In 2008, Darden established its sustainability vision: to be a zero waste, carbon neutral enterprise by 2020, and a top ten business school for teaching and research on sustainability by 2013. We think about sustainability in terms of How We Live and How We Learn, bringing together academic learning and facilities changes for sustainability whenever possible. Darden students have initiated many actions related to achieving our goals, including conducting a trash audit, creating a voluntary program to offset the carbon footprint of their MBA education, and producing the annual Sustainability and Renewable Energy Forum. Efforts small and large enhance Darden’s learning environment and engage our community.

 We look forward to being transparent about our  progress, and sharing best practices with our academic and corporate partners.  

Erika Herz
Associate Director of Sustainability Programs at Darden
 HerzE@darden.virginia.edu

Sustainability Resources

•  Sustainability MBA Resources - This site outlines a variety of MBA academic, career and extracurricular resources and opportunities in the area of sustainability.
•  Social Enterprise MBA Resources - This site outlines a variety of MBA academic, career and extracurricular resources and opportunities in the area of social enterprise.
•  Update on Darden’s Sustainability Actions - Learn what Darden is doing to become a zero waste, carbon neutral enterprise by 2020.
•  Blogs, Podcasts and Videos - Read, listen and watch a variety of online media to stay connected with Darden's sustainability actions.
•  Sustainability at UVA - See what the University of Virginia community is doing to promote a Greener Grounds.

Sustainability Centers

• The Batten Institute - This Darden center conducts research on innovation for sustainability.
• The Alliance for Research on Corporate Sustainability (ARCS) - ARCS is housed at Darden and is a consortium of institutions at 14 leading universities, providing data and networking opportunities for corporate sustainability scholars.

Sustainability Curriculum

Darden offers 17 elective courses that solely or partially focus on sustainability and ethical leadership/decision-making. Coursework includes tools essential for developing a successful sustainability strategy such as stakeholder engagement and systems thinking. In addition, Darden includes topics on sustainability throughout its First Year core curriculum.

Read more about the Innovation for Sustainability  concentration or view the following video on the sustainability curriculum:

For more videos on Darden's sustainability curriculum, click on the links below:

•  First Year Strategy
•  Business and Sustainability
•  Creative Capitalism
•  Sustainability Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Sustainability Rankings

• Grand prize winner of the Page Prize for Sustainability Issues in Business Curriculum. This award was for the Innovation for Sustainability academic concentration (2012)  
• Top 16 Green Business School by The Princeton Review/Entrepreneur Magazine (2011) 
• No. 3 globally in Corporate Social Responsibility by the Financial Times (2011)
• Three Darden faculty, Ed Freeman, Greg Fairchild and  Mike Lenox are winners of the prestigious  Aspen Institute Faculty Pioneer Award for sustainability teaching and research impact. (2009, 2001)