Five Ways Knox Students Celebrated Earth Month
Throughout this month, Knox students, staff, and student organizations scheduled a variety of events and activities aimed at educating the community on the importance of safeguarding our environment.
Sustainability
At Knox, we’re committed to nurturing a culture of social and environmental responsibility that inspires a commitment to greater resilience on our campus, in our community, and in the world.
We’re committed to creating and nurturing a culture of sustainability.
We believe such a culture includes:
- Recognition that humans are part of nature and need to live in balance with Earth's ecosystems.
- Reduced consumption of natural resources to a replenishable rate.
- Reduced generation of waste to a rate at which the environment can assimilate it.
- Decision-making that gives equal weight to natural, social, and economic systems.
- Commitment to place, including conservation and equity in distribution of local resources.
The above definition of Sustainability was crafted in May 2014, after a campus-wide survey aimed at understanding the priorities of students, staff, and faculty with regard to sustainability issues. Like this definition, the sustainability initiatives at Knox are creative, collaborative, and conscientious.
As the Office of Sustainability looks to its future, we are pleased to share with you Knox College’s Sustainability and Resiliency Action Plan 2025-2030, that reflects an ongoing commitment to this meaningful work.
This plan was developed by the Knox College Sustainability Working Group, which included faculty, staff, and students, and reflects what the Knox community identifies as key areas where the College can make the biggest sustainability impact.
Memberships, Compacts, & Recognition
Knox College is involved in many local and national initiatives to increase the sustainability of our campus, community, and planet. A few recent and important ones include:
- Recognized by the League of American Bicyclists 2024-2028 as a bronze-level bicycle-friendly business; and recognized as a bronze-level Bicycle Friendly University in 2018
- Listed in Princeton Review's Guide to Green Colleges: 2021 Edition
- Member of AASHE (Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education) since 2012
- Earned a STARS Silver rating in 2015, 2018, 2020, and 2024
- Member of USCC Composting Council, Illinois Foodscrap Coalition, and UMACS
- Talloires Declaration Signatory since 2008
Annual Sustainability Reports
Learn more about Knox's sustainability efforts in our annual reports
Learn More about Knox's Sustainability Efforts
A New Adventure Every Day: Working on the Knox Farm
Workers at the student-run operation implement sustainable practices to produce food for the Gizmo and Hard Knox Cafe.
Knox Achieves Silver STARS Rating for Sustainability Efforts
The College’s silver ranking will be valid until the next assessment period in 2027.