Certification for Sustainable Work Spaces

The Green Office Program at the University of New England aims to engage faculty, professional staff, and students by providing a program with the necessary tools for offices to achieve a green office certification. The program brings offices and departments together by creating workplace communities that value environmental stewardship as outlined by the University of New England’s Core Values.

Three achievement levels exist, which are assessed in two ways — the percentage of office member participation and the proportion of points received on a self-conducted assessment tool.

Certification AchievedLevel 1
Percentage Points Possible40
Percent of Team Participation50
Certification AchievedLevel 2
Percentage Points Possible55
Percent of Team Participation75
Certification AchievedLevel 3
Percentage Points Possible70
Percent of Team Participation100
Certification Achieved Percentage Points Possible Percent of Team Participation
Level 1 40 50
Level 2 55 75
Level 3 70 100

To support even more sustainable practices within UNE’s offices and departments, we encourage offices to elaborate on their actions to attain partial assessment tool points. We reward creative measures by providing additional points within the innovation category on the assessment tool.

Certified Offices

Benefits of Green Office Certification

  • A framed green office certificate for display, identifying the certification level achieved
  • Recognition on UNE’s Sustainability webpage
  • Ability to display UNE Green Office logo on department webpages
  • Opportunities for on- and off-campus media attention
  • Greater cohesion among office members and an appreciation for sustainability
  • Realized cost-savings while engaging in environmental stewardship

Steps to Green Office Certification

  1. Acquaint yourself with the information on the UNE Sustainability and UNE Green Office web pages.
  2. If questions arise or you would like to participate in the program, email the Sustainability Office.
  3. The Sustainability Office will then email an Excel spreadsheet assessment tool to the Green Office Leader to be completed by the members of your office. Please complete the assessment tool and email a copy to the Sustainability Office.
  4. Schedule an appointment with the Sustainability Office for an Eco-Rep to make a verification visit.
  5. After the verification visit, your assessment checklist will be scored and you will receive notice about which level you have achieved.
  6. We will schedule a time to present your certificate, typically at a staff meeting so we can take a group photo to publicize your achievement.
  7. Congratulations! You are now a green office!

Resources

These resources were created for use as your office works towards certification and with the assessment tool in mind. For example, the pledges can be used to earn points on your office’s assessment tool, or could be used to spark awareness in the office. Most are meant to be viewed online only and are not formatted for printing — the exceptions are noted.

FAQ