Mid-South CC Awarded Grant to Enhance Renewable Energy Training
Mid-South Community College (AR) has received $127,500 from the Arkansas Department of Workforce Education to enhance its renewable energy program for high school students. The funds will support MSCC’s Technical Center, which provides dual-enrollment opportunities for Crittenden County students to learn high-tech job skills while earning high school and college credit, at no cost. The first goal in the renewable energy program is to develop a program that will prepare bio-refinery technicians to go in the field and work in bio-facilities. MSCC will teach students about botany, the bio-processes of ethanol, pneumatics, hydraulics, programmable logic computers, and basic electricity so graduates will understand what it takes to keep a bio-refinery running.
NYT Covers Upcoming Env'l Mgmt Prgm at Montclair State U
The New York Times has published an article on a new doctorate degree in Environmental Management at Montclair State University (NJ) that is currently under development. The goal of the program is to help students understand both environmental policy and science. Several courses on the social and political aspects of the environment will be required, and the program is aimed at students with interests in areas such as green technology, alternative sources of energy, climate change, and human health.
Rice U Approves Energy and Water Sustainability Minor
Rice University (TX) has approved a new minor in Energy and Water Sustainability. The minor requires seven courses: three core courses, a design practicum, and three electives focusing on energy, water, or sustainability, no more than two of which can be in the same category. Students will be able to declare the minor starting in the fall of 2009.
St. Thomas U to Offer Green Law Degree
St. Thomas University (FL) has announced plans to offer a dual degree program in Environmental Justice and Law. The program allows students to complete a Bachelor's in Environmental Justice and a law degree specializing in Environmental Law in six years rather than the seven years that is usually takes to earn an undergraduate and law degree separately. Through the program, students learn business law and how corporations can be held accountable for the environmental footprints they leave behind. The program offers clinical programs, externships, and internships with such organizations as the United Nations, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Department of Energy. The program is a competitive honors program.
U Montana Approves Climate Change Minor
The University of Montana has approved the creation of a minor in climate change studies. The new program will combine training in sciences with course work in ethics and policy to offer students a multidisciplinary understanding of climate change. Students will examine the scientific and social dimensions of global climate change, as well as explore potential solutions. Students pursuing the minor will take an interdisciplinary introductory course and six credits in each of three areas of study: climate change science, climate change and society, and climate change solutions.
NYU Announces Environmental Track in M.A. Bioethics Program
New York University has announced a new environmental track in its M.A. in Bioethics program. The Bioethics program examines value issues in both health and environment with special attention to their mutual relevance and illumination. The Environment Track emphasizes interdisciplinary study of ethical issues surrounding the environment including climate change ethics, distribution of resources, and environmental policy. The program offers comprehensive training in the foundations of bioethics while giving students and professionals in environment-related fields the flexibility to focus on in-depth study in their area of interest through a wide array of electives with faculty from across the University. Students in the environmental track will explore such questions as 'how are corporate responsibility and environmental injustice related,' 'what are the environmental health consequences of war?' and 'what moral considerations arise with non-human animals?'
Ryerson U Announces Certificate in Sustainability
Ryerson University (ON) has announced plans to launch a new Certificate in Sustainability in the fall of 2009. The Certificate, which aims to train students to understand sustainability in a broad context, includes six required courses and allows students to specialize in natural environment, urban environment, or socioeconomics of sustainability.
Lehigh U Offers Grad Certificate in Environmental Law & Policy
Lehigh University (PA) has begun offering a graduate certificate in Environmental Law and Policy. The new program will provide students with instruction on how ethics, politics, and science policy influence the natural environment and shape human relationships to it, at local, national, and international levels of organization. Teaching both theory and practice of environmental law and policy, the certificate will integrate practical and career oriented expertise in the existing law that regulates environmental pollution, planning, and land use with consideration of how different policies might achieve better outcomes.
Lesley U Offers M.A. in Urban Environmental Leadership
Lesley University (MA) has begun offering a Master's of Arts in Urban Environmental Leadership. Students in the program study the urban environment and the human forces that shape it. The program's examination of the urban environment addresses the history of cities and the political, social, and cultural forces that influence the environmental decision-making process.
