Skip to Content
800-533-8762
  • Careers
  • Newsroom
  • Health Care Professionals
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
UPMC
  • Find a Doctor
  • Services
    • Frequently Searched Services
    • Frequently Searched Services
      Allergy & Immunology Behavioral & Mental Health Cancer Ear, Nose & Throat Endocrinology Gastroenterology Heart & Vascular Imaging Neurosciences Orthopaedics
      Physical Rehabilitation Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery Primary Care Senior Services Sports Medicine Telemedicine Transplant Surgery Walk-In Care Weight Management Women’s Health
      See all Services
    • Services by Region
    • Find a UPMC health care facility close to you quickly by browsing by region.
      UPMC in Western Pa. Western Pa. and New York
      UPMC in Central Pa. Central Pa.
      UPMC in North Central Pa. North Central Pa.
      UPMC in Western Md. Maryland & West Virginia
    • See All Services
  • Locations
    • Locations by Type
    • Locations by Type
      UPMC hospitals
      Hospitals
      Physical Therapy
      Physical Therapy
      Urgent care
      Walk-In Care
      UPMC Outpatient Centers
      Outpatient Centers
      UPMC Imaging Services
      Imaging
      Community Health Centers
      Community Health Centers
      See All Locations
    • Locations by Region
    • Locations by Region
      UPMC in Southwest Pa. Southwest Pa.
      UPMC in North Central Pa. North Central Pa.
      UPMC in Northwest Pa and Ny. Northwest Pa. & Western N.Y.
      UPMC in West Central Pa. West Central Pa.
      UPMC in Central Pa. Central Pa.
      UPMC in Western Md. Maryland & West Virginia
    • See All Locations
  • Patients & Visitors
    • Patient & Visitor Resources
    • Patient & Visitor Resources
      Patients and Visitors Resources Pay a Bill Classes & Events Medical Records Health Library Patient Information
      Patient Portals Privacy Information Shared Decision Making Traveling Patients Visitor Information
      Man uses mobile phone
      Pay a Bill
      Nurse reviews medical chart
      Request Medical Records
  • Patient Portals
  • Find Covid-19 updates
  • Schedule an appointment
  • Request medical records
  • Pay a bill
  • Learn about financial assistance
  • Find classes & events
  • Send a patient an eCard
  • Make a donation
  • Volunteer
  • Read HealthBeat blog
  • Explore UPMC Careers
Skip to Content
UPMC
  • Patient Portals
  • For Patients & Visitors
    • Find a Doctor
    • Locations
    • Patient & Visitor Resources
    • Pay a Bill
    • Services
    • More
      • Medical Records
      • Financial Assistance
      • Classes & Events
      • HealthBeat Blog
      • Health Library
  • About UPMC
    • Why UPMC
    • Facts & Stats
    • Supply Chain Management
    • Community Commitment
    • More
      • Financials
      • Support UPMC
      • UPMC Apps
      • UPMC Enterprises
      • UPMC International
  • For Health Care Professionals
    • Physician Information
    • Resources
    • Education & Training
    • Departments
    • Credentialing
  • Careers
  • Contact Us
  • Newsroom
  • UPMC >
  • About UPMC >
  • Community Commitment >
  • Sustainability Initiatives, UPMC’s Community Commitment >
  • Sustainability Center and Community Participation
Community Commitment
Commitment to Employees
Community Partnerships
Community Impact Stories
Economic Impact
Employee Volunteerism
UPMC Center for Workplace Culture and Community Engagement
Sustainability Initiatives
24 Projects in 2024
Sustainability Operations and Activities
Sustainability Center and Community Participation
Veteran Employment and Education
Community Health Needs Assessment
Community Commitment
Commitment to Employees
Community Partnerships
Community Impact Stories
Economic Impact
Employee Volunteerism
UPMC Center for Workplace Culture and Community Engagement
Sustainability Initiatives
24 Projects in 2024
Sustainability Operations and Activities
Sustainability Center and Community Participation
Veteran Employment and Education
Community Health Needs Assessment

Chat Keywords List

  • cancel or exit: Stops your conversation
  • start over: Restarts your current scenario
  • help: Shows what this bot can do
  • terms: Shows terms of use and privacy statement
  • feedback: Give us feedback
Continue
Chat with UPMC
RESTART
MENU
CLOSE

Sustainability Initiatives and Community Participation

People and communities are at the heart of all that we do at UPMC. The new Center for Sustainability is maximizing the impact of initiatives for our people and our communities.

