Our neighbors made climate commitments.
Wooster hasn't.
Of the Ohio Five, Wooster is the only college without a carbon-neutrality commitment. Students first asked for one in 2013, and the College still has no target and no climate plan.
Why now
The numbers, in Wooster's own accounting
21,279 t
of CO2e last year
About 5,000 cars driven for a full year. That's like every Wooster student driving three cars, all year long.
87%
from heating and powering buildings
This is an infrastructure problem, not a lifestyle one. Nearly half is the gas that heats campus.
18,340 t
from gas and electricity Wooster buys
This is also a budget line. Cutting these emissions shrinks the utility bill too.
78%
of campus heated by one aging steam plant
It has to be replaced either way. A plan decides whether we rebuild the old system or invest in the next one.
It isn't going down by itself: 21,574 → 20,910 → 21,279 tons over three years. If nothing changes, Wooster will emit about 212,790 tons over the next ten.
Where peers funded it, it paid off
saved every year by 150+ projects from a $4M green revolving fund.
a year in projected savings; carbon neutral in 2025, financed with $80M in climate bonds.
upfront for 6 MW of solar through a partner deal, cutting electricity emissions a projected 82%.
in its green revolving fund, and no target date.
413
students wrote to President McCall asking for a commitment, and 130 more wrote to the Board of Trustees in October 2026.
59%
of 7,000+ students surveyed say a school's environmental commitment affects whether they apply or attend. (Princeton Review, 2025)
Our ask
Make carbon neutrality a mission-aligned priority
Naming it a priority gives the College a reason to plan, measure and fund the work, without committing to any single project today.
Questions or follow-up: Braden Shildmyer, bshildmyer28@wooster.edu
- Begin with a metering and systems audit and a costed climate and capital plan
- Grow the green revolving fund toward the scale behind Denison's success
- No construction or new debt approved today
- Set a target date only once the costs are known
Board of Trustees · Mission & Outcomes Committee · October 2026
Revisiting Carbon Neutrality at The College of Wooster
Presented by Braden Shildmyer, Carbon Zero Woo
History
Thirteen years of asking
October 2013
Students petition
About 581 students ask President Cornwell to sign the Presidents' Climate Commitment, which Oberlin and Denison had already signed.
2019
A plan, half finished
Wooster's Sustainability Plan calls for goals, targets and an energy audit.
2023
First real data
A first Director of Sustainability and a first full carbon inventory.
October 2025
A climate committee
Scot Council approves a Climate Committee.
Spring 2026
The Board and the President
We present to the Board, 413 students write to President McCall, and a semester of meetings with her leads us back to the Board.
October 2026
Back to the Board
With what we learned, and a narrower, more practical ask.
A commitment that spans decades is a Board-level commitment. That's why we brought it to the Board.
Where things stand
The 2019 Sustainability Plan
Wooster's own plan listed five major recommendations: a sustainability coordinator, a renewable-energy committee, an external energy audit, a green revolving fund, and clear goals and targets.
Complete
First Director of Sustainability (2023)
First full carbon inventory (FY2023)
Green revolving fund ($100K gift)
Climate studies minor (2025)
Incomplete
Sustainability goals and targets
Climate action plan
Independent campus energy audit
Renewable-energy exploratory committee
Sources: Sustainability Plan (May 2019); The Wooster Voice (Apr 2022).
Conference peers
Where our neighbors stand
These are the schools we compete with for students, for faculty and on the field. Wooster and Wabash are the only two without a public commitment.
Carbon neutral
OberlinAchieved in 2025
AlleghenyAchieved in 2020 · NCAC affiliate
Dated goal
DenisonCarbon neutral by 2030
DePauwCarbon neutral by 2040
KenyonCarbon neutral by 2040
Other commitments
Ohio WesleyanSolar to cut electricity emissions 82%
John CarrollLaudato Si’ climate pledge (2022)
WittenbergPresidents’ Climate Commitment (2010)
No public goal
WabashNone
WoosterNo target, no climate plan
Sources: college sustainability pages; AASHE STARS reports.
Wooster data
Where Wooster's 21,279 tons come from
Fiscal year 2025 (July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025), from the College's annual carbon footprint report, calculated in SIMAP.
49% gas heating · 10,382 t incl. upstream
37% electricity · 7,958 t incl. line losses
Business travel · 870 t
Commuting · 627 t
Waste and wastewater · 576 t
Study abroad travel · 548 t
Fleet vehicles · 231 t
Other · 87 t
Scope 1 · burned on campus
| Methane gas heat | 7,395 |
| Fleet transportation | 231 |
| Refrigerants | 26 |
| Fertilizers | 7 |
| Total scope 1 | 7,659 |
Scope 2 · purchased electricity
| Total scope 2 | 7,552 |
Scope 3 · upstream and travel
| FERA (upstream gas) | 2,987 |
| Business air travel | 755 |
| Employee commuting | 590 |
| Study abroad travel | 548 |
| Solid waste | 422 |
| T&D losses | 406 |
| Wastewater processing | 154 |
| Other business travel | 115 |
| End-of-life sold products | 54 |
| Student commuting | 37 |
| Total scope 3 | 6,608 |
FERA: upstream emissions from extracting, producing and delivering the gas burned on campus. T&D losses: electricity lost in transmission and distribution.
What changed from FY2024
- Methane / natural gas+357 t
- Electricity+143 t
- Business air travel−81 t
- Solid waste disposal−37 t
- Refrigerants−26 t
Total up 2%, mostly from a colder winter in 2025. FY2023: 21,574 t · FY2024: 20,910 t · FY2025: 21,279 t.