U Western Ontario Launches Green Process Engineering Prgm
The University of Western Ontario has launched a Green Process Engineering undergraduate program that combines and integrates the fundamental principles of chemical engineering to design commercial products and processes that are safe, economical, and environmentally friendly. The program will educate students to apply process engineering tools to design sustainable and safe chemical processes . The program also explores alternative sources of energy with reduced carbon emissions. Some of the distinguishing features of the program include the emphasis on green chemistry, green power, solar and bio-fuel cells, and conversion of waste (such as agricultural byproducts) to bio-diesel and bio-ethanol products. Engineering students will have the opportunity to apply to the Green Process Engineering program upon completing their first common year.
Webster U Offers Emphasis Certif in Ed for Global Sustainability
Webster University (MO) has begun offering a graduate certificate emphasis in Education for Global Sustainability in its Master's of Teacher Education program. The Education for Global Sustainability program will prepare teachers to model and lead students in becoming informed, analytical, and responsible citizens for a sustainable future.
Kalamazoo Valley CC Announces Wind Turbine Technician Academy
Kalamazoo Valley Community College (MI) has announced its Wind Turbine Technician Academy. The 26-week academy will be based on a European certification standard and train people to work on the utility-grade turbines that are found on wind farms. The wind-turbine program will run twice a year with 15 students in each class.
Central Carolina CC Launches Biofuels Degree Program
Central Carolina Community College (NC) has launched a new Associate's in Applied Sciences Degree program in Alternative Energy Technology. The biofuels degree curriculum includes biofuels analytics, biofuels waste management, bioprocessing practices, chemistry, math, and renewable energy technology. Its interdisciplinary approach also requires students to take courses in electrical control systems, welding, pumps and piping systems, and small business development.
U South Florida to Offer Ph.D.s Focused on Sustainable Communities
The University of South Florida Board of Governors has approved new doctoral programs in history, government, and sociology. The three programs are linked and will focus on sustainable healthy communities in a global context. The programs will discuss global security, population growth, land-use development, and the international financial crisis.
Montclair State U Approves Env'l Management PhD
The New Jersey Commission on Higher Education has approved Montclair State University's proposal to convert the current doctoral program in Environmental Management to a Ph.D. degree in the College of Sciences and Mathematics. The new program emphasizes the study of interconnections between environmental systems and human systems. The aim of the program is to prepare environmental scholars who will recognize and analyze relationships among scientific, technological, societal and economic issues, and who will understand the uses of research in a data-driven decision and policy making process, firmly rooted in current scientific knowledge and methodology.
Baldwin Wallace College Launches Sustainability Major
Baldwin Wallace College (OH) has launched a new undergraduate major in sustainability. The new interdisciplinary major has six components: a mandatory introductory course; introductory core courses in the natural sciences, social sciences, and the humanities or business administration; an upper-level track in those same areas; an experiential component such as an internship with a corporation; a capstone course; and assignment and interaction with a local professional mentor.
Montana State U Offers New Degree in Sustainable Food & Bioenergy
Montana State University has begun offering a new Bachelor of Science program in Sustainable Food and Bioenergy Systems. The program is designed to contribute to the development of bioenergy and a stronger, more secure food system in Montana. The new major is a partnership between the College of Agriculture and the College of Education, Health and Human Development. Three concentration options, housed within three different departments at MSU, will be available to students working toward the degree. Those options and departments are agroecology, sustainable crop production, and sustainable food systems. Together, the options will focus on ecologically sound, socially just, and economically viable farming methods, food and people's health, and other issues related to food and bioenergy systems.
Business Week Article Features Green MBA Programs
Business Week has published an article on the increasing amount of sustainability-focused courses in business school curricula. The article mentions green MBA curricula at the University of California, Berkeley, Babson College (MA), the University of North Carolina, Presidio School of Management (CA), Harvard University (MA), Dartmouth College (NH), Stanford University (CA), Yale University (CT), and the University of Pennsylvania.
