We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them. -- Albert Einstein
Winthrop University is committed to sustainability and to serving as a positive example through sustainable practice. The mission of the Office of Sustainability is to introduce students, faculty, and staff to sustainable practices that simultaneously advance economic vitality, ecological integrity, and social welfare through diverse programming. This mission aligns with the institutional mission by supporting Winthrop’s diverse and able faculty and professional staff of national caliber to enrich their students’ lives and prepare our students to meet the needs and challenges of the contemporary world.
Winthrop University is a Talloires Declaration signatory, a member of The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), and a Tree Campus Higher Education recognized campus by the Arbor Day Foundation. The Office of Sustainability is a Safe Zone where all students are safe and free from discrimination.
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals are an international "call for action by all countries - developed and developing - in a global partnership." They include seventeen goals interconnected goals that simultaneously address social welfare (poverty, food insecurity, education, health, etc.), economic vitality (materials and responsible consumption, industry, innovation and infrastructure, decent work, communities, education, etc.), and ecological integrity (clean water, energy, climate change, ocean, and land, etc.).
Below is the most recent Office of Sustainability Continuous Improvement Action report and plan.
Office of Sustainability Continuous Improvement Action Report 2021-22
Office of Sustainability Continuous Improvement Action Plan 2022-23
This interactive map shows sustainable initiatives found on Winthrop's campus.
Follow us on social media to follow our work and read about different sustainability topics.
