Sustainability at Columbia Seminary

The Vernon S. Broyles Jr. Leadership Center (BLC) was created from the Simon-Law Residence Hall (circa 1932. Over 90 percent of the original building was “recycled” and is still a part of the BLC.

The Marcia Riggs Common, named after Columbia faculty member, Dr. Marcia Riggs, is Columbia’s newest residence hall. It has 35,000 square feet with a capacity of 660 students and a monthly energy bill of just $2000.

Both BLC and Riggs Common share some eco-friendly characteristics:

• Designed to reduce the need for electric lighting, 40% less energy than typically designed buildings
• Building materials made from recycled material – the roof from recycled diapers and the flooring from a beloved tree on campus
• Extra building products recycled during construction
• Regionally sourced materials – bricks, steel, and carpet from Georgia

• Rainwater collected into basement tanks for irrigation
• Excess water stored under parking lot and released into watershed

Columbia Theological Seminary has earned a Green Seminary Certification.

Green Seminary Certification is a 3-year process designed to provide the structure, guidance and support that seminaries need to further develop their institution’s commitment to creation care.

The foundation of the program begins with a commitment from a cross-section of school representatives (faculty, staff, students, alumni, etc.) to serve as a Green Team. Together they conduct a self-audit of their existing environmental practices in the areas of: Education – Liturgy, Ritual, and Worship – Building and Grounds – Community Life – Public Leadership.

The Green Seminary Initiative is premised on two convictions: The first is that the religious community has a unique and significant calling to turn back human-caused environmental destruction and to participate in bringing all of creation into health and wholeness. The second conviction is that theological schools should provide clergy and religious leaders with the tools necessary for them to lead their congregations, communities and organizations in meeting their unique call to protect and restore creation.

Columbia’s commitment to sustainability extends into our classrooms where we help ensure future generations of pastoral leaders will continue to care for God’s creation. We teach many courses that have a focus on caring for and conserving the earth. Some of those include:

Biblical Area

• Creation Texts of the Old Testament
• How Manifold Are Your Works, O LORD! – Creation in the Old Testament

Historical Doctrinal Area

•  Faith in an Age of Climate Change
• Environmental Ethics