Awards & Recognition

Colby was named 2012-13 winner of the EPA's College and University Green Power Challenge in the New England Small College Athletic Conference. Colby was credited with using 103 percent sustainably sourced electricity. The runner-up in NESCAC purchased 25 percent of its power from green sources.

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) rates college and university sustainability performance with STARS, its Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System™. Colby earned a silver rating in the transparent, self-reporting framework developed by AASHE with broad participation from the higher education community.

Colby's biomass-fueled steam plant was certified LEED Gold by the U.S. Green Building Council in January 2013, a year after it began operating. The plant generates steam for heating buildings, hot water, cooking, and cogeneration of electricity by burning low-grade, sustainably harvested wood mass including treetops, branches, and trees cut in thinning operations. That biomass replaces almost 1 million gallons of heating oil per year. It is Colby's eighth LEED-certified building—more than any peer institutions.

Treworgy, a former fraternity house built in the 1950s, is the fourth residence hall on Roberts Row certified at the LEED Gold standard and the seventh LEED-certified building on campus—more than at any other private college in Maine.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency named Colby NESCAC's 2011-12 Green Power Challenge conference champion in April 2012. Colby makes about 10 percent of its electricity through cogeneration and buys the remainder from 100-percent renewable sources. Colby's percentage of green power, using the EPA's methodology, is twice that of the second-place school.

Eviance, the world's leading provider of environmental ERP software, named Colby its first-ever national champion in a March 2012 environmental studies tournament, against the likes of Duke, Purdue, UNC Asheville, and others.

The U.S. Green Building Council awarded LEED Gold certification to Goddard-Hodgkins residence hall, remodeled and expanded in 2010. This brings the number of LEED-certified buildings on campus to six, three at the gold level.

The U.S. Green Building Council awarded LEED Gold certification to two residence-hall renovation projects: Pierce and Perkins-Wilson, both remodeled and expanded in 2008. This brings to five the number of LEED-certified buildings on campus.

A program run by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency named Colby the 2008 NESCAC conference champion for use of green electricity. Beyond NESCAC, Colby had the highest percentage use of green electricity of any college or university in the national competition.

The 44,000-square-foot Diamond Building, for social sciences and interdisciplinary studies, received LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) certification in February 2008. LEED is the a set of standards established by the U.S. Green Building Council.

In 2006, the National Wildlife Federation's Campus Ecology Program granted Colby Campus Ecology Recognition for measurable positive achievements and commitment to serving as a model of sustainability.

The geothermally heated and cooled Schair-Swenson-Watson Alumni Center received silver-level certification in the LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) green-building program in March 2006. Silver certification is  a step higher than basic LEED certification.

For its outstanding efforts in environmental protection, Colby College in Waterville received a 2004 Maine Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence on November 5 in Augusta. Governor John Baldacci presented the awards to focus attention on the environmental accomplishments of 18 businesses, organizations and individuals throughout the state.

Colby was honored in Boston on Earth Day 2004 with an Environmental Merit Award from the New England Office of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The award recognized exceptional work and commitment to the environment in 2003. "Colby College is 'walking-the-talk' when it comes to combining strong academic environmental programs with tangible actions to reduce the environmental impact of its campus operations," the agency said in a press release.

In April 2003 Colby's R.E.S.C.U.E. (Reuse Everything! Save Colby's Usable Excess) program was included the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Best Management Practices for Colleges and Universities. This catalog features initiatives at private and public schools across the United States, ranging in size from over 20,000 students to under 2,000. According to the EPA the catalog is designed to "assist colleges and universities achieve compliance and beyond compliance goals such as pollution prevention, resource conservation, and environmental stewardship."

On September 20, 2002 Colby College was honored with the Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence. The award recognized the continuing efforts of the Colby community to make the campus a more environmentally friendly place. Some of Colby's accomplishments include reduced paper consumption in the dining halls, reduced electrical consumption due to retrofits as well as a host of other sustainable measures taken throughout the campus. Colby is the FIRST educational institution to receive this distinguished award.