OSU receives gold designation for sustainability for 10th time

CORVALLIS, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Oregon State University continues to lead in sustainability efforts among university campuses and has received a “gold” designation from a leading higher education sustainability group.

The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS), is administered by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, of which OSU is a member.

With more than 900 participants in 40 countries, the STARS’ program is the most widely recognized framework in the world for publicly reporting comprehensive information related to a college or university’s sustainability performance.

Participants report achievements in five overall areas: academics, engagement, operations, planning and administration, and innovation and leadership. The university has received gold ratings since 2011, and is the first university to have participated 10 times.

"A decade of receiving the gold designation is a great indicator of how comprehensive and consistent OSU's sustainability work has been," said Brandon Trelstad, OSU's sustainability officer.

Oregon State also was the first Oregon university to be rated by STARS in 2011.

Megan Fay Zahniser, director of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, congratulated Oregon State on the milestone.

“Oregon State University has demonstrated a substantial commitment to sustainability by once again achieving a STARS gold rating,” she said. “We commend OSU for reporting annually through STARS and being the first institution to achieve a 10th STARS rating.”

When the STARS Pilot began in 2008, OSU recognized it as a game changer in measuring and managing sustainability within higher education. In the summer of 2010, the sustainability office began the data gathering process for OSU's first STARS submission. The first OSU STARS report was submitted in January 2011.