History

1973 Students vote to fund the Eco-Center with student fees

1976 CU Recycling is founded as UCSU allocates student fees to support recycling

1980's Steve Smith, the first full-time, non-student director of the E-Center is hired. Student involvement increases by 400 percent.

1984 Jack DeBell becomes the first professional Director of CU Recycling

1989 E-Center conference on global issues draws 1,000 attendees

1991 The Bus Pass Program begins

1991 The Memorandum of Understanding between the Boulder Campus Administration and UCSU is singed, creating the Student-    Administration Partnership for Recycling

1992 The Intermediate Processing Facility (IPF) opens

1992 Will Toor is hired as director of the Environmental Center

1994 The First annual Campus Earth Summit

1994 CU buys more recycled paper than virgin paper for the first time

1995 CU Recycling surpasses 1,000 tons of recycled materials in one year

2000 The Blueprint for a Green Campus is issued

2000 A four-year Recycling capital expansion begins

2000 UCSU purchases wind power via referendum

2001 The Campus Master Plan is revised to include the first formal guidelines for recycling

2001 Generation Green energy education campaign begins

2001 Campus energy use decreases for first time in more than 10 years

2001 Clean energy conference

2002 CU receives $55,000 from the EPA and $32,000 from UCSU to site a composting operation on campus

2002 Environmental Center moves into a new office, UMC expansion is complete with green building features

2002 CU Biodiesel is formed

2003 Vice Chancellors release internal business review confirming recycling provides net annual savings of $235,000.

2003 Recycling business plan is reviewed, Recycling Financial Advisory Board is created

2003 First annual Bioneers in Boulder event takes place

2004 UCSU wind purchase increases to 100%

2004 A consultant waste composition study finds 1,300 tons of recyclables remain unrecovered annually

2004 Chancellor Byyny issues the UCB Campus Environmental Policy

2004 The first solar panels are installed on the UMC

2004 UCSU Energy efficiency fund is established

2004 The CU Bike Station opens, and new bicycle programs are initiated

2004 Next bus displays are installed

2005 A permanent Bike Station is installed

2005 Sustainable CU Referendum passes

2005 CUSG passes a Capital Construction Fee requiring that buildings funded from this fee (Wolf Law, ATLAS, Koelbel Business) achieve LEED Gold rating

2005 CU hosts and produces the Colorado Sustainability Summit

2005 CU competes in Recyclemania

2005 Global Jam becomes CU's first ever Zero Waste event

2006 Dave Newport is hired as Environmental Center director

2006 Blueprint for a Green Campus is updated and reissued

2007 Chancellor Peterson signs the American College and University President's Climate Committment (ACUPCC)

2007 CU becomes a founding member of the Colorado Renewable Energy Laboratory

2007 CU Student Government becomes the first entity to pledge carbon neutrality for all CUSG-run buildings

2007 CU Boulder's recycling collection exceeds 2,000 tons (four million pounds)

2007 The Live Green Pledge is launched campus-wide

2007 Rocky Mountain Sustainability Summit

2008 CUSG requires all student-funded food/dining events to be Zero Waste; CU Dining Services eliminates plastic bags from the grab-and-go meals and distrubes free reusable bags to all incoming residence students

2008 The CU Athletics Department commits to Zero Waste football games and launches Ralphie’s Green Stampede

2008 The Earth Education program initiates Teach for Sustainability, a service-learning course.

2008 CU launches an aggressive three-year conservation campaign as part of the Greening the Government Executive Orders to reduce energy, paper, water, and petroleum use and to transition to a Zero Waste campus

2009 CU is ranked the nation's #1 Eco-friendly college by the Sierra Club

2009 CU places first in Recyclemania

2009 The first campus Clean Energy Day is held

2009 CU launches a custom Zimride rideshare transportation community

2009 CU issues a Conceptual Plan for Carbon Neutrality

2010 CU Recycling converts campus recycling to dual-stream

2010 SCORE, a student-run energy assessment program for the Boulder rental community, is created

2011 CU recieve's the nation's first STARS Gold rating for environmental leadership

2011 Sustainable Practices program is transferred to the E-Center from Continuing Education

2012 A Senior Transportation Fellow posiiton is created to support the campus and community vision for an advanced transportation system 

2012 CUSG buildings reach carbon neutrality in keeping with the goal set in 2009

2013  CU Boulder fully implements healthy and pesticide-free turf management.

2013 The new School of the Environment and Sustainability is approved.  Planning begins for a 2016 opening.

2014  CU Boulder renews its STARS Gold Sustainability rating and increases its score.

2015  The new Sustainability, Energy, and Environment Complex (SEEC) research, education and engagement facility is set to open on East Campus.

2015  CU Boulder Athletics attains carbon neutrality and announces a "Net-Zero Electricity" practive facility at Folsom Field.

2015  A new on campus Recycling Operations Center opens, designed to increase landfill diversion rate and reach 90% diversion goal.

2016  CU Boulder recognized with Gold Bicycle University award from League of American Bicyclists.

2018  Gold STARS Sustainability rating achieved for the third time by CU Boulder campus.

2020  The Environmental Center celebrates 50 years of students in action.