Luther College named finalist in 2012 Climate Leadership Awards

Luther College has been named a finalist in the 2012 Climate Leadership Awards program.

Now in its third year, Climate Leadership Awards are a project of Second Nature, a non-profit sustainability advocacy organization that operates in conjunction with the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment.

The awards recognize innovation and excellence in climate leadership at signatory institutions of the ACUPCC. Luther College is a charter signatory of the organization.

Luther was selected as a finalist on the basis of its achievements in campus sustainability.  Finalists are selected in five different Carnegie Classifications of institutions of higher education.

Each of the finalist colleges and universities will produce a short video highlighting the innovations that were the basis of their finalist selection.  The videos will be entered in a national voting competition in March and April at the Planet Forward website (PlanetForward.org).

Viewers will vote on the most innovative and ground-breaking institution in each Carnegie Classification. The institutions with the most votes have the chance to be featured in a Planet Forward PBS Television special in 2012.  

All finalists will be featured in a Planet Forward weekly webisode or newsletter.  Climate Leadership Award winners will be announced and recognized at the 2012 ACUPCC Climate Leadership Summit, June 21-22 at American University in Washington, D.C.
The Climate Leadership Awards are part of Second Nature's program to highlight campus innovation and leadership in the transition to a clean, just, and sustainable future.

 Luther College initiatives

Luther has launched numerous sustainability initiatives in pursuit of its goal of reducing the college's carbon footprint by 50 percent.

In 2004 Luther invested $1.5 million in energy efficiency initiatives that reduced electricity consumption by 23 percent and heating fuel consumption by 16 percent.  In 2010-11 Luther invested another $500,000 in energy efficiency by securing matching funds from the Iowa Office of Energy Independence Energy Efficiency Community Block Grant program.

In the fall of 2011, Luther erected a 1.6-megawatt wind turbine that will generate one-third of the electricity the campus consumes each year.

In 2011 a donor-funded 4-kilowatt solar system was installed at Luther's Sustainability House to produce all of the electricity consumed by this student residence. Financing for a 20-kilowatt solar project has been secured for another campus residential complex.

Luther secured a federal grant and seed funding from the Rocky Mountain Institute to create an Energy Conservation program with a goal of reducing the college's energy consumption by 5 percent per year through investments in energy efficiency technology and behavior change.

In 2007, Luther created a sustainability office to guide the college's sustainability initiatives. In 2010-11, student workers logged nearly 5,500 hours with 10 project managers, 12 recyclers, and eight gardeners. Sustainability Reps in residence halls encourage participation in an energy conservation pledge, green room certification program, and a national energy competition.

The sustainability office manages various sustainable transportation programs, including a regional shuttle program with service to five metropolitan areas and a student-created ride-share website. Luther offers a local shuttle to retail stores, a car-share program, a bike-share program, winter bike storage, and a campus bike workshop.

Luther promotes sustainability through its curriculum with faculty development workshops and orientation programs. The college collaborates with regional and national sustainability organizations to develop curricular and co-curricular course work with student groups and operations. Luther also operates an inter-disciplinary environmental studies program that serves as the hub for sustainability education.  

As of fiscal year 2010-11, Luther had reduced its carbon footprint 22 percent. On the basis of its sustainability achievements, Luther was one of only eight campuses nationwide to earn an A on the College Sustainability Report Card.