Do Actions Speak as Loud as Words? Commitments to “Going Green” on Campus

Abstract

Signatories to the American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) pledge to pursue a path toward carbon neutrality through the choice of a set of Tangible Actions (TAs). The actions can be chosen either because they will lead to reductions or because they are the easiest to achieve. By exploiting the variation in the TAs chosen by colleges, we find evidence for both of these motivations. We find evidence that schools focusing their efforts on improving energy efficiency have achieved swift reductions. Conversely, schools pledging to use green power are generally already utilizing it and therefore do not achieve additional reductions. We conclude with suggestions for improvement in the ACUPCC reporting system that would improve potential for analysis. (JEL Q01, Q40, Q56)

Smart Campuses: Extensive Review of the Last Decade of Research and Current Challenges

“…In 2007, a group of college and university presidents signed the American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC), a commitment to pursue the goal of carbon neutrality on their campuses. Sirianni and O'Hara [172] looked at the actions chosen to achieve this objective and the results two years after taking the commitment. They found that schools focusing on improving energy efficiency have achieved swift reductions of emissions, whereas those pledging to use green power were generally already utilizing it and did not improve their systems to achieve additional reduction.…”