Yale’s efforts to create a more sustainable campus began more than 15 years ago. Significant milestones in this process have been:

2005: Creation of the Yale Office of Sustainability which reports jointly to the Associate Provost and the Associate Vice President of Facilities operations.

2004: Sustainability Director position created as a means to foster development of sustainability programs and to increase collaboration and coordination among University groups on these issues.

2004: The Advisory Committee on Environmental Management proposed eight environmental targets to the Office of the Provost, seven of which were endorsed and are in the process of being implemented.

2002: A set of Environmental Principles were proposed by ACEM and endorsed by President and the Officers.

2001: Office of the Provost established the Advisory Committee on Environmental Management and appointed faculty, staff and students as members.

1998: In the spring of 1998, environmental issues received heightened attention on campus when a group of undergraduate students produced the Yale Green Plan and submitted its findings and recommendations to Yale College administrators.

1995: Yale Student Environmental Coalition hosted the Campus Earth Summit (CES), supported by the Heinz Family Foundation, an international student nvironmental conference with over 5000 representatives from all fifty states, twenty-four countries, and six continents. Students and administrators gathered at Yale to draft a plan for making college campuses a model of environmental behavior, entitled The Blueprint for a Green Campus. The Blueprint was subsequently further developed and has been distributed nationally to environmental groups and legislators.

1987: Creation of a Recycling program within the Facilities Department.