Carbon Neutral and Sustainable Campuses
     The objective of this study is to prepare a manual for carbon neutrality and sustainability of educational campuses. It comprises of two parts- the calculation of the net carbon footprint of the campus and the assessment of the campus sustainability. The Carbon Footprint analysis comprises of five indicators. While for the assessment of the sustainability of the campus we are deriving a Campus Sustainability Index which comprises of four main components and 30 indicators using past literature.

     To develop this index we must determine which of the selected components and indicators are more important for the assessment than the others and assign different importance scores to each component and subsequently the indicators. The purpose of this questionnaire is to seek your help in assigning these scores to:

     1)      The carbon footprint analysis, and

     2)      The campus sustainability analysis which comprises of four major components and 30 indicators

     Based on the scores you assign we will apply a statistical tool to determine the final weight-age for each component and indicator and form the carbon neutral and sustainability index.

Note: We kindly request you to enter your details so that we can acknowledge your contribution in the study and send you a copy of the final paper at the end of the study.
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     The study comprises of two parts- the net carbon footprint calculation of the educational campus and the campus sustainability analysis. The Carbon Footprint analysis (greenhouse gas emissions) comprises of five indicators which include energy consumption, waste generation, transport, water supply from external sources such as tankers, and the carbon sinks in the campus. As a part of the framework for assessing and reporting the sustainability of an educational campus we have selected four components. Three of the components include the “triple bottom line structure” of Environmental quality, Social equity and Economic prosperity. And since the focus is on educational institutes, academic performance is taken as the fourth component. Thus the four components of the campus sustainability assessment are - Environmental component, Academic component, Social component and Economic  component. There are 30 indicators selected in all for evaluating the campus sustainability based on comprehensive literature review.
Three tiers of the Carbon Neutral and Sustainable Campuses study
     This questionnaire can also be divided into three major questions. In the first question you have been asked to give importance to the two parts of the study- the campus carbon footprint analysis and the campus sustainability analysis. To assess the sustainability of the educational campus we plan to score the campus based on its performance in all the four sustainability components. Hence, the second question asks you to give a score to each of the four components of campus sustainability- Environment, Academic, Social and Economic. In the third question you have been asked to give scores to the 30 indicators selected, based on their importance with respect to the campus sustainability assessment.

     The 5 point Likert scale will be used to assign these scores. The scores assigned will be in the range mentioned in the scale given below:

1        No Importance
2        Little Importance
3        Moderate Importance
4        High Importance
5        Very High Importance

     In order to score an indicator select the number that you think seems most appropriate for the indicator in the context of a sustainable campus using the scale given above.

Note: Please enter your name and company/ institute details along with your contact details so that we can acknowledge your contribution in the study and also send you a copy of the final action plan document.
Name *
Designation *
Company/ institute name and address *
Email id
1) How important are the following two analysis in the overall assessment of the carbon neutral status and sustainability of an educational campus.
Carbon footprint analysis *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Campus sustainability analysis *
No Importance
Very High Importance
2) How important is each of the four major components, given below, for evaluating the sustainability of an educational campus?
Environmental Component *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Academic Component *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Social Component *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Economic Component *
No Importance
Very High Importance
3) How important is each of the following 30 indicators, in assessing the sustainability of an educational campus?
Green building/ Energy certification *
Includes a certificate from GRIHA (Green Buildings Rating System India), IGBC- LEED (Indian Green Building Council- Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), and the Bureau of Energy Efficiency star rating system for buildings.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Campus sustainability committee *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Energy Consumption *
The total amount of energy consumed for various activities at the campus.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Energy Conservation *
% reduction in the energy consumption by having an innovative building design to facilitate natural lighting and/or sensor based or innovative/advanced technology, use of electricity generated by renewable resources, etc.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Paper consumption *
Consumption of virgin paper and recycled paper.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Solid Waste Management *
Total quantity of solid waste generated on the campus and its management starting with segregation of waste into different bins, sanitary storage and the final disposal of waste or processing for resource recovery.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Water Consumption *
Total quantity of water consumed for various purposes in the campus.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Water Conservation *
% reduction in water consumption with innovative building design, advanced technology, rainwater harvesting etc., on campus,
No Importance
Very High Importance
Wastewater Management *
Management of sewage produced on campus by its treatment at an on-campus effluent treatment plant (if such a provision exists) and reuse of treated effluent within the campus.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Green cover *
% of the total campus area under green cover in comparison to the the built-up area.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Mode of transportation for commuting to and fro campus *
% of the total population which uses public transport and private vehicles. This includes students, faculty and other staff members.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Student graduation rate to the total enrolment *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Employee retention rate to the total number of employees *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Number of students per teaching staff *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Sustainability in taught courses (number of courses teaching sustainable studies) *
Courses with focus on the three pillars of sustainable development.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Sustainability in research *
Number of research scholars and projects completed in sustainable studies
No Importance
Very High Importance
Scholarships given to candidates enroling in taught or research programs in sustainability studies *
% of the total fund allocated for scholarship given to students of sustainability studies.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Training and awareness in sustainability *
Total number of workshops, conferences, seminars, and training programs, with focus on sustainability awareness, organized by the institute and the number of participants from the campus.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Health and Comfort level in the indoor environment *
Indoor air quality and noise levels, the potability or quality of drinking water in the campus, and their compliance with the respective national or international standards .
No Importance
Very High Importance
Hostel facility on or off campus *
Housing facility for both males and females, and the % of total student population which is accommodated in the hostels.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Personnel working in the infirmary (if infirmary exists) *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Student Disciplinary policy and committee *
Policy and Committee for taking disciplinary measures in case of violation of academic honor code, sexual harassment, assault, theft, etc.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Non Discrimination against females, individuals of other nationalities and persons with disabilities at employee and student level *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Community Development *
Volunteer work by students and/ or staff, organizing fund-raisers, organizing awareness campaigns, institute's association with NGOs working in community development.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Sustaining the income from student fees *
% of total income through the fees paid by students in taught, vocational, distance, PhD programs and/ or any other academic programs.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Income coming from sources other than student fee (research, consulting and/or external lectures). *
Includes the income generated by individuals at the institute by being a part of a research group, independent consultation and/or by giving external lectures in other institutes with prime focus on sustainability.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Attracting endowments from external sources supporting or working in the field of sustainable developlment *
Financial endowments coming from individuals or organizations which support or work in the field of sustainable development.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Budget allocation for workshops, conferences, seminars, and training programs for students and staff with focus on sustainability *
No Importance
Very High Importance
Investment towards community development *
Includes direct monetary investment as well as investment in terms of technology and/or services.
No Importance
Very High Importance
Monetary savings by resource conservation *
Includes energy conservation, water conservation and resources recovery from solid waste recycling.
No Importance
Very High Importance
4) Use the space given below to mention any other indicators that should be included for assessing the sustainability of an educational campus. Kindly also mention the importance score for the indicators you suggested. Any other comments regarding the existing indicators are also welcome.
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