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Presidents and chancellors signing the Commitments are publicly demonstrating through their actions that addressing climate and sustainability issues are central to the education, research, and service mission of higher education to help create a thriving and civil society. Presidents and Chancellors make these Commitments because of the scientific consensus, largely coming from experts working within higher education, that drawing down emissions and becoming more resilient to climate disruption is an urgent priority. When Presidents and Chancellors act boldly and publicly in this way, there is often more weight and resource behind the institutional climate action endeavor, making the Commitments signatories role models for the rest of society in demonstrating that shifting away from fossil fuels can provide economic and other social benefits, as well as the environmental benefits needed to support our large and growing global civilization.
While Second Nature recommends science-aligned targets for decarbonization and provides guidance around appropriate interim targets for action, the structure of the Commitments is specifically designed to avoid a one-size-fits-all approach, allowing each school to make its Climate Action Plan with its own target dates for decarbonization, climate neutrality, or steps to increase resilience. This flexibility allows for solutions to be feasible, cost-effective, and right for each institution’s given circumstances. Second Nature is the entity adapting leading climate frameworks to the higher education context, so while non-prescriptive about how schools go about achieving their goals, the commitments enable schools to work within a common framework that is specific to the higher education sector’s unique attributes to develop their unique plans, all of which will provide the benefits of benchmarking, developing common standards, sharing best practices, avoiding repeating mistakes, and creating resources that can be useful in a variety of situations.
While public commitments signed by an institution’s President or Chancellor have led to some of the most successful examples of substantive climate action by higher education institutions, colleges and universities can also make bold strides against climate change through teaching, research, and community engagement without a Presidential public commitment. If you’re at an Institution where a Presidential commitment is unlikely or don’t have the capacity or interest in reporting operational progress, we welcome institutions into the Climate Leadership Network as Affiliate members. Second Nature celebrates Affiliate members’ contributions while also supporting them through challenges to maintain their leadership and innovate forward.
The magnitude of the transformation to a zero-carbon and resilient economy is so great that purposeful, collective action by higher education is necessary for scaling this effort, in addition to the excellent work that is already being done by individual campuses. This challenge is too large and complex for any one campus to solve on its own – the important individual efforts must be complemented and enhanced through collective action.
There is a tremendous power of collective action of this kind, and each school that joins the Climate Leadership Network builds positive momentum, having a greater impact than would be possible acting alone. The Climate Leadership Network is sending strong signals to other sectors of society, from business to government. For example, it is pushing technology and service providers to develop new offerings because they can more clearly see the size of the market. The fact that so many schools have joined together is driving new technologies and tools, enabling economies of scale, and allowing schools to address this challenge with less upfront capital.
The collaboration and exchange that happens on behalf of the network through Second Nature’s programs allow each institution to replicate and scale climate action faster and more successfully, limit the repetition of mistakes, and even pool their impact and influence in service of low-carbon and carbon-free technologies.
No, please direct the president, chancellor, or senior-most leader to sign the Commitments.
If another leader on campus, such as a Chief Sustainability Officer, Provost, Academic Leader, or Faculty member, is interested in the Climate Leadership Network, please explore affiliate membership in the Network.
Second Nature is happy to work with each institution’s diverse set of stakeholders, ranging from staff, alumni, students, faculty, and more, who may be involved in deciding which member pathway is right for the campus. Please contact [email protected] with inquiries.
To support the Network, Second Nature collects dues.
Second Nature conducts research and convenes expertise to set and maintain leading-edge climate action guidance for the higher education sector. Second Nature also continues to produce resources, education, capacity-building, and Network-building opportunities to support campuses in achieving their goals. Stewardship of the Network requires funding as well as qualitative participation from its members to maintain collective impact and deliver value to individual campuses from a range of contexts.
Demonstrating the importance that climate action plays as a catalytic force on campus, and reflecting the value of participating in a leading national network, members support the Network through the payment of annual dues. The dues are structured so that smaller and less resourced institutions pay lower amounts. Signatories also have opportunities to be recognized as Honor Society dues contributors if they can offer more financial support. More information can be found on our dues payment page.
In addition to dues, the costs incurred by an institution to meet the requirements of the Commitments, such as measuring emissions and creating and implementing a Climate Action Plan, will vary between schools and over time. However, there is considerable evidence and many case studies that demonstrate attractive returns on investment for emissions reduction activities.
The Climate Leadership Network provides a community-wide framework and strategic perspective, without which ad hoc efforts around climate in academics and operations can cost more and be less effective. As regulations are developed, energy costs grow more volatile, and prospective students increasingly demand education on climate issues and sustainability, the potential costs of delays and inaction are far higher than any opportunity costs associated with foresighted, proactive investments today. Efforts to reduce GHG emissions and increase resilience should be viewed as investments, not costs, as they improve quality of life and the educational experience and avoid long-term costs.
Dues to Second Nature support activity that continues to drive the Climate Leadership Network forward to achieve the action more efficiently and effectively. We create scaled opportunities for the Network, like those mentioned on the initiatives page, but we also understand that campus-specific resources and services are valued by signatories. Some examples include:
To view a summary of member benefits and engagement opportunities, click here.
Basic fulfillment of the Commitments involves publicly submitting reports and contributing dues on an annual basis. If an institution is not in fulfillment, it will be afforded a two year grace period, and support from staff.
