Sustainability

Campus-wide initiatives focus overall on planning and policy, education and action, and operations. Planning and policy streamline strategies in leadership and decision-making. Operations include the built environment and systemizing the efficient use of resources. Education and research build understanding, deepen knowledge, and inspire careers.

These three areas encompass 10 domains: academics and research, energy, buildings and land use, health and wellness, food and dining, supply chain management, transportation, waste reduction and recycling, water, and community engagement.

The Sustainability Committee stewards the plan, guides the process and campus engagement, and holds the Bryant community accountable.

The Sustainable Campus Community Plan will outline a framework for advancing Bryant's sustainability agenda and improving rankings. The plan will:

• Review Past Efforts: Evaluate sustainability initiatives since 2015, noting successes and areas for improvement.
• Sustainability Plan: Develop a cohesive plan aligning all sustainability activities with clear objectives, strategies, and monitoring metrics.
• Long-Term Sustainability Roadmap: Outline sustainable campus development options through 2030, with milestones towards net-zero emissions by 2050, integrating renewable energy, waste reduction, transportation, and green infrastructure.
• Priority Activities: Identify impactful initiatives for the next three years.
• Implementation and Monitoring: Establish timelines, responsibilities, and resources for priority activities alongside a monitoring framework to track progress toward sustainability goals.

The cabinet and the president will review and approve the recommended plan.

Timeline

• December 2024: Sustainable Campus Working Group compiles draft recommendations for further refinements and discussion 
• Spring 2025: Sustainable Campus Working Group delivers reports with recommendations for advancing Bryant University's sustainability agenda.

In 2024, Bryant partnered with Ecotone Renewables for a new composting system on campus. The system, which produces about 60 percent of its energy, composts food waste eight times faster than natural composting methods and creates a liquid fertilizer in 2 to 3 weeks. The system processes all types of food waste including meat, dairy, vegetables, and other compostables.

From geothermal to renewable energy credits and high-tech efficiency, we have made significant strides in curbing campus energy consumption. We constantly seek new energy-saving measures to add to our efforts.

Bryant University has signed a power purchase agreement with Kearsage Energy for renewable energy credits from multiple solar farms in Rhode Island. This agreement provides off-sets on the electricity invoices from National Grid.  Additionally, Bryant has entered into various solar farm facility agreements with Westerly Solar, Fogland Solar, West Shore Solar, and Smithfield Solar to increase our use of renewable energy. For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, Bryant had approximately 30 percent (equivalent to almost 5 million Kwh) of its electricity from solar power.

Bryant is also investing in solar power through a collaboration with AICU of Rhode Island. Along with five other private higher education institutions in Rhode Island, there is a plan to purchase RECs from a solar farm in Newport, R.I. on the site of a former military installation.

Process for calculating Scope 1 Emissions for Natural Gas

In FY 2021, Bryant’s total Scope 1 (tCO2e) emissions was 3,629.2 tons, compared to 4,073.6 tons in FY 2019.

Bryant used the EPA NEWE conversion factors for calculating the emissions. To calculate the CO2 Emissions, we used the formula of natural gas consumption times conversion factor CO2 emissions. To calculate CH4 Emissions, we used the formula of natural gas consumption times conversion factor CH4 emissions. To calculate NOx Emissions, we used the formula of natural gas consumption times conversion factor NOx emissions. To arrive at the total Scope 1 CO2 emissions, we added the CO2 Emissions, the CH$ Emissions, and the NOx Emissions.

Process for calculating Scope 2 Emissions for Natural Electricity

In FY 2021, Bryant’s total Scope 1 (tCO2e) emissions was 3,716.1 tons, compared to 3,961.7 tons in FY 2019.

Bryant used the EPA NEWE conversion factors for calculating the emissions. To calculate the CO2 Emissions, we used the formula of electricity consumption times conversion factor CO2 emissions. To calculate CH4 Emissions, we used the formula of electricity consumption times conversion factor CH4 emissions. To calculate NOx Emissions, we used the formula of electricity consumption times conversion factor NOx emissions. To arrive at the total Scope 2 CO2 emissions, we added the CO2 Emissions, the CH$ Emissions, and the NOx Emissions.

In total, Bryant’s Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions (tCO2e) for 2021 was 7,345, which is 690 tCO2e lower than in 2019.

