The Committee on Sustainability (COS), formed in fall 2008 with the approval of W&M President Taylor Reveley, is charged with developing, planning and recommending to the President strategies for implementing the College’s Sustainability Policy, and integrating sustainability into the life of the College. COS not only taps W&M’s intellectual capital, but also feeds into and benefits from its teaching, research, and service missions.

Read W&M 2008 Sustainability Plan (.pdf) 

President Reveley charged interim Law School Dean Lynda Butler and School of Marine Sciences and W&M Environmental Science and Policy professor Dennis Taylor with selecting dozens of faculty and staff members from all areas of the College community to serve on COS. Since the Green Fees passed by students and the Board of Visitors in spring 2008 are an integral part of the committee’s work, students serve alongside faculty and staff as contributing members of COS and its subcommittees.Currently the student influence on the actions of the committee is strong and well supported, with nearly 50 students serving on the 10 working groups. One of the main project resources for the committee is the Campus Sustainability Road Map, a student-compiled list of proposals resulting from a Campus Sustainability Seminar held in spring 2008 by the Environmental Science and Policy Program. The Road Map has been instrumental in guiding the early work of COS.

Want to become involved?
•    Become a student member of COS.
•    Submit an idea or proposal for spending Green Fees. Proposals are reviewed by the COS Steering Committee twice yearly in the fall and spring semesters.

Contact information for all of the committee members and working groups is available on this site, on the page for each subcommittee. The committee is dedicated to transparency and College community member input in all aspects of its work.