How Green Can You Go? Initiatives of Dark Green Universities in the Philippines

Abstract

A number of Philippine universities have called themselves green schools. Others have gone beyond being green and consider themselves dark green campuses. Sustainability initiatives in campuses called dark green school (DGS) have been around since the 1970s. A DGS is considered both as a status and a process of certification or accreditation. As a status, a certified DGS means that the school has met certain standards of quality set by the accrediting agency. As a certification process, it signifies the school’s commitment to continuously enhance and sustain one’s accomplishments. This paper used the case study method to showcase the policies and practices of selected dark green universities in the Philippines that have met the standards of quality of a DGS. Using a mixed-methods approach of analysis of documents, ocular visits and interviews, this paper examines the strategies and initiatives of four universities that are accredited- and/or self-assessed DGS and how they operationalized the DGS as a whole-school approach. Data gathered illustrate that beyond the integration of the elements of sustainable development, climate change and disaster management into the university vision and mission, curriculum, research and extension services, the selected universities have adopted campus policies and programs on solid waste management, energy, water and paper conservation, water conservation and treatment, anti-pollution and clean transport. More than this, the schools studied have transformed the academic campus into green living spaces, providing the academic community with green gardens, parks, forests, and native tree production. The practices of four case universities towards not only a green-, but a dark green school, show that achieving environmental sustainability requires a whole-school approach where students, faculty, administration, and the rest of the academic community cooperate towards achieving sustainability at the university and community levels.