Faculty and staff at Johns Hopkins play an important role in helping the institution become a leader in sustainability. These JHU affiliates can easily transition to a more sustainable workplace by using the resources compiled below.
IMPORTANT UPDATE: Due to COVID-19, the Green Office Certification program will be put on hold until fall 2021.
The Green Office Certification program is managed by the Office of Sustainability and gives offices at Hopkins an opportunity to showcase their sustainability achievements. While the certification process is not required, we encourage offices to follow the sustainable practices listed in the checklist to help Hopkins be a more sustainable institution. If your office is interested in completing the checklist and becoming one of over 60 Green Office Certified offices, please follow the steps below:
Although technological advancements have allowed for the transition to a more paperless office, many people still struggle with documents that require printing. When printing is necessary, following the steps below can help reduce your paper consumption and environment impact:
We use a countless amount of energy everyday in our offices and homes everyday through our computers, personal appliance, lighting, A/V equipment, heating and cooling, and so much more. By reducing your energy consumption at work, you can help the university reduce its emissions on its path to meet Hopkins’ 51% reduction goal by 2025. By following the steps below, you can help reduce your office’s energy consumption:
Many offices have sustainability champions who lead the way to make their offices greener, however, it can sometimes be difficult to increase participation and engagement amongst office peers. To mitigate this challenge, we recommend launching a Green Team, which is a group of sustainability-minded faculty and staff at Johns Hopkins who come together to be sustainability change agents in their workplace. Green Teams can be formed at the office, department, or division level, but we recommend forming a team with colleagues that are located in the same space.
As a Green Team, you can work to evaluate your office’s current sustainability practices, determine areas of improvement and make recommendations to your office’s decision makers, and host educational events and luncheons for colleagues outside of the team. The Green Teams program is managed by the Office of Sustainability, and to receive updates about the Green Office Certification program and Green Team networking opportunities, please sign up for our listserv!
We’ve compiled several resources and guides to help you and your peers easily make your offices more sustainable. These resources can be sent to your departments or printed in common spaces to help spread the word about sustainability and greening practices. If you have further questions or would like additional resources, please email us at sustainability@jhu.edu.