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Engineers Without Borders

Pitt's chapter of Engineers Without Borders designs and implements sustainable-engineering projects in developing countries.
building with bamboo
Building With Bamboo

Pitt Professor Kent Harries studies the use of bamboo and other materials in constructing sustainable buildings and infrastructures that are resistant to earthquakes.
sustainable shelter
Sustainable Shelter

Students participating in a Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation program created a rapidly deployable emergency shelter constructed of bamboo and zip ties.
Peregrine falcons
Falcons Atop the Cathedral

Since 2002, pairs of Peregrine falcons—once endangered, but now rebounding thanks to legal protections, pesticide restrictions, and reintroduction efforts—have nested atop Pitt’s Cathedral of Learning.
Pitt Making a Difference
Pitt Making a Difference

Students clean up local parks, tend community gardens, repaint buildings, and perform other community services each year on Pitt Make a Difference Day.
Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation
Center of Excellence in Sustainability

Pitt’s Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation is a center of excellence in sustainable engineering, focusing on the design of sustainable neighborhoods.
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Pitt's Legacy

  • Pitt signed the 1990 Talloires Declaration supporting mobilization of higher-ed resources for sustainability.

  • Sierra magazine named Pitt one of “America’s Coolest Schools” for its commitment to environmentalism.

  • Pitt launched its first campus-wide energy management system in 1975.

  • Pitt’s Carrillo Street Steam Plant is one of the cleanest university plants in the United States.

  • A new composting system has cut food waste by 75 percent in Pitt’s Market Central dining facility.

  • Pitt’s print shop won Forest Stewardship Council certification for its support of sustainable forestry.

  • 5 Pitt construction projects have earned LEED Gold certification, with 9 more pursuing certification.

  • Pitt’s Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation is a world leader in sustainable engineering.

  • In 2012, Pitt recycled 1,200 tons of materials, 38 percent of the University's waste stream.

  • Energy conservation at Pitt has resulted in $44 million in energy cost avoidance since 1996.

  • Pitt scored 97 out of a possible 99 points in the Princeton Review's 2012 Guide to Green Colleges.

Pitt: Blue, Gold & Green

Pitt is committed to sustainability through education, research, and community outreach…through recycling, energy savings, and waste reduction…and in the design and construction of campus buildings.