Expanding Into The Education Sector With AASHE

Empowering university green initiatives with key partnerships

Advetec has joined forces with the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).

As part of an ambitious growth strategy, the team at Advetec has partnered with the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). The AASHE aims to empower higher education faculties, staff, and students to lead a more sustainable future.

The organization has four strategic goals, which will facilitate Advetec’s wider mission to reduce the environmental impact of waste and educate industry professionals on the importance of proper waste disposal:

1. To empower others to lead sustainability through resources and professional development
2. To catalyze sustainability action through the STARS framework
3. To accelerate higher education’s contributions to global sustainability through outreach
4. To enhance organizational capacity and resilience.

With resources, events, and strategic partners, the AASHE will also help Advetec reach new visionaries in the education sector.

How is Advetec working with the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education?

On top of these resources, the AASHE will help Advetec approach universities with its STARS framework. This is a key set of global standards designed specifically for higher education institutions, helping them measure their sustainability performance.

This Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment, and Rating system allows universities to compare their performance across multiple areas. From operations to innovation and leadership, the framework awards these institutions with tiered ratings up to Platinum.

At Advetec, we have years of experience in helping businesses manage their waste. With this new direction in the education sector, we can empower others to do the same with long-term practices.
Taking the time to gain a holistic understanding of our customers’ existing waste processes and streams, we effectively diagnose the nuanced methods to streamline operations.

A key step in Advetec’s growth plans

This strategic partnership comes in a long line of growth plans for Advetec. By branching out into the United States, we are now poised to speak directly to key markets, with director of business development Scott Owen at the helm.

Advetec has worked with high-profile clients in the United States for some time now, and in October 2023, we announced our new Florida base. Along with a new location in Davie, we are also pursuing new verticals, with a focus on higher education facilities. Due to their high, dense populations, universities are susceptible to huge amounts of waste, for example:

• 530,000 tons of plate waste in cafeterias per year
• 640 pounds of trash per year per student
• 112 pounds of wasted food per year per student

Likewise, with classrooms, laboratories, and student accommodation, universities are highly energy-intensive. This is why it is so important for higher education institutions to reduce their waste – from preventing landfill to lowering mileage transporting it.

How will this new partnership benefit the US education sector?

Just as any organization stands to gain from investing in sustainability, education in particular will benefit. At the time of writing, some 12 institutions around the world had achieved the coveted Platinum STARS status – improving their public image and reducing costs.

Guidance and incentives from larger organizations may also influence others. For example, many organizations follow guidelines from the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. By following the STARS framework, these institutions can provide documented evidence of their commitment to sustainability.

Equally, environmentally focused universities prove more attractive for prospective students. For example, Times Higher Education revealed that international students are more driven by green practices than they are location, when choosing a university. This gives the US education sector a chance to perform on the world’s stage – enhancing competitive advantage and reducing environmental impact.

The start of something exciting

With these new steps into the US, the education sector, and the expert guidance of the AASHE, Advetec has exciting plans ahead. While universities can focus on teaching students, we can focus on educating the universities themselves. This would not be possible without the incredible work of the AASHE and its guiding principles.

Going forward, Advetec plans to position itself not only as an expert in biotech solutions, but as an educator. We are already seeing great feedback from universities, and this could soon spread into healthcare, manufacturing, and much more.

Find out more about our dedication to the environmental sector, as told by our director of business development Scott Owen, here.