Introduction

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    “Each community can take from the bounty of the earth whatever it needs for subsistence, but it also has the duty to protect the earth and to ensure its fruitfulness for the coming generations.”

    Pope Francis, On Care for Our Common Home – Laudato Si’

Inspired by the teachings of Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si’, The Catholic University of America is committed to advancing sustainability across our campus and broader community. As “a comprehensive Catholic and American institution of higher learning,” The Catholic University of America offers a distinctive contribution to the entire nation with an important opportunity to address the national conversation on environmental stewardship within the context of the University’s Catholic mission and identity.

Our Five-Year Sustainability Plan released in FY 2021 outlined goals and strategies for reducing our environmental impact and promoting a more sustainable future. As the initial five-year period concludes, we reflect on the progress we have made towards increasing the sustainability of our community.

Over the past five years, we have established the Office of Campus Sustainability; earned top recognition for sustainability efforts from the U.S. Department of Education, the District of Columbia, and the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education; constructed the region’s largest solar array; achieved two LEED building certifications; planted over 500 trees; and engaged hundreds of community members in sustainability initiatives.

The following report highlights our major accomplishments over the past five years in leadership and recognition, campus facilities, and community engagement. The report concludes with an overview of the environmental impact of this work.

Leadership and Recognition

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    “Over the past five years, we have made considerable progress towards improving the environmental well-being of the campus and the greater community. The conclusion of our first Five-Year Sustainability Plan is not an ending; it is the launchpad for continued vigilance in the next decade and beyond.”

    Debra Nauta-Rodriguez, Associate Vice President for Facilities Planning and Management / University Architect

The Catholic University of America has a legacy of committed and active leadership in sustainability at the local, national, and international levels. At Catholic University we have turned our commitments into actions that are visible across campus, from academics to community engagement to our buildings and grounds, resulting in recognition from a wide variety of organizations focused on sustainability.

Key achievements include:

As a result of our efforts, Catholic University has earned the following recognition for sustainability best practices:

Campus Facilities

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    “This West Campus Solar Array project is not just a renewable energy venture; it’s a testament to The Catholic University of America’s dedication to creating a sustainable future for our nation and world.”

    Dr. Peter Kilpatrick, University President

Catholic University aims to provide a vibrant, challenging, and uplifting collegiate experience for students and the greater Catholic University community. Over the past five years, the Office of Campus Sustainability — in partnership with the Offices of Facilities Planning and Design Management, Facilities Maintenance and Operations, and Capital Project Management — and others across campus have accomplished a variety of sustainable infrastructure projects.

Key achievements include:

  • Completing construction of the West Campus Solar Array, 2024.
  • Achieving LEED Gold certification for the Conway School of Nursing, 2024.
  • Pursuing WELL certification for the Conway School of Nursing Building, ongoing.
  • Achieving LEED Silver certification for Garvey Hall, 2023.
  • Installing new stormwater management devices at Garvey Hall, the West Campus Solar Array, the Welcome Plaza, and the Conway School of Nursing Building, 2023–2024.
  • Instituting a back-of-house compost program for all food waste generated in the campus kitchens, 2023.
  • Introducing battery recycling to campus, 2024.
  • Adding over a dozen filtered-water bottle filling stations, 2021–2025.
  • Planting over 500 trees across campus, 2021–2025.
  • Completing a comprehensive tree survey of campus, 2022.
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    West Campus Solar Array

    Catholic University's West Campus Solar Array is a unique public and private partnership to build the largest community solar facility in the District of Columbia and greater DMV region. The 6 MW array provides locally generated, renewable energy in support of the District's renewable energy goals. It also supports learning and research opportunities for students and creates a healthy, local ecosystem.
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    The Conway School of Nursing Building

    The Conway School of Nursing Building was designed to achieve both LEED Gold (LEED Building Design & Construction v4, Certified Gold, 2024) and WELL certification in alignment with the university's commitment to sustainability, human health, and well-being. Key features of the building include ongoing monitoring of air quality and thermal conditions to maximize occupant health and wellbeing, a focus on lighting and acoustics to support the unique needs and preferences of users, and the selection of biophilic design elements and high-quality furnishings that support indoor air quality and minimize toxins in the built environment.

Community Engagement

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    “Whether I’m providing a tour to local elementary students interested in learning about our solar arrays, working with faculty to design class projects focused on sustainability, or collecting hundreds of items for donation during our Move-Out Donation Drive, I am inspired daily by the care that our community has for our environment.”

    Gabrielle Choate, Director, Office of Campus Sustainability

Catholic University offers students, staff, and faculty a variety of ways to get involved in sustainability efforts on campus — from academics to student organizations to finding new ways to live a more sustainable life. Over the past five years, the Office of Campus Sustainability has partnered with offices and departments across campus on the following initiatives.

