Harvard receives sustainability award for PBHA weatherization

On Oct. 11, Harvard University received a 2010 Campus and Student Sustainability Award from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) in the “Best Campus Case Study” category.  Harvard was recognized for the 2010 Phillips Brooks House Student Weatherization Project case study describing a collaborative sustainability event during which students and staff partnered to improve the energy efficiency of the Phillips Brooks House in Harvard Yard. The University shared the award with the University of Northern British Columbia.

To learn more about the weatherization project, read the case study submitted to AASHE by the Office for Sustainability or check out the story and video on the sustainability website.

On May 2, 2010 more than 50 Harvard students took a break from studying for finals and picked up caulk guns to implement 23 weatherization projects in the building that will cut energy costs and help contribute to the University’s climate change commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The project was a collaboration between the Office for Sustainability, the Phillips Brooks House Association, the student Environmental Action Committee, and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Green Program. It is estimated to save more than 9 tons of CO₂ emissions and nearly $4,000 in utility costs annually.

The project was initiated when students from the Environmental Action Committee (EAC) approached the Office for Sustainability and Faculty of Arts and Sciences Green Program asking if there was a way to involve students in a weatherization project similar to what is done by Cambridge Home Energy Efficiency Team (http://heetma.com/).