The Old Civil Engineering (CE) Building has earned a certification in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), following its renovation’s completion in Nov. 2008.

In our instant gratification culture I can understand why environmentalism is not reaching the scale that we had hoped when the whole green fad started. We think short term here in America. This may be because we are such a young nation, or pop culture and media may cause it. Whatever the reason, we are who we are. We like free stuff, bigger is better, we think in quarters (not years), and we like to be comfortable and entertained. Though we may not think of these as our cultural values, they are part of our national personality.

In early October, the Sustainable Endowments Institute released its College Sustainability Report Card. The report card grades universities on their efforts to improve energy efficiency and dedicate sufficient resources to environmental issues.

Tech Dining halls are competing against each other for the gold medal in green services. Brittain and Woodruff dining halls and the Student Center Food Court are currently involved in a series of competitions designed to make our campus more environmentally friendly.

What used to only be found in instrument panels and holiday lightbulb strings, LED (light-emitting diode) technology shows great promise in lighting the way for Tech to a more economic and environmentally-friendly direction.

For the second year in a row, Tech was named to the Princeton Review’s sustainability Honor Roll. The Institute landed in the top 15 with a perfect score, in no particular order. Tech also had the distinction of being the only school from the Southeast to receive this recognition.

Tech has recently been named as a founding partner for Mission Zero, an online community that offers a place to share ideas and ask questions about sustainability issues. The goal of the website is to provide resources for companies interested in taking steps to become zero waste or carbon neutral. Moreover, it is a place for interested participants to learn about sustainability practices and how to implement them.

In order to improve conservation, the Resident Hall Association (RHA) has installed monitors to better manage energy consumption. Teaming up with Students Organizing for Sustainability (SOS), the Environmental Alliance at Georgia Tech (EAGT) and Facilities, RHA upped its efforts to improve sustainability.

By Katie Dextraze

Though it has been a bit overshadowed by the current economic crisis, one of the day’s biggest buzzwords is still “the environment,” and Tech is doing its part to protect it through various methods. Be it through recycling, saving water or even just unplugging a lamp, Tech students across campus are doing their part for conservation.