Our Sustainability Center

The new UPMC Center for Sustainability is designed for long-term success in achieving our sustainability goals. Our work includes:

  • Creating sustainability teams at each of our 40 hospitals. The center is developing new teams, promoting existing teams, and collaborating with all to roll out initiatives across the system.
  • Creating sustainability working groups and coordinating with service lines in the areas of:
    • Reducing carbon footprint
    • Facilities
    • Food and nutrition
    • Supply chain
    • Transportation
    • Environmental services
    • Surgical services
    • Community
    • Awareness
  • Developing a strategic plan with input from all teams and UPMC Center for Sustainability staff. The strategic plan will have a timeline and measurable goals to achieve along our path to net-zero.

24 Projects in 2024

UPMC is highlighting key sustainability projects throughout 2024.

View our 24 in 2024 projects

Government and Nonprofit Partners

Our government and nonprofit partners include:

  • US Department of Energy Better Building Challenge.
  • US Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED).
  • Practice Green Health.
  • Pittsburgh 2030
  • Erie 2030.
  • Sustainable Pittsburgh.
  • CEOs for Sustainability.
  • Sustainable Business Compact.
  • Southwestern Pa Commission Transportation Initiatives.
  • Pittsburgh Region Clean Cities.
  • And many others.

Environmental Firsts

  • UPMC was the first health care organization to go smoke free across all facilities and during all shifts.
  • UPMC was the first regional health care organization to collaborate with the U.S. Department of Energy on developing a health care energy efficiency program.
  • UPMC was the first health care organization in the nation to insert a clean construction requirement into construction requests for proposals and contracts.

Within the UPMC system:

  • UPMC East was the first regional LEED certified hospital built from the ground up.
  • UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh was the first LEED certified built hospital in Pennsylvania.
  • UPMC cafeterias were the first hospital commercial food services to sign on to Allegheny County’s Living Well Initiative.
  • UPMC received the highest level of the Sustainable Pittsburgh Business Compact in 2014.
  • UPMC was the first and largest tenant to renovate all of its floors in the US Steel Tower. This contributed to the US Steel Tower achieving Energy Star rating.

Community Impact

  • Multiple UPMC hospital and retail pharmacies participate in the annual National Drug Take Back Days. On average, the US Department of Justice events collect 0.5 tons of unwanted medications each year and offer environmentally sound disposal.
  • At least 3 facilities (UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, UPMC St. Margaret, and UPMC Shadyside) offering continuous unwanted medicine collection.
  • Multiple UPMC locations offer continuous collection of eyeglasses for Lions Club International.
  • UPMC has co-sponsored Pennsylvania Resource Council’s (PRC) household hazardous waste collections in select communities over multiple years.
  • UPMC has co-sponsored PRC’s community-based reusable material collection events over multiple years.
  • UPMC supports the Engineering Sustainability Conference, a biannual event sponsored by the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University.
  • UPMC sponsors community gardens and green space projects in multiple communities.

Our Employees

UPMC’s sustainability initiatives are receiving new attention thanks to the efforts of a new group of caring physicians and employees. Clinicians for Climate Action began in 2022, and less than a year later has more than 500 members.  

The UPMC-wide group is now an important part of shaping priorities of the new UPMC Center for Sustainability, as are the hospital-based sustainability teams.

Contact Us

Learn more about UPMC’s sustainability initiatives. Contact the UPMC Center for Sustainability by email.

UPMC
200 Lothrop Street Pittsburgh, PA 15213

412-647-8762 800-533-8762

Patients And Visitors
  • Find a Doctor
  • Locations
  • Pay a Bill
  • Patient & Visitor Resources
  • Disabilities Resource Center
  • Services
  • Medical Records
  • No Surprises Act
  • Price Transparency
  • Financial Assistance
  • Classes & Events
  • Health Library
Health Care Professionals
  • Physician Information
  • Resources
  • Education & Training
  • Departments
  • Credentialing
Newsroom
  • Newsroom Home
  • Inside Life Changing Medicine Blog
  • News Releases
About
  • Why UPMC
  • Facts & Stats
  • Supply Chain Management
  • Community Commitment
  • Financials
  • Supporting UPMC
  • HealthBeat Blog
  • UPMC Apps
  • UPMC Enterprises
  • UPMC Health Plan
  • UPMC International
  • Nondiscrimination Policy
Life changing is...
Follow UPMC
  • Contact Us
  • Website/Email Terms of Use
  • Medical Advice Disclaimer
  • Privacy Information
  • Active Privacy Alerts
  • Sitemap
© 2025 UPMC I Affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences Supplemental content provided by Healthwise, Incorporated. To learn more, visit healthwise.org
Find Care
Providers
Video Visit
Portal Login