Dalhousie U Launches New Sustainability Program
Dalhousie University (NS) has launched a new academic program, Environment, Sustainability, and Society (ESS). Students can take ESS, a four-year undergraduate program, as half of a double major or as combined honors—combining their ESS studies with a more traditional discipline. Depending on their specialty, students will work towards a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Management, Bachelor of Community Design, Bachelor of Computer Science or Bachelor of Informatics. Classes in ESS will emphasize teamwork and problem-based learning. The program will begin in September of 2009.
Maharishi of Management Announces Sustainable Ag Track
The Maharishi University of Management (IA) has announced a new Sustainable Agriculture track in its undergraduate Sustainability Living program. The new track is slated to start this spring and will offer students the opportunity to spend April through September running all aspects of the Abundance Ecovillage Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm. Tasks will include growing crops, collecting payments, planning, harvesting, distribution, and composting. The new track is designed students interested in sustainable small-scale food production systems, and will provide them four of six elective courses required for their major.
OIT Announces Emphasis Area in Sustainable Technologies
The Oregon Institute of Technology has begun offering a new interdisciplinary emphasis area in Sustainable Technologies under the Environmental Sciences bachelor's degree program. Environmental Sciences/Sustainable Technologies students will take courses from the Renewable Energy Engineering, Mechanical Engineering Technology, Civil Engineering, and Business Management departments for exposure to a wide range of technological and engineering solutions to environmental problems.
Central College Adds Sustainability to Core Curriculum
Central College (IA) has added a global sustainability component to its newly restructured core curriculum, to begin in the fall of 2010. The initiative began when one of Central's professors of Political Science brought the idea to the faculty and received 70 percent of the group's support. The Central faculty plan to either develop new courses or infuse existing courses with sustainability components.
U Western Ontario to Add Green Process Engineering Prgm
The University of Western Ontario has announced plans to add a new undergraduate program, Green Process Engineering, to its curriculum in September of 2009. The new program will combine and integrate the fundamental principles of chemical engineering to design commercial products and processes that are safe, economical, and environmentally friendly.
Ithaca College to Launch Sustainability Major and Minor
Ithaca College (NY) has received a $500,000 grant from a New York based bank to support the development of a new sustainability major and minor at the College. The two new programs are tentatively scheduled to begin in fall 2009. The grant will also subsidize scholarships and fellowships, an internship and research fund for projects, and a scholar-in-residence program.
4 Ohio Colleges Partner to Launch Master's in Renewable Energy
The University of Dayton, Wright State University, Central State University and the Air Force Institute of Technology have partnered to launch a Master's degree program in Clean and Renewable Energy. Faculty from all four institutions will teach courses, and students will earn a degree from either UD or Wright State, depending on where students enroll. Classes will focus on the development of energy-reducing design techniques, renewable energy and manufacturing systems, and better forms of solar energy, fuel cells, and biofuels.
Cabrillo College Adds New Degree in Organic Food Production
Cabrillo College (CA) has announced plans to launch a new degree program in Organic Food Production in the spring of 2009. In the program, students will learn to manage organic farms and how to produce fruits, vegetables, and meats for market.
New MPH Degree at GWU Focuses on Sustainability
The School of Public Health at George Washington University (DC) has announced plans to offer a new Master's of Public Health degree in Environmental Health Science and Policy, starting in the summer of 2009. The new degree will emphasize regulatory policy, sustainability, and practical experience. Courses will include Environmental Health in a Sustainable World, Protecting Public Health and the Environment, and Global Environmental and Occupational Health. Students will also complete the public health core courses required of all of the school’s MPH students, and will have six elective credits that allow them to pursue their particular areas of interest, such as occupational safety and health, climate change, or child health.
Oklahoma State U to Launch Wind Turbine Technology Program
Oklahoma State University, Oklahoma City has announced plans to offer an Associate's of Applied Science degree in Wind Turbine Technology. The two year degree will focus on training technicians to work on utility-scale wind turbines and will consist of classes in electrical, power transmission, industrial safety, climbing, scheduled maintenance and general service. Students can begin enrolling in the new program immediately and will start classes in January 2009.