General Sustainability Education

  • Conducting 30 sustainability tours of campus for students, faculty, staff, and the broader community, 2021–2025.
  • Adding Office of Campus Sustainability information to all staff and faculty orientation sessions, 2022–2025.
  • Launching a Student Government Association Environmental Executive Initiative, 2021–2025.
  • Certifying 10 campus offices during the first-ever Green Office Certification Program for staff and faculty offices on campus, 2023.
  • Creating a new staff and faculty engagement opportunity at the building level called Sustainability Captains, 2022–2025.

Academics

  • Instructing three dozen students over four semesters as part of four independent study courses in partnership with the School of Architecture and Planning and the School of Engineering, 2022–2023.
  • Facilitating eight classroom collaborations in partnership with the School of Architecture and Planning and the Busch School of Business, 2021–2025.
  • Facilitating a monthly Center for Teaching Excellence Connect & Collaborate series to foster conversations with faculty on improving sustainability education, 2022–2025.

 Environment

  • Hosting three community tree planting events on campus in partnership with Casey Trees and three invasive vine removal events on campus with the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, 2023–2025.
  • Growing over 1,600 pounds of produce in the community garden and donating it to Cardinal Cupboard, the on-campus food pantry, 2021–2025.
  • Enhancing the community garden to include a permanent fence, paved walkways, a greenhouse, and raised beds, 2021–2025.
  • Establishing a new service site with the Franciscan Monastery Garden Guild, 2021–2025.
  • Introducing three beehives to West Campus in collaboration with the D.C. Beekeepers Alliance, 2024–2025.

Zero Waste

  • Recovering over 6,000 pounds of donations, including clothing, bedding, and residence hall room essentials during the first-ever spring and fall Move-Out Donation Drives, 2023–2024.
  • Hosting the first-ever Move-In Free Sale to offer clothing, bedding, and residence hall room essentials to students for free at the start of the fall semester, 2023.
  • Opening Cardinal Closet, the free on-campus thrift store, welcoming 700 patrons, and facilitating over 3,500 thrifts, 2022–2025.
  • Hosting two community electronic waste recycling events that collected 5,195 pounds of waste, 2023–2024.
  • Rescuing over 1,000 pounds of leftover food from campus events through a partnership with Food Rescue US - DC Chapter, 2023–2024.
  • Piloting a Free Food Alert for students, staff, and faculty to donate food left over after events to campus subscribers, 2025.
  • Hosting the first-ever campus wide office supply swap for staff and faculty to reduce waste in campus offices, 2023.
  • Hosting two on-campus trash clean-ups in the North Woods, 2022–2025.
  • Starting a Recycled Materials Closet in the School of Architecture and Planning to reduce waste at the end of the semester and promote resource sharing and recycling among students, 2023.
  • Creating a new listserv for staff to use to swap durable office goods, 2023.
  • Donating surplus furniture and supplies to local non-profit organizations, 2022–2025.
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    West Campus Solar Array Tour

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    Community Garden Volunteer Event
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    Bee Hives at the West Campus Solar Array
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    Unpacking Donations from the Move Out Donation Drive for Cardinal Closet
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    North Woods Clean-Up Volunteer Event
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    Community Garden Volunteer Event
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    Cardinal Closet

    Cardinal Closet is Catholic University’s on-campus free thrift store. The Closet began as a student project when Juliana Walsh, B.A. 2024, wanted to address the issues of waste, fast fashion, and resource insecurity on campus. The Closet opened in Fall 2022 and carries women’s and men’s clothing in all sizes. It includes business, casual, athletic, formal, and maternity clothes, and more, and was an instant success on campus, welcoming over 100 students during its first semester and over 700 students, staff, and faculty members in the years since.
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    Community Garden

    In Spring 2021, students decided to resurrect the campus community garden. They started with a couple raised garden beds and have since expanded from harvesting a few dozen pounds of produce to hundreds of pounds of produce each year. In 2024, the garden was awarded a grant by the D.C. Department of Energy and Environment and the Chesapeake Bay Trust, which enabled the installation of new raised garden beds that include an ADA accessible raised garden bed and a small greenhouse. The new beds will dramatically increase the garden’s production capacity in future years and provide opportunities for all community members to volunteer and benefit from time in the garden.
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    Move-Out Donation Drive and Move-In Free Sale

    For the first time in recent years, Catholic University hosted a Move-Out Donation Drive in 2023. All on-campus students were invited to donate any items that they did not want to take home with them over the summer. Students donated approximately 75 bags worth of clothing and bedding to Habitat for Humanity, plus some rugs and small appliances; three boxes of food and personal care items to Cardinal Cupboard; and approximately 30 bags worth of clothing to Cardinal Closet. In addition, students donated a full, 20-foot shipping container's worth of room supplies, including rugs, chairs, tables, organizational cubes, storage drawers, kitchen supplies, and more.

    Following the success of the Move-Out Donation Drive, the Office of Campus Sustainability hosted the first ever Move-In Free Sale in August 2023. The goal of the free sale was to offer all the room supply items donated during the donation drive back to students at the start of the fall semester to encourage reuse and foster a zero waste mindset among our students. Students were enthusiastic about the event, and nearly every item donated was claimed. The few remaining items were donated to Goodwill.