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Individual. Global. Exceptional.

Sustainable Smith

Students collecting sap from a tree

In 1886, Florence Merriam Bailey, a student concerned about the plight of birds, started the Smith College Audubon Society and began weaving the fabric of sustainability at Smith that can now be found across all aspects of the college—in academics, operations, research and student life. Smith prepares women through active learning and societal engagement to foster and lead sustainable, just communities and to make significant and lasting contributions to address the critical issues of the times. Like Florence, students are frequently at the heart of sustainability issues on campus. You’ll find their stories throughout these pages.

Explore Sustainable Smith

Two students working on a project
Study Sustainability
Student working at Field Station
Experiential Learning
Four students working for "EcoReps"
Student Culture
View from above the atrium in Ford Hall with students working in small groups
Our Campus
Audience at a workshop of Study Group on Climate Change, Smith College
Climate Leadership
Solar panels on Campus Center, Smith College
Campus Sustainability & Planning

Featured Events

Featured Event
Oct
24

Sustainable Foods Showcase

  • Campus Center Carroll Room, 11:00-2:00

  • Dining Services is excited to host this opportunity for the Smith community to meet some of the people and learn more about the companies that provide us with the delicious food we eat on campus! Samples? You betcha! Smith Students for Food Justice (SSFJ) will be there, too, to tell you more about the Real Food Challenge and how Smith is helping support a more social and environmentally just food system. 
Oct
25

Creating, Preserving and Defending the Paris Accord on Climate Change

  • Seelye Hall 201, 5:00

  • with Andrew Light, University Professor of Philosophy, Public Policy, and Atmospheric Sciences, and Director of the Institute for Philosophy and Public Policy at George Mason University. Light is also a Distinguished Senior Fellow in the Climate Program at the World Resources Institute in Washington, D.C. Sponsored by Philosophy with support of ES&P and CEEDS.
Oct
27

CEEDS' Annual Apple Cider Pressing

  • Chapin Loading Dock, 10:00-2:00

  • Join students and staff from the Center for the Environment, Ecological Design, and Sustainability (CEEDS) to experience a family friendly and tasty New England tradition. We're all about sustainable food! Help us press fresh, Ashfield-grown apples into cider and then have a cup together with a Hadley-made cider donut. 
Oct
29

Lunchbag: A Conversation with Nancy Bell

  • CEEDS, Lower Level Wright Hall, 12:15
  • Nancy Bell is Vermont/New Hampshire Director of The Conservation Fund, and under her leadership has conserved thousand of acres of land in New England. Lunch provided.

For weekly events with a sustainability focus, see the Green Events Calendar →

 

Center for the Environment, Ecological Design & Sustainability

Our center for the environment is a hub for environmental sustainability and research in and outside of the classroom.

LEARN MORE

Two Smith researches take soil samples in a field

What Makes Sustainability at Smith Special?

Two people on a boat, Paradise Pond

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Use The Campus as a Classroom. Through Campus as Classroom, students can take concepts they’ve learned in class, apply them to projects on campus and see firsthand their direct impact on the Smith community. Recent projects have included research to move sediment out of Paradise Pond and the implementation of a program to save energy in science labs.

Students form a circle on the grass in an outdoor classroom

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Study What You Love. Smith’s open curriculum enables students to personalize their education. More than half of its academic departments, including anthropology, economics, engineering, environmental science and policy, geosciences and landscape studies, offer courses in sustainability. In addition, students from any major can add a concentration in climate change or sustainable food.

Low perspective of grass, museums

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Get an International Perspective. The college is committed to creating global citizens who participate in the communities in which they live and steward the resources that sustain them. Through course work, internships, research or a semester abroad, students learn how other countries and organizations are addressing sustainability issues and often return to apply those ideas on campus.

Close-up picture of salad

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Eat Delicious and Nutritious Food. Local foods and sustainability efforts are a priority for Smith College dining. All 15 campus dining halls serve products from local farms whenever possible, and they compost pre- and post-consumer food waste. Many campus events are Zero Waste. Students recently led efforts for Smith to join the Real Food Challenge, a national sustainable food initiative.

Group photo of ecoreps, Smith College

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Live Sustainably in Your House. Ecoreps—student sustainability leaders—help educate their housemates about sustainable living in all 35 of Smith’s residential houses and complexes. Students have initiated a number of programs, including in-house composting and an inter-house competition focused on water conservation.

People stand for a photo inside an outbuilding, Macleish Field Station

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Explore MacLeish Field Station. The 260-acre Ada and Archibald MacLeish Field Station is home to the Bechtel Environmental Classroom, the world’s fifth certified Living Building. The Living Building Challenge uses a stringent set of design and construction standards for environmentally friendly buildings. Students, faculty and staff conduct research and hold events, such as dance performances and art exhibits, at the liberal arts station.

35 faculty members are engaged in sustainability research; 52% of academic departments are engaged in sustainability research; 73 courses include sustainability

 

Students in Sustainability

Lily Carlisle-Reske

Lily Carlisle-Reske

“We founded Smith Students for Food Justice to ask President McCartney to sign the Real Food Challenge Commitment.”

Fereshta Noori

Fereshta Noori

“I love my job [as a Zero Waste crew member] because it reminds me that I'm living in a community that cares about the environment.”

Taz Mueller

Taz Mueller

“I deeply enjoyed the chance to delve into the history of the campus landscape, learn about trees and help convey that information to others.”

Sustainability News

A New Kind of Mapping: Professor Introduces Students to GIS

Students in Jack Loveless' Mapping Our World: Introduction to Geographic Information Systems course are working on a couple of sustainability-focused projects related to the campus landscape and dining.

Small Changes, Big Goals: Smith's Sustainable Office Program

The Sustainable Office Certification Program—piloted through the Office of Campus Sustainability—offers tips on how to make small changes in everyday work practices in order to create a more environmentally friendly campus.

A More Sustainable Smith

Reusable dining ware, more solar panels on college buildings and a new action plan for addressing climate change are just some of the ways that Smith is increasing its sustainability efforts.

Investing in Environmental Sustainability

Smith provided $100,000 to the Smith College Investment Club to create and manage a new portfolio of fossil-fuel-free investments.

Keep Exploring

Green Events Calendar

See our Green Events Calendar for sustainability-oriented events at Smith and in the Pioneer Valley.

Report on Climate Change

The Study Group on Climate Change developed recommendations that allow Smith to contribute to climate solutions, locally and globally.

Campus Center Energy Dashboard

The Campus Center operates with sustainability in mind, and students help track the efforts.

MacLeish Field Station

The MacLeish Field Station offers a living laboratory of diverse ecosystems to study.

Local Foods

Dining Services is committed to supporting local food and sustainability efforts, promoting a more conscious food culture.

Environmental Concentrations

Environmental concentrations in climate change and food sustainability engage students in hands-on experiences.