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2008 Initiatives

• Claremont Colleges Tree Canopy
• Solar Technologies for the Claremont Colleges
• Scripps College Food and Sustainability Community Project

2007 Initiatives

• Greening the Office Supply Stream:
  • Major findings
  • Recommendations
  • Virtual catalog
  • Final report
  • Presentation slides
  • Resources
  • Team members
• Urban Ecosystem Analysis Using GIS
• 5-College Environmental Audit

Recommendations

Greening the Claremont Colleges’ Office Supply Stream

Administrative Directives

Simple and specific directives (including non-mandatory ones) to administrative assistants could dramatically diminish some of their environmental impacts. To be effective these directives must be specific; Pomona College has a “general directive” to purchase recycled materials when possible, but most administrative assistants do not act on it because it is vague. Below we propose several policies that the Colleges might consider, either as a single entity or separately:

• A directive to purchase copy paper containing 100% post-consumer recycled content. Because of concerns about the performance of recycled paper, a trial program might be implemented first.
• A directive to return all ink and toner cartridges to the manufacturer. The administration could confer with administrative assistants to determine whether a central pickup program would facilitate cartridge recycling.
• A directive to purchase remanufactured ink and toner cartridges. Such programs would save the colleges money as well as reducing environmental impacts. Again, remanufactured cartridges could be purchased on a limited trial basis at the start of the academic year.
• A directive to purchase pens and markers that include some recycled content and/or are refillable and reusable. Small-scale trials could be adopted in the coming academic year.
• A recommendation to purchase refills for pens and mechanical pencils. Although many refillable writing implements are currently used, refills are seldom purchased.

Download a model flyer on sustainable office products for administrative assistants and faculty who order office supplies.

Specific Green Alternatives

Please see our “Virtual Catalog” for specific recommended green alternatives with links to suppliers.

The ‘Bright Green’ Office

The final report also describes additional components that could be included in a “bright green” office — a space that would be substantially more eco-friendly than an office as currently designed. Many of these suggestions pertain to the fundamental structural design of buildings, and thus would not be enacted with the same immediacy as the operational changes proposed earlier in this report. These suggestions are intended to be a source of positive discussion and debate as the Colleges continue to move forward toward greater sustainability.

More detailed analysis of the findings is included in the final report .