October 22, 2014
Ball State University has partnered with Chevrolet to build upon the university’s mission to achieve climate neutrality. As a result of Ball State’s sustainability initiatives, the university for three years will sell the automaker its carbon credits to be retired against the climate; at the close of the contract, future carbon credits will remand back to the university for crediting against its carbon neutrality goals.
Ball State is one of 12 colleges and universities to take part in Chevrolet’s campus energy efficiency campaign to reduce carbon emissions.
“We’re happy to have helped to pilot the methodologies and protocols for use by higher education to qualify carbon reduction credits for transaction in the voluntary carbon market, and we continue to share the experience with our higher education counterparts,” said Robert J. Koester, director of the university’s Center for Energy Research, Education and Service. “We continue to look for ways reduce our ecological footprint and to work toward the goal of a greener east central Indiana community.”
Ball State already is well known for creating the nation’s largest ground-source, closed-loop district geothermal energy system, benefiting both the economy and the environment. Funds received from the sale of carbon credits to Chevrolet will be reinvested in additional campus energy-efficient projects and technologies.
The agreement is part of a comprehensive voluntary carbon reduction initiative by Chevrolet launched in 2010 to prevent up to 8 million metric tons of carbon emissions from entering the earth’s atmosphere. The company is investing in community-based carbon reduction projects across the country. To date, all investments have been made through the purchase of certified carbon credits from institutions such as Ball State, reflecting Chevrolet’s desire to catalyze projects that represent a beyond-business-as-usual commitment. Chevrolet will buy and retire the credits, meaning they will not be used to offset emissions related to specific Chevrolet operations or products – or those at any other site.
Other institutions participating in the Chevrolet program include Spelman College, Grand Valley University, Southern Oregon University, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Valencia College. Additional academic institutions will be announced Oct. 22.
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