Source: The College of Wooster, Annual Carbon Footprint (2025). Metric tons of CO2 equivalent.
Wooster data
Inside Wooster's 2026 STARS report
STARS is the national sustainability rating for colleges. Wooster earned Silver (46.63) in March 2026. The climate categories are where the points are missing.
Share of points earned, by category
Climate credits up close
Source: AASHE STARS 3.0 report, The College of Wooster, submitted March 6, 2026.
Wooster data
An aging steam system we'll replace anyway
Wooster's central steam plant
Heat lost in aging steam systems
Share of fuel energy that reaches buildings across Dartmouth's steam system, plant and pipes (2018 estimate)
UC Berkeley, thermal energy lost in distribution37%
UC Davis, heat lost30–50%
Replacement is coming either way. A plan decides whether we rebuild the old system or invest in the next one.
Sources: Wooster archives; District Energy Library; facilities inventory; UC Berkeley, UC Davis, Dartmouth.
Peer colleges
What funding made possible at Ohio peers
Oberlin
$80M
Climate bonds
Carbon neutral in 2025, with about $1M a year in projected savings.
Denison
$4M
Revolving fund
150+ projects now saving over $600K every year.
Ohio Wesleyan
$0
Upfront partner deal
6 MW of solar; electricity emissions projected to fall 82%.
Wooster today: a $100K green revolving fund and no target date.
Sources: Oberlin, Denison and Ohio Wesleyan institutional reports.
Possible pathways
There are proven ways forward
Efficiency first
Controls, lighting, insulation and steam repairs that pay for themselves.
Proven at Denison
Solar build-out
Expand beyond the Scot Center roof, possibly with storage and a partner.
Proven at Ohio Wesleyan
Geothermal heating
Replace steam over time with ground-source heat, building by building or campus-wide.
Proven at Oberlin
Phased master plan
Time each upgrade to when equipment would be replaced anyway.
Proven at Kenyon
No single project is required. A plan would show which mix fits Wooster, and in what order.
Sources: Denison, Ohio Wesleyan, Oberlin and Kenyon institutional reports; Heintz (2025), Wooster I.S.
Student research
What Wooster I.S. research found on our campus
Wooster students become more environmentally engaged after they arrive, and peers drive it.
Bijeta Lamichhane ’22, Communication Studies and Mathematics
Our food waste alone could produce more than six tons of greenhouse gases a year.
Miles Gutmann ’25, Environmental Studies · campus waste audit
Thermoelectric devices placed on campus heat sources recovered too little energy to pay off.
Katherine Shideler ’21, Physics and Mathematics · waste-heat recovery test
Source: Open Works, College of Wooster Senior Independent Study Theses.
Enrollment
Sustainability shapes where students enroll
59%
of 7,000+ students surveyed say a school's environmental commitment would affect whether they apply or attend.
Princeton Review, 2025
Green College
Wooster is already in the Princeton Review's Guide to Green Colleges, an advantage admissions can build on if we back it with a plan.
28%
of Wooster students took part in Office of Sustainability programs this year.
The Wooster Voice, 2026
A credible commitment strengthens an advantage Wooster already has.
Student voice
In students' own words
413
letters to President McCall last year
130
letters to the Board of Trustees, October 2026
“It's embarrassing that we are one of the few institutions with no public plan to commit to carbon neutrality.”
“Please commit to sustainability to prove our actions align with our ideals.”
“The change starts with us. A public commitment to neutrality is not a novel idea.”
“Please consider carbon neutrality. Please listen to the student body.”
From student letters to President McCall, collected via carbonzerowoo.org.
The proposal
What making it a priority would set in motion
1
Metering and systems audit
Map every meter, verify utility data, and inspect the steam plant and pipes.
2
Climate and capital plan
Compare pathways and costs; set a target date once it is costed.
3
Grow the green revolving fund
Build on the Swanson-Harbage fund toward the scale behind Denison's success.
28% is the median annual return on campus green revolving funds, paying back in about 3.5 years.
Sustainable Endowments Institute, 2012 survey. Aligned with Framing Our Future and the 2019 Sustainability Plan.
What we hope the Board will consider
That Wooster pursue long-term carbon neutrality as a strategic priority, advanced in step with its educational mission, financial sustainability and fiduciary responsibilities.
- Begins with an audit and a costed plan
- No construction or new debt approved today
- Target date set only once costs are known
Appendix
Sources
- College of Wooster
- Annual Carbon Footprint (2025), FY2023–FY2025 inventories (SIMAP)
- AASHE STARS report, March 6, 2026
- Sustainability Plan, May 2019; Framing Our Future
- Facilities building and heating inventory
- The Wooster Voice: Oct 4, 2013; Apr 2022; Feb 13, 2026
- Senior I.S. theses (Open Works)
- Lamichhane, B. (2022). Environmental Socialization in College
- Gutmann, M. (2025). The Dirt on Composting
- Heintz, A. (2025). Evaluation of Hybrid Solar-Wind Systems
- Peers and other
- Oberlin College, Carbon Neutral 2025; climate bonds (2021)
- Denison University, climate goals
- Kenyon College, Carbon Neutrality
- Allegheny College goes carbon neutral
- Ohio Wesleyan, Solar Energy Project
- AASHE STARS reports: Oberlin, Denison, Kenyon
- Princeton Review, College Hopes & Worries (2025)
- Sustainable Endowments Institute, Greening the Bottom Line
- UC Berkeley, UC Davis, Dartmouth steam studies
- EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator (4.29 t per car per year)