two male students sitting at table in the Commons

Campus Sustainability

Westminster University is committed to promoting environmental awareness and education. The university supports many services and student-led initiatives that educate the community and make the campus environmentally friendly. Because of these efforts, Westminster continually receives recognition for its campus-wide sustainability efforts:

  • A Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS) silver rating. Every 2-3 years, Westminster uses the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS) voluntary self-reporting framework to gauge the university’s progress toward sustainability. The rating system considers the environmental, social, and economic impacts of campus sustainability actions, assigns the campus a rating, and shows what areas of campus need improvements and how to make them. In 2011, Westminster was the first institution in Utah to receive a silver rating.
  • Rocky Mountain Power Blue Sky Legacy Award. In 2020, Westminster became the first college or university honored with the Rocky Mountain Power Blue Sky Legacy Award. The award recognizes the university as a longtime visionary supporter of the Blue Sky Renewable Energy program and an organization dedicated to making a difference in its community with sustainability measures.
  • A Princeton Review Top Green College. Westminster University is listed in The Princeton Review’s Guide to Green Colleges as one of the nation’s most environmentally responsible colleges, a recognition the university received multiple times.
westminster commons

Reducing Westminster’s Carbon Footprint

Westminster has 3 solar arrays and purchases additional renewable energy credits to reduce the campus’s energy footprint. The campus also has a LEED® Platinum-certified building—the Meldrum Science Center—which features rain and snowmelt harvesting, energy efficiency (including solar panels), and advanced lighting controls.

Gardens and Trees

Several gardens on campus were created in 2007 to showcase sustainable landscaping practices and were later rehabilitated by an Environmental Studies program capstone class. These outdoor learning spaces feature native plants, xeriscape principles, and wildlife habitats. There is even a whole garden featuring plants included in the works of Shakespeare.

The Organic Garden is a special garden that serves as a space for students to collectively grow, eat, and learn more about sustainable food. Anyone can get involved.

Waste-Free Westminster

The Waste-Free Westminster initiative began when Rosanise Odell (Honors College ’18) decided to lead the initiative to move Westminster University towards a zero-waste future after touring a local waste facility and observing the wasteful lifestyles people lead. Odell's work has continued to impact the community through a variety of student-led initiatives on campus.

solar arrays with green mountains in the background

student in organic garden

two students dining

Do Your Part

You can help create a more eco-friendly campus by taking advantage of the resources and services available to you as students, faculty, and staff.

Use Alternative Transportation Options

As a member of the Westminster community, you have access to multiple transportation options that can cut down on your total greenhouse gas emissions during your commute.

  • Free UTA premium transit pass: Current students, faculty, and staff receive an ID card that serves as a free Utah Transit Authority (UTA) premium pass to use on a UTA Bus, Express Bus, TRAX, and FrontRunner. For questions, visit the reception desk in the Health, Wellness, and Athletic Center. You can use UTA’s website, the Transit app, or Google Maps to plan your commute.
  • Bike rental: The Bike Collective offers short- and long-term bike rental options.
  • Designated green parking: Parking spots are available for carpools and fuel-efficient vehicles in the lot between Jewett and Foster Hall.
  • Electric vehicle charging stations: Charging stations are located on the main floor of the northwest parking structure, under the southeast corner of Dumke Field, and at the L.S. Skaggs Integrated Wellness Center

Join the Thrift Collective

This student-run pop-up thrift store runs several times per semester, which allows Westminster students to shop for thrifted goods on campus. Donations of clothing and home goods can be made at the Bassis Center in Nightingale Hall.

Recycle on Campus

Westminster is committed to making recycling easy for the campus community. Blue recycling bins are located on each floor of every building on campus. Recycling is co-mingled, meaning plastic, paper, cardboard, and metals go in the same bin. Glass cannot go into the blue bins, however, glass recycling is available outside the northwest corner of Meldrum Science Center. To learn more about recycling, including what items are recyclable in Salt Lake City, visit the Salt Lake City Government's list of co-mingled recyclables.

Practice Sustainable Living

There are many ways to practice sustainable living and make an impact on campus through everyday action:

  • Choose reusable dishes, silverware, and to-go containers in Shaw
  • When using pay for print, submit print jobs as 2-sided when possible and only print items you need on paper
  • Participate in the Organic Garden to learn more about growing fresh, healthy food for the campus community
  • Obey Westminster's no idling policy

There is no absolute crisis or absolute hope. Crisis and hope are intertwined in a dynamic relationship like two tango dancers. Sometimes, crisis looms large; other times, hope comes into view. The relationship between crisis and hope is always in flux. Recognizing that keeps me going.

Read the Story

illustration of a human head with green sprout growing out the top

 

Xiumei Pu

assistant professor of environmental studies