Outdoor USA Magazine

Sierra Magazine has ranked the nation's "Coolest Schools," recognizing the environmental efforts of U.S. Colleges. From sustainable initiatives like UC Irvine's energy-efficiency standards to Stanford's commitment to maintaining undeveloped open space, these schools have students stepping up to "walk the walk" of their environmental educations.

The University of Washington in Seattle made the number one spot for committing to sustainability (with 90 percent of the energy on campus from hydropower) and providing students and faculty with departments and programs that focus on environmental responsibility, including the Center for Sustainable Forestry at Pack Forest, the Alaska Salmon Program and the Center for Ecogenetics and Environmental Health.

Sierra Magazine's top 20 are:

1. University of Washington (Seattle, WA)

2. Green Mountain College (Poultney, VT)

3. University of California, San Diego (San Diego, CA)

4. Warren Wilson College (Asheville, NC)

5. Stanford University (Stanford, CA)

6. University of California, Irvine (Irvine, CA)

7. University of California, Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, CA)

8. University of California, Davis (Davis, CA)

9. Evergreen State College (Olympia, WA)

10. Middlebury College (Middlebury, VT)

11. University of New Hampshire (Durham, NH)

12. Appalachian State University (Boone, NC)

13. Colby College (Waterville, ME)

14. Western Washington University (Bellingham, WA)

15. University of California, Los Angeles (Los Angeles, CA)

16. University of Connecticut (Storrs, CT)

17. Clark University (Worcester, MA)

18. Cornell University (Ithaca, NY)

19. Bowdoin College (Brunswick, ME)

20. University of Maryland (College Park, MD)

According to a 2010 Princeton Review report, 64 percent of prospective college students take a university's commitment to environmental issues into consideration when deciding where to apply and enroll, showing that students are attracted to institutions that commit to improving the planet.

The complete rankings are available online at sierraclub.org/coolschools.