WKU News

WKU has been recognized as the 284th World's Most Sustainable University in the University of Indonesia Green Metric World University Rankings.

WKU was among 780 universities from 85 countries that were invited to participate in the 2019 rankings.

“WKU has always held a position of leadership in sustainability in the region,” said Dr. Leslie North, director of WKU’s Office of Sustainability. “For us to be among the first in Kentucky and among our benchmark institutions to achieve this recognition shows we are being a leader and are dedicated to sustainability.”

The UI Green Metric World University Rankings are “our first international recognition of campuswide sustainability efforts,” she said.

WKU has earned national recognition and certifications in recent years as part of the AASHE STARS (Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System), Tree Campus USA, U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools and more.

UI GreenMetric World University Rankings is the first and only university rankings in the world that measure each participating university’s commitment in developing an “environmentally friendly” infrastructure. The rankings look at six indicators of each university (setting and infrastructure, energy and climate change, waste, water, transportation and education).

WKU’s submission included data on area of campus covered by forest and vegetation, budget for sustainability efforts, energy efficiency, green buildings, recycling and waste reduction programs, water conservation, transportation initiatives, and sustainability education and research. The Office of Sustainability collaborated with groups across campus on the various programs and to collect information for the UI GreenMetric rankings.

“To be able to do what we do with the resources we have available, our partnerships across campus are critical,” Dr. North said.

Contact: Dr. Leslie North, (270) 745-5982 or leslie.north@wku.edu