About Sustainability at Marlboro

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Marlboro College has a rich history of environmental awareness and attention to matters of ecological sustainability. Located on the site of 19th-century hill farms, the campus is built around a cluster of restored historic buildings and reflects the college's respect for the rural landscape. In many cases the tradition of a working landscape has continued, whether in the early maple sugaring operation, run as a commercial student venture, or the Christmas tree plantation, remnants of which may still be found behind campus. More recently, students have operated an organic farm since 2002 and helped harvest and mill pines from the college's own forests for use in the new Outdoor Program addition. The OP features extensive opportunities to engage with the local landscape, from snowshoeing to whitewater kayaking, as well as expeditionary learning much farther afield-Costa Rica, Belize and Ouje-Bougoumou, Quebec, among other places.

The early 1970s represented the birth of Marlboro's environmental studies curriculum. A long-standing interest supported at Marlboro by physicist John MacArthur, forester Halsey Hicks and several other faculty was enhanced by new faculty hires in chemistry, economics, biology and anthropology. The faculty created a co-taught introductory survey course in environmental studies and began to support student work and sponsor interdisciplinary Plans in this growing field. Marlboro College Graduate School now offers an MBA in Managing for Sustainability, an exciting new program that expands our degree options while extending our commitment to environmental studies to surrounding professional community.

Committees involved with sustainability efforts

• The Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC)
• Environmental Quality Committee (EQC)
• Farm Committee (also see the Organic Farm page)
  
• Standing Building Committee

Other groups

• Student Life encourages students to live in an environmentally friendly way in the dorms. Students are encouraged to recycle and to heat their dorm rooms properly.
• Edible Landscape is an ad-hoc committee incorporating local edible food into our campus community. They are working to plant more apple trees, berry bushes, and other edible plants around campus.
• Work Coordinators are responsible for coordinating voluntary work on campus. Much voluntary work is ongoing and includes projects such as building the new Greenhouse and OP extensions and working on the farm. Each semester there is a dedicated "Work Day" in which the whole community comes together to work on a variety of projects.
• The Kitchen is an integral part of sustainability and community life. The director and staff work with the Farm Committee on planning what to plant, using college farm grown food, and composting kitchen and dining hall waste. They also work with the Food Committee to provide high quality, locally sourced produce and meals that meet students dietary needs.

Additional information

• Environmental Mission Statement
• Courses in Environmental Studies
• MBA in Managing for Sustainability (Marlboro College Graduate School)
• Clean Energy Grant Disclosure (PDF)
• Ecological Footprint Calculator Manual - Spring 2011 (PDF)