Campus Sustainability
Loyola University Chicago is committed to a sustainable future through academics and research as well as our co-curricular activities and campus infrastructure. Please look through this website to see what resources may assist you in finding your role in sustainability at Loyola.
Through our degrees offered, our research conducted, and our buildings constructed, a respect for our impacts to environment, economy and equality is part of decision-making at all levels. Our Sustainability and Climate Plan provides an overview of the goals and tracking that we consider essential to advancing sustainability at Loyola.
The goal of the Office of Sustainability at Loyola is to support the faculty, staff, students and alumni in making the University a leader in the Chicago region and internationally among Jesuit institutions. Loyola University Chicago is embracing sustainability through our campuses, curriculum and community.
Loyola’s sustainability initiatives are guided by the following principles:
- We seek to have the lowest environmental footprint in Illinois
- We support sustainability across the curriculum
- We believe sustainability is about Social Justice
- We facilitate the campus as a learning laboratory
- We support a pathway to careers (that empower a just future for all)
- We envision the campus as a community change-agent
Loyola’s Sustainability Mission
Sustainability at Loyola is driven by our Jesuit tradition of social justice, our service to humanity, and our role as an institution of higher education. It is embodied in an educational experience for our students and activities that seek to meet the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. We are committed to an inclusive process considering social, economic and environmental impacts and exemplified in a transformative education for our students.
Loyola is a sustainable Jesuit University
Our Jesuit tradition leads us to seek social justice and care for creation through local action that creates a global impact. Social enterprises such as the Biodiesel program or ChainLinks create learning opportunities while improving the environment and local communities in sound financial structures. Our location in Northeastern Illinois, on the shores of Lake Michigan, allows us to understand through research and coursework, the value of our natural resources and the impacts that unsustainable development have caused. Our urban setting in Chicago connects us to our local communities and gives us opportunities for energy efficient buildings, sustainable transportation options and local engagement.
- Loyola achieved a Gold rating in the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System program
- The Institute of Environmental Sustainability has led such innovative initiatives as the Biodiesel program, Clean Air/ Clean Water monitoring, and the Healthy Homes Initiative
- Loyola has more green roofs than any other University in the Midwest
- Loyola’s Lake Shore Campus keeps over 10 million gallons of stormwater out of the combined sewer system, protecting the Chicago River and Lake Michigan
- Student led initiatives have changed programs and policies from a sustainability fund for student projects to a ban on bottled water to a community farmer’s market
Take a tour of our campus sustainability highlights in these areas:
- Campus
- Curriculum
- Culture
- Alternative Transportation
- Energy Use
- Food Systems
- Landscape & Biodiversity
- Water Conservation
- Waste & Materials
- Climate Change
There are many opportunities for you to help lead Loyola’s sustainability efforts.
Contact us anytime at sustainability@luc.edu to see how we can help you SustainLoyola!
