Promoting sustainability at Belmont Hill is a natural outgrowth of the declaration of Charles W. Eliot, President of Harvard from 1869 to 1909, at the dedication of the School in 1923. His words would become Belmont Hill’s credo: “Working together is its fundamental idea – of men with God, of men with prophets, leaders, and teachers, of men with one another, of men’s intelligence with the forces of nature.” This charge presents the students, faculty, staff and extended Belmont Hill community another dimension of opportunity for cooperation and collaboration.
Acknowledging the many environmental challenges ahead and our responsibility as an academic institution to act as leaders, our commitment to sustainability takes the form of educating the community about environmental issues and–through the careful examination of and adherence to principles and practices that will minimize the school’s ecological footprint–lessening our impact in areas such as energy and water consumption, the disposal of wastes, and use of toxic materials. As a change agent, we also seek to expand our influence in the surrounding community by providing leadership on sustainability issues, educational outreach, and through building alliances.