NWTC, LTC Receive $987K to Train Energy Technicians
Northeast Wisconsin Technical College and Lakeshore Technical College have partnered with the Wisconsin Public Service Corp., Dominion Energy, and the Bay Area Workforce Development Board to form the NEW Energy Project. The project has received $987,000 to fund a Utility Engineering Technician Associate of Applied Science Program at NWTC beginning in August of 2009 and a Nuclear Technology of Applied Sciences Program at both LTC and NWTC. The funding will also be used to develop appropriate advanced technical certificates to upgrade existing workers in energy generation.
U Maine Introduces Business & Sustainability MBA
The University of Maine Business School has introduced a Masters of Business Administration Business and Sustainability Program. Foundational courses required for the MBA Business and Sustainability degree include business sustainability and business ethics, plus core courses in: management; marketing and management information systems; finance; business law; quantitative methods; and strategy and policy.
John Brown U Announces New B.S. in Renewable Energy
John Brown University (AR) has announced the addition of a Bachelor of Science degree in Renewable Energy to begin in the fall of 2009. The new program will include courses in wind, solar and biomass energy; practical experience in designing, construction, monitoring renewable energy generators; and possible related study abroad opportunities. Students will choose between one of three focuses within the renewable energy degree: design, management, and international development. The program will be an interdisciplinary program that builds on some of JBU’s established programs, including science, engineering, intercultural studies, and business.
RIT to Launch Ph.D. in Sustainability
The Rochester Institute of Technology has received New York state approval for its doctoral degree in sustainability. The Ph.D. program will focus on sustainable production and will seek to advance research and education in alternative energy development, sustainable design, green product development, industrial ecology, and pollution prevention. The program will be offered through RIT’s Golisano Institute for Sustainability. RIT plans to admit students into the program immediately and is also recruiting additional faculty and research associates. The development of the program was made possible through an initial grant from the Henry Luce Foundation.
UC Riverside Launches Sustainable Dev & Green Design Certificate
The University of California, Riverside has launched a new certificate in Sustainable Development and Green Design. In the program, students will learn about the concepts and principles of sustainability through green building design, clean technologies and innovative approaches to achieving economic, environmental, and social sustainability. The courses required to complete the certificate are offered using distance education and online technology, coupled with classroom and interactive real-time computer systems.
Northern Maine CC to Offer Wind Power Technology Program
Northern Maine Community College has announced plans to offer a new program that will train wind power technicians to operate, maintain, and repair wind turbine generators. College officials expect to have the program ready as early as January 2009. NMCC hopes to bring the full program online by the fall of 2009.
Harvard U Offers New Graduate Certificate in Sustainable Design
The Harvard University (MA) School of Design has unveiled its new concentration in Sustainable Design within the school's one-and-a-half-year Master in Design Studies (MDesS) program. The new concentration focuses on strategies and technologies for constructing ecologically balanced and energy and resource-efficient design.
Cascadia CC Offers Degree in Env'l Technologies & Sustainable Practices
Cascadia Community College (WA) will offer a new degree this fall in Environmental Technologies and Sustainable Practices. The program is designed to prepare students to enter the fields of sustainability and renewable energy technology. Students enrolled in the Environmental Technologies and Sustainable Practices program will have the option to emphasize either business or technology in their coursework. The program will feature hands-on training and internships with local companies.
U New Hampshire Launches EcoGastronomy Program
The University of New Hampshire has launched an EcoGastronomy program that takes students to the field, the kitchen, the lab, and Italy to study the complexities of sustainable food systems. The program links the fields of sustainable agriculture, hospitality, and nutrition. As a dual major, EcoGastronomy must be taken alongside a declared primary major. The program is a partnership of UNH’s College of Life Sciences and Agriculture and Whittemore School of Business and Economics, in collaboration with the University Office of Sustainability. It includes two courses specific to EcoGastronomy as well as existing courses food and beverage management, and food and society and sustainable food production. The program also requires a semester abroad at the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo, Italy, and language proficiency in Italian.
