Initiatives & Resources

Addressing climate change requires action from everyone. As we look towards a more sustainable future, William & Mary has championed a variety of initiatives and created resources to help our community adapt and implement more sustainable practices.

Initiatives

William & Mary is making strides in sustainability all over campus. Here you will find a sampling of projects, programs and initiatives from across the campus that are championed by faculty, students, and staff alike.

Sustaina-bite Lunch Sessions

Bite-sized sustainability information while you take a bite out of lunch, open to faculty, staff, students, and the broader community! Sustaina-bite is a monthly lunchtime discussion featuring a university expert and their area through the blended environmental, social, and economic lens of sustainability.

Recycling

Don't send your stuff to the landfill! Before you recycle please be sure to check the W&M recycling guidelines to learn more about what recyclables are accepted.

Composting

William & Mary’s compost program helps to reimagine the waste cycle by turning our food scraps into nutrient rich organic fertilizer. In collaboration with Dining Services and Student Assembly, the campus compost program has expanded to a fleet of 15 public compost bins that are serviced by a team of Dining Sustainability interns using their Green Fee funded electric golf cart.

W&M+UVA Climate Action Partnership

In December 2019, the Presidents of the University of Virginia and William & Mary - James E. Ryan and Dr. Katherine Rowe - formed a partnership to advance each institution’s goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2030. Some benefits of the partnership include accelerated climate action via the potential to replicate and amplify impacts beyond the two schools through shared resources and knowledge and specific project implementation.

Earth Day Bash

For the past two years the Office of Sustainability and Student Assembly have partnered to host the Earth Day Bash. To learn more about this event and prior Earth Week celebrations, check our Earth Week page.

Sustainability Symposium

People and the planet are entwined in a way that is significant both globally and locally to create a more sustainable world for all. Highlighting the voices of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities, the 2021 W&M Sustainability Symposium explored the interconnectedness of societies and ecosystems, arts and action, and individuals and impact.

Resources & Guides

W&M Sustainability acts as a whole-institution resource, helping to empower others to apply a long-term blended environmental, social, and economic lens of sustainability to their area of expertise. These are a few of the resources compiled to help the campus community in their sustainability progress.

Sustainable Living Guide

As is outlined in the W&M Sustainability Plan, our university is committed to increasing communication and education surrounding sustainable living practices both on- and off-campus. W&M Sustainability collected suggestions from our community as a whole, regardless of location, in order to make this Sustainable Living Guide representative of our Tribe.

Sustainability Courses

The Office of Sustainability tracks courses that focus on, or significantly highlight, the connections between the environment and society for reporting purposes and to make them easier for students to identify.

Green Events Guide

Green events reduce resource use, reuse what is possible, and recycle or compost 90% of the event’s waste. A green event organizer emphasizes resource stewardship and sustainable practices. Green events make a difference to environmental and organizational value, and demonstrate how gatherings can be held sustainably.

Green Career Exploration

A green career is any position that attempts to make the world more sustainable. The green careers field is growing in an effort to continue to make the world a safe place. This Cohen Career Center page can help students explore various green career paths.

Food Insecurity

Even on campuses and communities with strong resources and various dining facilities, students, staff, and faculty can often find themselves struggling to find a meal. And when someone is hungry, their educational attainment and lives can be dramatically affected. We encourage those who are in need to take advantage of the food insecurity resources that we have available at W&M.

If you have ideas for other resources, guides, or compilations of information, please let us know at [[sustain]]!