Sustainability
At NYU Langone Health, caring for patients and communities extends to our care for the environment. Our environmental stewardship program aims to protect our facilities from extreme weather events and reduce our dependence on limited resources like energy and water. The program stands on four pillars to ultimately build a culture of sustainability within the organization and to embed these priorities as part of our everyday operations and decision making:
- reduce our environmental impacts through a reduction in resource use
- increase resiliency in our operations
- create healthy environments through building design and research
- advocate for a sustainable healthcare future
Our program includes dozens of initiatives across NYU Langone Health, led by our Real Estate Development and Facilities department, and is part of a collaborative effort among individuals and teams working to make our organization more sustainable.
Our Sustainability Commitments
NYU Langone is committed to becoming a carbon-neutral health system by 2050, with an interim goal of reducing the intensity of greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2030. Reducing emissions also means improving air quality in our neighborhoods. Strategies that decrease activities that produce greenhouse gas emissions鈥� including using fuel for energy and transportation鈥攁lso reduce air pollutants that can worsen respiratory conditions, cardiovascular diseases, and other health conditions.
We are a proud and longstanding participant in the New York City Carbon Challenge. Since 2005, we have achieved a 41 percent reduction in carbon emissions for our fully owned portfolio and major sites under the New York City Carbon Challenge framework.
In 2019, we became the first New York City鈥揵ased member of the , a national leadership body of health systems committed to protecting their patients and employees from the health impacts of climate change. This platform allows us to leverage our voice to drive innovative climate solutions and policy and market transformation alongside 17 health system participants.
Sustainability Awards and Recognition
Our main campus in Manhattan was the first in the world to receive the highest-level certification under the U.S. Green Building Council鈥檚 Performance Excellence in Electricity Renewal (PEER) and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards. This commitment to excellence in sustainable building design and operations has grown, and we currently have more than 1.61 million square feet of property certified under LEED. We have also earned more than 90 energy and environmental excellence awards for our sustainability achievements.
Annual Environmental Sustainability Report
To help ensure transparency as we work toward our ambitious goals, we are pleased to share our Annual Sustainability Report. This report communicates more about our commitments, programs, and accomplishments to date and future plans across the four pillars of our sustainability program.
Read our 2025 Annual Sustainability Report.
Sustainability and Healthcare Research Database
Human health and environmental sustainability are fundamentally connected and improving both are essential to ensure the livelihood of our communities. Researchers at NYU Langone and New York University have recognized this connection and have led by example through academic studies on this topic. Our publicly available Sustainability and Healthcare Research Database compiles publications on the intersection of public health, sustainability, pollution, and climate change. Download the database鈥檚 data as an Excel file.
Contact Us
If you have questions or want to learn more about NYU Langone鈥檚 commitment to sustainability, please email us at sustainability@nyulangone.org.