The Boston College Office of Sustainability embraces its goals through the following areas:

Energy and Climate Change

Water and Air Quality

Education and Outreach

Leadership and Social Justice

Landscape and Natural Features

Clean Transportation

Waste Reduction and Recycling

LEED Buildings

About Us

What We Do

The Office of Sustainability at Boston College serves as a resource and catalyst to advance University goals for campus-wide sustainability. It collaborates with Facilities Management, Boston College Dining Services, and student groups to organize and support various environmental sustainability initiatives and projects. The office works to: 

  • Implement energy conservation measures across facilities
  • Develop a comprehensive approach to energy conservation and water management 
  • Coordinate a recycling and composting program across campus
  • Incorporate and maintain natural features across campus
  • Identify potential sustainability opportunities
  • Measure and report on annual progress toward sustainability goals

 

Meet Our Team

Bruce Dixon

Sustainability Program Manager

BC '21, LEED GA, EBCP

 

Program Assistant 

Elizabeth Sockwell '24, Masters Degree Candidate

 

Sustainability Office Interns

Lauren Dadekian '24, Undergraduate Office Intern

Margaret Ryan '25, Undergraduate Office Intern

Olivia DiRenzo '26, Undergraduate Office Intern

 

Garden Steward

Kate Kelly '24, Garden Steward

 

Contact

300 Hammond Pond Parkway
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467

Email: sustainability@bc.edu

Office Phone: 617-552-3738

Office of Sustainability Website: https://sites.google.com/bc.edu/officeofsustainability

Sustainable News

Suscribe to the Office of Sustainability's listserv for updates about the latest environmental events around campus and the Boston area including events from Boston College's green clubs, campus lectures, and the latest Environmental Eagle newsletter. 

Subscribe to Listserv

Sustainability Newsletter

Read about the latest sustainability inititatives, activites and events taking place on campus in the newsletter from the student group EcoPledge and The Office of Sustainability.

The Environmental Eagle Archive

Environmental Eagle Newsletter

Academic Programs

The interdisciplinary Environmental Studies Program is currently researching ways to conserve the environment, discovering engineering alternatives, and energy efficiency practices.

Environmental Studies Program

The Woods College of Advancing Studies offers a professional studies certificate in sustainability. It is an online, six-course program open to students who hold a high school diploma or a bachelor's degree. It allows recipients to demostrate their compentency in pressing questions of the day, including climate change, effects of population growth, shifting demogaphics, and the ensuing natural resource limits of energy, food, water, materials, and waste.

Sustainability Certificate

Campus Groups

Join the green community.

Bike BC

Bike BC is a student-run bikeshare program serving the entire Boston College community. 

Bike BC

Charity Water

Boston College charity: water is an initiative started by students whose goal is to bring awareness to the global water crisis and raise money to support charity: water campaigns. Since its inception, BC charity: water has been able to raise thousands of dollars and fund the development of a drilling rig and wells in two different villages. 

BC Charity Water

Climate Justice BC

Climate Justice BC aims to educate about the dangers of climate change and how students can be agents for change; unite with local and national climate activists to strengthen social support for climate justice; and to engage in activism within the BC community.

Climate Justice BC

EcoPledge

EcoPledge is Boston College's largest student-run environmental club that works toward making BC more sustainable. EcoPledge educates the BC community about environmental issues by showing films, presenting lectures, and hosting annual celebratory events like Harvestfest and Earth Day. EcoPledge members often go beyond the campus, participating in local community clean-ups, national environmental conferences, and hiking and camping outings throughout New England.

EcoPledge

Green Ambassador Program

Establshed in 2014, Athletics, Facilities Services, and the Office of Sustainability have partnered to make the Green Ambassador program to support ongoing campus recycling efforts. Green Ambassadors welcome fans to BC at selected sites and offer information on game day activities and respond to recycling questions. For information about the Green Ambassador program please email sustainability@bc.edu

Outdoor Adventures

Run by Campus Recreation, Boston College offers students the opportunity to experience nature through day and weekend trips including rock climbing, hiking, sea kayaking, paddleboarding, and backpacking.

Outdoor Adventures

Outdoor Club

The student run Outdoor Club organizes trips for BC students to get outside and enjoy the environment. Trips include hiking, climbing, kayaking, white water rafting, and skiing. 

Outdoor Club

Real Food BC

Real Food BC is a student group on campus that strives for the establishment of a more sustainable food system by promoting the purchasing of food from local, green, humane sources in order to support localized food production and to reduce carbon emissions that result from long-distance food shipments. BC Dining Services has already taken steps towards more sustainable food procurement. In collaboration with Real Food BC, BC Dining created Addie's Loft, an organic eatery that offers food from local, sustainable sources. 

Real Food BC

Sustainable Living and Learning Community

Run by the Office of Residential Life, this living and learning community educates students on sustainablity and encourages them to be active members in their community. Students apply at the end of their first year and live on the sustainability floor during their sophomore year.

Living and Learning Communities

UGBC Environmental Caucus

The Undergraduate Government of Boston College works with environmental clubs on campus to create a greener BC. Their Environmental Caucus is dedicated to sustianabiltiy and making green changes on campus.

UGBC

Student Guide to Sustainable Living at Boston College

The Office of Sustainability created this book as reference guidelines for the Boston College student body. These guidelines cover recycling on campus, conservation efforts, green cleaning, and how to join Environmental Clubs.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us at sustainability@bc.edu.

 

Sustainability Guide 3.1

Student Sustainability Guidelines

How to Recycle and Compost

Single-Stream Recycling

Boston College uses single-stream recycling, which means you can throw all your recyclables in one bin without any need to sort them. However, make sure to rinse containers before recycling them, and do not recycle plastic bags.

What Can you Recycle?

Most recyclable items can be placed in single-stream recycling bins, including:

  • Plastics #1-7
  • Glass and plastic bottles
  • Empty, clean cardboard food and drink containers
  • Aluminum cans: soda, tuna, etc.
  • Empty, clean, plastic food containers, etc.
  • Newspapers, magazines, junk mail, cardboard

 

Why Compost?

Composting is good for the land, reduces dependence on fossil fuels, and reduces landfill waste and incineration. Compost can be turned into a natural fertilizer, adding nutrient-rich soil to the land and promoting biodiversity.

Composting is a lot easier than recycling. Dining staff will compost for you in Corcoran Commons, McElroy Commons, Lyons Hall and Stuart Dining Hall. All food that you haven't eaten goes into the compost bin.

What Can You Compost?

  • Fruit and vegetables
  • Meat
  • Poultry
  • Bones and fat trimmings
  • Dairy products
  • Eggshells
  • Coffee grounds
  • Paper napkins
  • Tea bags