Our 465-acre Smithfield campus is mostly wetlands, but it does include 54 buildings with 1.56 million square feet of conditioned space. We plan to develop a campus-wide green building study and increase our use of green cleaning products and organic fertilizers by 60 percent. We use green seal products and kelp-based organic fertilizers on our main campus landscape areas.

Food, athletics, gym use, and health care – each is a component of campus health and wellness initiatives. Our NCAA Division 1 athletic teams, club sports, and popular intramural program illustrate the importance the Bryant community places on exercise and athletic excellence. Sustainability is becoming ever more present with goals to increase the use of local food and fairly traded produce.

Bryant offers through its food service provider, AVI, the NutriSOURCE program. NutriSOURCE is a revolutionary Wellness Program developed by AVI to assist our community members in embracing a healthy lifestyle. It’s a multi-faceted approach to healthy foods, education, and awareness.

From RIPTA buses to car-sharing services, sustainability within our transportation options is rising. With the opening of the Business Entrepreneurship Leadership Center, Bryant now offers shuttle services between the Tupper Campus and the BELC through three electric vans. We are also increasing the number of electric vehicle charging stations on campus from 10 to 15, with five installed at the BELC. We hope to reduce fuel use by 10% from a 2010 baseline by 2025 and increase ride-sharing by 10% from a 2010 baseline by 2025.

RIPTA is free for Bryant University students with a valid student ID.

Our waste reduction and recycling goals include curbing waste in the dining halls, proper disposal of electronics, instituting behavior change programs in the residence halls, and managing discarded materials from move-out at the end of the academic year.

We use more than 65 million gallons of water every year in campus buildings and to maintain grounds. Strategies for reducing water use range from fixing leaks and installing efficient appliances to efficient landscaping and behavioral change. The goal of our sustainability plan is to cut campus water use by 10 percent by 2025.

Student groups, faculty, staff, and administrators' involvement demonstrate and drive community engagement. The John H. Chafee Center for International Business the Executive Education & Career Accelerator promote our core mission and engage local and global communities.

Bryant organizations

• Sustain Us, a student club that promotes sustainability on and off campus through events, outreach, and collaborations

Academic and research opportunities

• Departments with faculty engaged in sustainability research: Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Marketing, History, Literature and the Arts, and Mathematics and Economics.
• Immersive programs. Past programs have included traveling to a Swedish university to conduct studies focusing on economic and technological climate change issues and coral reef studies in Australia.
• An annual outdoor field study, sponsored by the Department of Biological and Biomedical Sciences and supported by a NASA grant, takes students to environmentally significant locations in the United States. Past sites include redwood forests on the California coast and fossil sites in Idaho.
• Student internships with a variety of NGO and governmental organizations, including Save the Bay, Apeiron Institute, Nature Conservancy, U.S. Forest Services, and Reef Relief, in Key West, Fla.

Students:

• Vincent Emery
• Grace McKenzie
• Lily Kimball
• Paulina Herrera
• Leo Donnelly

Staff:

• Thomas Mann (Associate Vice President of Planning, Design, and Construction)
• Colleen Enestvedt (Coordinator of Student Activities and Service)
• John Ruppert (Deputy Director of Athletics)
• Scott Paquin (Manager, Grounds)
• Paige Zuber (Social Media Coordinator)
• Michelle Marcano (Director of Purchasing)

Faculty:

• Robert Patalano, Chair (Professor, Biological and Biomedical Sciences)
• Alex Perullo (Professor, Politics, Law, and Society)
• Michael Gravier (Professor, Marketing)
• Hong Yang (Professor, Biological and Biomedical Sciences)

SustainUs is a vibrant student organization focused on sustainability issues, from raising awareness to changing the way we interact with our campus and the global community.

Follow SustainUs on Instagram.

Sustainable Purchasing

Whenever feasible, the University will prioritize purchasing items that contain recycled content and/or are considered sustainable. Suppliers of these products will be required to provide annual reports to Bryant detailing the quantity and dollar value of purchased goods. Additionally, efforts will be made to ensure that service providers operating on campus adhere to environmentally friendly practices.

Sustainable Donations

The University welcomes charitable contributions from donors. However, it reserves the right to decline gifts that, in its sole judgment, conflict with the University’s commitment to sustainability.