Sustainability

We have talked a lot this year at Idyllwild Arts about sustainability, and we have achieved measurable successes. We discovered through this event, and in our work on other projects this year, that sustainability is a rallying cry for community; it is an opportunity for us to come together and celebrate a constant that keeps us connected.

At Idyllwild Arts Academy, we have begun to implement sustainable practices in many aspects of our campus life. Some of the greatest successes have occurred in our dining hall. We’ve become deliberate in sourcing our food locally, seasonally and in pursuit of organic produce. We have moved forward in establishing relationships with local farmers who can provide fresh, humanely raised and chemical free meat, poultry and eggs.

Idyllwild Arts Academy (IAA) has substantial outside lighting requirements for visibility and safety. Students, faculty and visitors are often out in darker hours, going to and from dorms and the dining hall, the library and various art studios, or attending on-campus performances and recitals. To assure these needs, IAA has an annual utility bill totaling more than a half million dollars. Consequently, the school has a strong incentive to undertake a sustainability program. So, outside lighting is one of many areas we have been looking at. Plus, many of us have outside lighting needs at home.