Commitments

Lafayette is working towards commitments and goals to improve campus sustainability. As outlined in the Climate Action Plan 3.0, Lafayette is committed to:

• Carbon neutrality by 2035 – overall since 2008, the College has recorded a 68.60% decrease in market-based greenhouse gas emissions for scopes 1 and 2. As of 2024, Lafayette procures renewable energy for 100% of campus electricity, eliminating scope 2 emissions under the market‑based method. Below you will see a 184.76% “increase” in scope 3 due to more advanced data collection and analysis on additional categories of impact.
• 40% waste diversion from landfill by 2030, 60% by 2035 – with a current diversion rate of 26%

During the 2025-2026 academic year, Lafayette underwent a planning process to update our CAP 2.0 with new strategies to reach our commitment to carbon neutrality by 2035. Learn more and read about CAP 3.0.

Standards

Lafayette has set several standards to ensure future improvements to campus are in line with sustainability goals. These include:

• 100% of new construction and large renovations to meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) silver or higher
• 100% native species for new plantings, including 8,000 square feet of new native plantings in 2022-2023
• Facilities standards to ensure to energy conservation and waste minimization across campus

Recognition

Gold STARS Rating

Lafayette has earned a gold rating for its sustainability initiatives from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). AASHE’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) is a transparent, self-reporting framework for colleges and universities across the world to measure their sustainability performance.  Lafayette previously held a silver rating. Since then, Lafayette has made significant advancements in several areas that led to its gold rating. Read the full report to learn more about Lafayette’s sustainability initiatives that led to this achievement.

Sustainability Achievement Award

The Association of the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) recognized Lafayette for participating in a power purchase agreement to buy renewable energy. The Campus Sustainability Achievement Award honors Lafayette’s partnership with Lehigh University, Muhlenberg College, and Dickinson College to purchase renewable energy as a collective. In February 2020, the schools announced that they signed a 15-year virtual power purchase agreement to buy renewable energy generated by a newly constructed 200-plus-acre solar farm in Texas.

PEER Silver Certification

In recognition of its efficient power systems, Lafayette was awarded PEER (performance excellence in electricity renewal) Silver Certification from Green Business Certification Inc. in 2021. This award, modeled after the council’s LEED (leadership in energy and environmental design) program, recognizes electric distribution, heating and generator systems.

The Princeton Review

In their 2025 edition, The Princeton Review included Lafayette on it’s “green college” list, which includes 511 environmentally responsible schools that share superb sustainability practices, a strong foundation in sustainability education, and a healthy quality of life for students on campus. Lafayette is ranked number 35, making the top 50 schools with a Green Rating.

History

With support from passionate students, faculty and staff, Lafayette has been advancing sustainability initiatives for decades. In 2008 President Dan Weiss pledged that Lafayette College would address climate change by signing the President’s Climate Commitment and initiating the development of Lafayette’s Climate Action Plan 1.0, which led to the College setting a goal of a 60% reduction in emissions relative to 2007 levels by 2039. Since then, the College completed a campus-wide energy audit, established an Office of Sustainability in 2016, and in 2019, developed the Climate Action Plan 2.0 for reaching carbon neutrality by 2035. As the plan is to be updated every 5 years, Lafayette underwent data collection, research and stakeholder engagement to renew the plan during the 2025-2026 academic year. Climate Action Plan 3.0 evaluates greenhouse gas emissions with proposed pathways for reduction, as well as climate risk, vulnerability, resiliency and adaptation. Lafayette releases a Campus Sustainability Report yearly, which tracks progress towards our climate, waste, academic and programmatic goals detailed in the Climate Action Plan.