Sustainable SUNY Sullivan

SUNY Sullivan is quickly becoming a leader in sustainability education. Our Green Building Maintenance and Management associate’s degree program is laying the foundation for a new “green collar” workforce. Our Environmental Studies program offers a science-based approach to tackling today’s complex ecological issues. We are also committed to infusing sustainability throughout our curricula and are currently offering more than 60 courses, spanning every division on campus, that are sustainability-related or sustainability-focused. We even have non-credit workshops and courses to expand your personal or professional sustainability-related skills.

And as for our campus...
SUNY Sullivan has been incorporating sustainable practices into its campus operations for many years now. In 2002, we installed a geothermal system to heat and cool our buildings and in 2010, we installed a 3 kW photovoltaic array. Our 2.5 kW wind turbine is in the process of being erected this fall.

We have added low-flow plumbing fixtures to conserve water, retrofitted our lighting and building automation systems to improve our energy efficiency, and installed exterior solar lighting to brighten a walking path leading to our baseball and soccer fields.

We even started an organic community garden and constructed a straw bale garden shed—projects initiative by our Honors Program and Green Building Maintenance and Management students, respectively. Some of the food grown in our garden is used by dining services, further advancing Chartwells’ many sustainability initiatives. We are currently conducting a Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory, implementing strategies for waste reduction, and working on updating our purchasing policies to better reflect our commitment to sustainability.

These and other efforts help reduce our energy costs, make our facilities more efficient, and minimize our impact on the environment.