Dear Members of the Barnard Community,
April at Barnard is always a season of renewal, but this year it marks a historic pivot in how we live, learn, and maintain our home in Morningside Heights.
As we work toward our Bold History, Fearless Future goal of a Net-Zero campus by 2040, our progress is defined by a simple truth: sustainability is no longer a "special project." It is becoming the standard for everything we do, from the curriculum in our classrooms to the pipes in our mechanical rooms.
The Seventh Mode: Thinking Ecologically
I am thrilled to share that this April, the faculty voted to add a seventh Mode of Inquiry to our General Education requirements: “Thinking Ecologically and Sustainably.” While this becomes an official requirement for students matriculating in Fall 2028, our students are already leading the way: 92.5% of the current graduating class has already completed a course that would meet this new standard. This milestone was driven by the faculty on the Climate Action Committee, our cross-campus group dedicated to bridging the gap between academic research and campus operations.
Future-Proofing our Infrastructure
While our faculty redefined the curriculum, our Facilities team has been working tirelessly to meet the ambitious standards of NYC’s climate laws (LL97, LL88, and LL87). This isn’t just about compliance; it’s about rebuilding our campus for a new era.
Electrification & Lighting: This fall, we will open the doors to the RDSC, one of the first all-electric academic science buildings in the country lead by capital projects. We’ve also completed a full LED and lighting control retrofit in Elliott Hall, while Linden and Hector from our electric team continue to drive LED conversions across the rest of the campus.
The "Engine Room": None of this works without the people behind the scenes. A huge shout-out to Patrick and the HVAC team for keeping our systems running smoothly and efficiently, and to Oliver and the plumbing team for completing a multi-year water conservation program that replaced every toilet on campus with low-flow models.
Infrastructure Upgrades: From new boiler controls in Plimpton to energy audits in Cathedral Gardens and 600/616/620, the Facilities team is ensuring our buildings work smarter so our carbon footprint stays smaller.
Circularity in Motion
Our "360-degree" mission to reduce waste continues to gain momentum:
GrowNYC Zero Waste Services Pilot Collaboration: We recently completed a full-campus waste audit. The GrowNYC team will be at our Earth Day Festival to share what they learned and help us sharpen our sorting skills.
Give and Go Green: We are ramping up for another season after a record-breaking 2025, where we diverted over 26,000 lbs of materials to community partners and our student Green Sale.
Digital Carbon: Our Climate Action Committee has even joined forces with the AI Working Group to start a Cloud/AI subgroup. They are currently analyzing data from Google and Microsoft to understand the emissions tied to our digital tools and AI usage, an area of sustainability that is often overlooked.
What’s Next?
The Climate Action Committee is reviewing a drafted Sustainable Purchasing and Procurement Guide to help our offices make better climate-conscious choices. Look for more on that, and a deep dive into all these projects, at our inaugural "State of Sustainability" event planned for this coming Fall.
In the meantime, I hope to see you at the SGA Earth Day Festival on April 24th, from 1- 4 pm on Futter Field. Come chat with our student compost coordinators and the GrowNYC team about how we can keep this momentum going.
With gratitude to the many hands that make this work possible,
Leslie Raucher
Director, Campus Sustainability and Climate Action
