Report of the Williams College Climate Action Committee

Guiding Principles

Williams' stature as one of the nation's premier liberal arts colleges compels us toward leadership in environmental sustainability. What we accomplish at Williams may be emulated by campuses and institutions across the country. We recognize that the quality of our environmental practices should reflect the College's commitment to educating the leaders of tomorrow. Therefore, we recommend that our sustainability efforts be guided by these principles:

Williams will contribute to the effort to control global warming in ways reflecting our mission and position as a leading institution of higher education.

• Promote the development of educational opportunities, not only in the classroom but through developing a campus-wide laboratory for sustainable environmental practice.


• Investigate and implement a range of strategies to successfully achieve significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.


• Establish goals and procedures for integrating the tenets of environmental sustainability into all aspects of the College's operations.


• Incorporate assessment of environmental impact into decisions related to development of the built environment, purchasing, waste management practices, and the like.

  Williams seeks to serve as a leader encouraging similar actions by our peers and producing a much larger impact on climate change than we could alone.

• Set emissions reduction goals and publicly report on progress towards those goals.


• Share our learning experiences with others.