Climate Action Plan
Climate change presents an existential threat to all human life, most immediately to communities at risk here in the U.S. and around the globe. The consequences of climate change disproportionately affect low-income communities and communities of color. Climate change will greatly harm the ecosystems of the planet, which will lead to species extinctions, possible ecosystem collapse, and definite impacts on humans as ecosystems degrade. Those impacted first and worst by this degradation have been and will continue to be low-income communities and people of color.
Understanding this, Brandeis University became a charter signatory of the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) in 2007, now called the Carbon Commitment, and a member of Second Nature's Climate Leadership Network. This commitment binds us to reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible, and by mid-century at the latest. Brandeis is also part of the global UNFCCC Race to Zero campaign, a campaign run in partnership with EAUC, Second Nature and the UN Environment Programme.
Brandeis maintains annual public reporting of our greenhouse gas emissions through SIMAP, the official reporting platform of Second Nature.
View our public emissions report
Brandeis is in the process of writing a new climate action plan.
The main recommendation from Brandeis' most recent climate action plan written in 2020 (below) was to reach carbon neutrality in 2030 rather than 2050. Due to the challenges presented by the covid-19 pandemic at the time, that goal was not formally adopted (hence why the plan is still in "draft" form). However, the plan contained many additional recommendations aside, most of which have been adopted and are currently being pursued.
The progress on those recommendations, as well as the decarbonization study Brandeis commissioned in 2022-2023, will inform the next climate action plan and interim goals.
We expect to complete our next climate action plan in the 2023-2024 academic year.