Sustainability Awards and Rankings

In FY 2021-2022,  UC campuses were ranked as leaders in sustainability by a wide range of organizations and publications.

Download the full list of 2021-2022 UC campus rankings, ratings, and awards (pdf).

Highlights from 2021–2022:

• UC Irvine ranked #1 in Overall Performance as Doctoral Institution for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's (AASHE) Sustainable Campus Index (pdf).
• UC Santa Cruz tied #1 top performer in Research, alongside UC Irvine, UC Merced and UC San Diego, for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's (AASHE) Sustainable Campus Index (pdf). 
• UC Merced ranked #12 nationally in the Princeton Review 2023 Top 50 Green Colleges ranking.
• UC Riverside ranked #9 top performer in Water for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's (AASHE) Sustainable Campus Index (pdf).
• UC Santa Barbara ranked #8 top performer in Waste for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's (AASHE) Sustainable Campus Index (pdf).
• UC Davis received a 2022 Sustainability Award for Procurement Practices from the National Association of College and University Food Services.
• UC Berkeley ranked #1 in Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings: Sustainability. This ranking assesses an institution’s commitments to building a sustainable world with emphasis on their influence beyond campus grounds. 
• UC San Francisco received two awards for sustainable transportation: a 2022 Best Workplace for Commuters recognition from the Commuters National Standard of Excellence and a Circles of Excellence Award in Transportation from Practice Greenhealth.
• UCLA ranked #2 top performer for Wellbeing & Work for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's (AASHE) Sustainable Campus Index (pdf).
• UC San Diego received two awards for sustainable food: a Fair Trade University recognition from the Fair Trade Movement and the Most Vegan-Friendly Large School recognition from Peta2, PETA’s youth division.
• UC Irvine Health received Circles of Excellence Awards in Climate and Energy from Practice Greenhealth.
• UC Davis Health, UC San Francisco Health and UC San Diego Health received a Greening the OR Recognition Award, which honors facilities that have made substantial progress in reducing the impact of the surgical environment, from Practice Greenhealth.
• Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory received 3 awards for climate and energy: a 2021 Energy Management Insight Award from Clean Energy Ministerial, a 2021 Innovative Approach to Sustainability Award from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for its implementation of the ISO 50001 international standard, and a 2021 Strategic Partnerships for Sustainability Award from the DOE for the Lab’s Ongoing Commissioning Team.