium, Life Sciences Complex, and the newest parking garage.

In 2008, UNT became the first large public university in Texas to sign the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, pledging to adhere to more stringent environmental standards and promising to achieve at least LEED's Silver certification on new buildings. Three years later, the UNT Life Sciences Complex earned LEED's Gold certification in 2011. That same year, UNT became the first university in the nation to earn LEED's Platinum certification for a college football facility when Apogee Stadium received the designation.

Since university representatives signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, UNT has reduced its carbon footprint by a half-billion pounds. This will save about $3 million annually through a 20-year energy savings contract that includes efforts to make more than 120 buildings on campus more energy efficient.

UNT has a robust recycling program, which annually recycles more than 360 tons of paper and cardboard, nearly 5,000 pounds of cans and 600,000 plastic bottles.

In 2011, UNT became the first university to offer a fully vegan dining hall, Mean Greens. Additionally, UNT apportioned 85 percent of its food budget in 2015 to local and organic foods.

For more information about UNT's sustainability efforts, visit UNT Sustainability online.

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