There are many random things that Florida Gulf Coast University does to remain an environmentally friendly university. This includes: purchasing EPA EPEAT Gold certified computers (environmentally friendly computers), vegetarian meals with cage free eggs at all on campus eating location, trash cans that are wildlife-proof with a separate recyclable compartment, and clearing exotic plants by hand so they can get replanted instead of tearing them down completely. The university requires all undergraduate students to take the University Colloquium class, a three credit-hour class that teaches about the environment and the environmentally issues. FGCU is among one of the only universities that uses an ice plant to generate ice at night when electricity is not used as much and sends cold water through tubing systems to each of the individual buildings for air conditioning. Additionally, tinted windows on all university windows reduce the solar heat gain decreasing cooling expenses. A reality that sets Florida Gulf Coast University apart from any other university is the fact that the school cannot build on two-thirds of the land that they own. This was a promise that was made to Ben Hill Griffin III which states that two-thirds of this land will remain natural while only one-third will be used for buildings. Eventually,
FGCU will have to stop building outwards and start to build up as the university grows.
