NYU Initiatives
Individual action is vital in the battle against climate change.
However, it's absolutely necessary to have significant change occur on an institutional level. NYU is advancing a variety of sustainability initiatives to achieve our climate goals.
NYU Dining Halls Explore Plant Forward Menus
NYU dining locations offered different plant based meals and delicious ways to reduce food-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
One day of plant forward dining at two dining halls on campus led to a reduction of around 55 metric tons of GHG emissions. That’s an amount equivalent to planting over 900 trees or swapping out over 2,000 incandescent bulbs with LEDs. This plant based menu reduced NYU's GHG emissions by around 90% compared to the typical foods that are served.
NYU Campus Safety Procures Its First Electric Vehicle
In support of NYU’s sustainability goals, Campus Safety is in the process of procuring the first 100-percent electric vehicle, expected to be on the road by mid-2023. Recharged on campus, the fully-electric vehicle will add to the fleet of 6 hybrid models currently in use by Campus Safety team members, further reducing carbon emissions. The vehicle will feature special branding and artwork to note its fully-electric capabilities.
NYU Campus Safety Rolls Out Bicycle Response Unit
The Department is bringing back its Bicycle Response Unit for the first time in over a decade, creating a way for Campus Safety team members to respond more quickly - and sustainably - to incidents that happen in and around our facilities. Bike Response Unit team members will be outfitted with special uniforms and receive appropriate training to operate their bicycles safely.
NYU Facilities Organizes Pop-up Organics Collection
Turn your organics into compost or renewable energy! Organic materials that end up in landfills contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. NYU community members kept food waste out of the landfill by participating in 2040 Now’s expanded compost pick-up. For more information on which materials are accepted, please visit the sustainability waste page.
NYU Facilities Organizes E-Waste Collection
Placing electronics in the trash is illegal and has negative impacts on the environment when they end up in landfills. During the week of 2040 Now, NYU community members were able to dispose of electronics properly at the bookstore and at the 2040 Now Center - in addition to the usual pick-up service. For more information on which materials are accepted please visit the sustainability waste page.
NYU IT Digital Spring Cleaning
As members of the NYU community, we all store things on the cloud, including through NYU Drive and NYU Box, email, Google Photos, Google Groups, NYU Stream, WordPress and Wikis, and Google Sites. Take part in the digital spring cleaning by deleting what you don’t need. You can also focus on sending greener emails by limiting the size of attachments you send, only saving important attachments to NYU Drive, avoiding using “reply to all,” and unsubscribing from emails you don’t read. Learn more about the Digital Storage Spring Cleaning and get more tech tips!