Ongoing, active participation is necessary for the network to fulfill its purpose as a learning community of schools leading on climate solutions.
If a signatory cannot meet its reporting requirements, we recommend considering Affiliate membership.
The Presidents’ Climate Leadership Commitments are voluntarily signed by a president or chancellor on behalf of an institution, and they carry over during leadership transitions. In addition to your campus community that cares about the Commitment, Second Nature works hard to avoid withdrawal, by providing support for campus climate leaders through our programs, services, and curated resources, and by providing support during campus leadership transitions. Even so, we do understand that some institutions may not be able to continue with their Commitment. As a first resort in these situations, we ask that campuses reach out to us via [email protected] so that we can discuss your situation and consider together whether Affiliate membership in the Climate Leadership Network is a more suitable option. If it is determined that a full withdrawal from the Climate Leadership Network is the only option, we require a formal written communication directly from the president or chancellor of the institution. Please address the email or letter to:
Send c/o:
Tim Carter, President
Second Nature
160 Alewife Brook Pkwy #1182
Cambridge, MA 02138
or to [email protected].
Once received, Second Nature will initiate a process of removing the campus from the website and reporting platform (submitted data will be retained), and a confirmation will be sent to the president/chancellor that the withdrawal is complete. If you’re still doing climate action, let us know and consider a switch to Affiliate membership.
The Commitments are designed for institutions of higher education. However, with Affiliate membership, Second Nature now welcomes K-12 institutions to participate.
Yes! Assessing climate risk and making a long-term plan for eliminating GHG emissions and increasing resilience will benefit schools of all sizes, along with the communities in which they are located. Institutions that have signed Commitments range from the smallest to the largest, including schools with enrollment under a few hundred to entire systems with several hundred thousand students.
Learn more about Commitment Implementation on the Commitments Implementation page.
Signatories publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions on SIMAP. Learn more about reporting: https://secondnature.org/climate-leadership-network/signatories/commitments-implementation-handbook/
Second Nature will provide signatories with SIMAP reporting access and will schedule a call to walk through the SIMAP platform. All signatories receive a complimentary SIMAP public reporting account. If you do not have access to the reporting platform, if the Implementation Liaison has changed, or if you have additional contacts to add, please reach out to the Second Nature Climate Programs Team at [email protected] for assistance.
Disclosing greenhouse gas emissions helps the institution better manage their emissions, creates more transparency for their communities, and enables higher education to conduct research on this data.
Regular GHG inventories help integrate carbon accounting into an institution’s annual decision-making processes, and institutionalize climate action practice in an organization. Conducting them annually helps campuses to quantitatively measure decarbonization efforts.
Consistent reporting helps the whole sector. Second Nature uses data supplied by campuses to analyze sector averages, maintain methodologies, and guide the network toward climate goals. Without regular data, institutions cannot benchmark themselves against peers or show the progress gained from institutional efforts.
The Commitments stipulate annual reporting of the campus GHG inventory. If not annually, please report every other year. If you need help, reach out to [email protected].
At a minimum, participating campuses should include in their inventories:
As the inventory methodology develops, and to the extent practicable, participating institutions should also endeavor to evaluate embodied emissions in purchased goods and services, including food. Campuses now have the opportunity to receive recognition for achieving the Leadership in Scope III Accounting, Mitigation, or Goal-Setting Milestone for accounting or addressing categories beyond those required by the commitment.
Institutions may count sequestration on institution-owned land as an emissions reduction if they meet “additionality” requirements – meaning that only additional carbon sequestered over a baseline is counted. This requires that campuses ensure limited losses from the carbon stocks already in their land bases, while also taking steps to store more carbon in those lands as part of their climate action. Carbon emissions from land based activities should also be reported in the inventory. For more information, see Second Nature’s Carbon Markets & Offsets Guidance, Section 3.5: Land Use Management and Carbon Accounting, as well as our web resource: Carbon Management & Greenhouse Gas Mitigation.
Under the Presidents’ Climate Leadership Commitments, both avoidance and removal offsets can count toward achieving climate neutrality. Some offsets are considered higher quality than others, and institutions are strongly encouraged to carefully vet projects and seek assistance from Second Nature and the network in the process. For more comprehensive information, please reference Second Nature’s Carbon Markets & Offset Guidance.
Second Nature encourages carbon neutrality as a near term accountability measure on the path to decarbonization, and carbon offsets are an important part of near term accountability. Offsets can allow institutions to invest in least-cost emissions mitigation in some of the most important areas of climate action, while developing strategy for fossil-free systems in longer-term plans. Decarbonization refers to direct mitigation of emissions without the use of offsets, and while it may be very difficult to imagine doing this, it is possible. At present, institutions do not possess all of the technologies or control to mitigate all of their emissions, so some use of carbon offsets to meet targets will likely be necessary. For more information, see Carbon Management & Greenhouse Gas Mitigation and The Carbon Markets and Offsets Guidance.
The Commitments guide climate action for higher education. The Climate Leadership Commitments are facilitated by Second Nature. STARS is an assessment framework and rating system on a broad array of sustainability efforts that have occurred. STARS is run by AASHE. Both may help your institution propel efforts to prioritize climate and sustainability and benchmark with other participating campuses. Each have distinct reporting and participation requirements.
Second Nature is focused on accelerating higher education’s climate action leadership, whereas AASHE is an association focused on sustainability in higher education more generally.
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