Harvard Bridges the Gap Between Capital and Operations Budgets

Harvard’s $2.8 million Green Campus Loan Fund, launched in January 2002, is managed by the Harvard Green Campus Initiative. The Initiative has funded over 40 conservation projects, with an estimated return on investment of 28%. The most popular projects involved upgrades to lighting and lighting controls. Other capital investments supported by the fund include mechanical-system upgrades, irrigation controls, and photovoltaics. By far the best short-term returns, however, were achieved by programs aimed at changing student behavior. The Go Cold Turkey program, for example, gets students to sign pledges that they will turn off their computers when they leave for Thanksgiving and Christmas vacations. Competition among dorms stimulates participation.

Harvard’s Green Campus Loan Fund provides, from inside the institution, many of the same services that other organizations get by contracting with energy service companies (ESCOs). By providing these services internally, however, the loan fund is building the capabilities and skills of staff. “We are building a learning organization that can increase the rate of innovation over time,” says Leith Sharp, director of the Harvard Green Campus Initiative, which administers the funds. In contrast, she notes, “an ESCO takes what it learns away with it.”