Sustainability Assessment Questionnaire
The Sustainability Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) for Colleges and Universities is a qualitative
questionnaire designed to help you assess the extent to which
your college or university is sustainable in seven critical areas
of higher education:
2. Research and Scholarship
4. Faculty and Staff Development and Rewards
5. Outreach and Service
6. Student Opportunities
7. Institutional Mission, Structure and Planning
The SAQ aims to:
- Raise consciousness and encourage debate about what sustainability
means for higher education practically and philosophically;
- Give a snapshot of the state of sustainability on your campus;
- Promote discussion on next steps for your institution.
See below to download the SAQ.
History, Purpose and Design of the SAQ
With input from many colleagues and partners, the Sustainability
Assessment Questionnaire was developed between 1999 and 2001.
In creating the questionnaire, we envisioned both an assessment
instrument and a teaching tool. In other words, by its very design
and content we wanted the SAQ to instruct its users on the meaning
of sustainability in higher education. We also intended the SAQ
process to stimulate conversation and debate within institutions
on the path to sustainability. "Sustainability" implies
that the critical activities of a college or university are ecologically
sound, socially just and economically viable, and that they will
continue to be so for future generations. We sought to encompass
a definition of sustainability that included social and economic,
as well as environmental dimensions.
In determining the basic characteristics of colleges and universities
fully committed to sustainability, certain essential dimensions
kept recurring as we tested various draft questionnaires with
campus representatives and sustainability advocates. Although
approaches to "greening" higher education vary considerably,
we feel that an institution must be implementing meaningful practices
in the following seven areas to be demonstrating significant progress
toward achieving sustainability:
1. The college or university would appropriately incorporate
the concepts of sustainability into all academic disciplines and
in liberal arts and professional education requirements. Likewise,
a firm grounding in basic disciplines and critical thinking skills
is essential to pursuing a sustainable future. Institutions committed
to sustainability often prominently feature certain topics in
their course offerings, e.g., Globalization and Sustainable Development;
Environmental Philosophy; Nature Writing; Land Ethics and Sustainable
Agriculture; Urban Ecology and Social Justice; Population, Women
and Development; Sustainable Production and Consumption; and many
2. Sustainability would be integrated into faculty and student
research on topics such as renewable energy, sustainable building
design, ecological economics, indigenous wisdom and technologies,
population and development, total environmental quality management,
3. The institution would be continually engaged in reducing its
"ecological footprint." In its production and consumption
the institution follows sustainable policies and practices: for
example, CO2 reduction practices and the use of emission control
devices; sustainable building construction and renovation; energy
conservation practices; local food purchasing program; purchasing
and investment in environmentally and socially responsible products;
regularly conducted environmental audits; and many others. Furthermore,
these operational practices would be integrated into the educational
and scholarly activities of the school.
4. Since research and teaching are the fundamental purposes of
academic institutions, knowledge of sustainability would be a
critical concern in the hiring, tenure and promotion systems.
We would expect the institution to:
a. Reward faculty members' contributions to sustainability in
scholarship, teaching, or campus and community activities.
b. Provide significant staff and faculty development opportunities
to enhance understanding, teaching and research in sustainability.
5. The institution would engage in outreach and forming partnerships
both locally and globally to enhance sustainability. The college
or university would support sustainable communities in the surrounding
region and develop relationships with local businesses that foster
sustainable practices. The institution would also seek international
cooperation in solving global environmental justice and sustainability
problems through conferences, student/faculty exchanges, etc.
6. Student opportunities would reflect the institution's commitment
to sustainability in the form of:
a. New student orientation, scholarships, internships and job
placement counseling related to community service, sustainability
and/or justice issues;
b. An Environmental or Sustainability Council or Task Force with
strong student representation;
c. Student groups actively engaged in promoting sustainability
on campus and in the local community.
7. The written statements of the mission and purpose of the institution
and its various units would express a commitment to environmental
responsibility and sustainability. The institution would have
institutionalized this commitment with paid positions (such as
Energy Officer or Director of Sustainability Programs). The institutional
concern for sustainability would be further reflected by public
events on campus (such as lectures, conferences, Earth Day celebrations,
Through our consultation and design process, we explored short
and long versions of the instrument with different blends of quantitative
and qualitative measures. In order to keep the SAQ primarily qualitative
and impressionistic, we decided not to include a rating/scoring
system. The goal of the assessment exercise is to provide a comprehensive
definition of sustainability and a snapshot of a college or university
on the path to sustainability. We determined that a rating/scoring
system would make the instrument prematurely quantitative and
difficult for most to complete without extensive research. It
might also discourage prospective users.
We recognize that the task of developing a comprehensive, reliable,
and valid instrument is formidable. While we've made considerable
progress toward our goal, we know that any such work rests firmly
on the principle that indicators need to be constantly monitored,
evaluated and improved. Thus we are hopeful that the SAQ will
be used as a foundation for continued research and collaboration.
Download the SAQ
Please send us feedback and let us know how you use the Sustainability Assessment Questionnaire for Colleges and Universities.
Click here to download the SAQ
NOTE: The SAQ is in PDF format and requires the Adobe Acrobat 5.0 Reader plugin to view. If you do not have the plugin, click here to download it before proceeding on to download the SAQ.