ASU Offers Sustainability Specialization in Undergrad Business Prgm
Arizona State University will offer a new Bachelor of Arts degree program in business this fall that allows freshman to specialize in sustainability, tourism management, communication or urban policy. ASU's School of Sustainability will provide many of the classes required for the new sustainability specialization.
College of the Atlantic Offers Green Business Undergraduate Prgm
The College of the Atlantic (ME) has begun offering an undergraduate program in Green and Socially Responsible Business. The program aims to teach students to learn how to do well financially by doing good ecologically and socially. The new program will be led by Jay Friedlander, who will also hold the Sharpe/McNally Chair in Green and Socially Responsible Business.
Sault College Opens Renewable Power Energy Training Centre
Sault College (ON) has opened its new Brookfield Renewable Power Energy Training Centre. Brookfield Renewable Power, along with three other companies, invested in the facility, which will be used as a training/lab area for students to acquire skills and knowledge that is useful to employees in the energy sector. The new Centre was opened along with the inaugural turning of the blades of Sault College's new 30 kW wind turbine.
Stony Brook Southampton Adds 3 Sustainability-focused Majors
Stony Brook Southampton (NY) has announced plans to establish three new sustainability-focused Bachelor's of Arts degrees this fall. The new programs include "Ecosystems and Human Impact"; "Environmental Design, Policy and Planning"; and "Sustainability Studies." The Ecosystems and Human Impact major aims to provide students with the skills to assess and address the complex interaction of humans and the natural environment; the Environmental Design, Policy, and Planning major will provide the skills, know
UC Irvine Extension Offers Online Certificate in Sustainability Leadership
The University of California, Irvine Extension has launched a new online certificate program in Sustainability Leadership. Providing an interdisciplinary focus, the program aims to integrate sustainable development and environmentalism into management strategy, advance the comprehension of environmental compliance, contribute to an understanding of regulatory trends, and add to the achievement of corporate social responsibility. The program is designed for individuals who are leading sustainability initiatives in their roles in corporate, government and public agencies, nonprofit advocacy organizations, engineering, public health, urban planning, and law. In addition, those within professional designations such as human resources, marketing, and facility management are encouraged to participate. The program will begin this fall.
Rochester CC to Offer Associate's in Environmental Science
Rochester Community and Technical College (MN) has announced plans to offer an Associate's degree in Environmental Science starting Fall 2008. The program aims to provide a broad based understanding of basic sciences and important environmental and social issues. The AS program will prepare students with content-based and experiential-based knowledge in the environmental science field to continue on to a four-year degree or start a career.
Benedictine U to Offer 2 Concentrations in Sustainability
Benedictine University (IL) will offer two new concentrations focused on sustainability in its Master of Business Administration program - Sustainable Business and Sustainable Leadership. Both degrees will be obtained by choosing 12 or more credits from a list of sustainability-focused courses.
Grand Valley State U to Offer 4 Certificates in Sustainability
Grand Valley State University (MI) has begun an initiative to redesign the campus curriculum to incorporate sustainability. GVSU also plans to develop certificates in renewable energy, green chemistry, sustainable business, and urban sustainability; offer new sustainability-based courses; and establish a minor in environmental studies and a liberal arts major that emphasizes sustainability.
Frostburg State U to Offer Workshops on PV Systems
Frostburg State University (MD) has received approval from the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP) to offer workshops and entry-level certification exams on designing, installing, and maintaining residential photovoltaic generation systems. FSU is now the only NABCEP-approved provider of PV workshops and certification exams in Maryland.
Indiana Tech to Establish Degree in Renewable Energy
Indiana Institute of Technology has announced that, this fall, it will begin offering a degree program that focuses on the science and application of generating renewable energy. Students in the Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree program will investigate the most recent developments in renewable energy systems, analyze designs, and conduct experiments via computer models and real-world settings. Additionally, the program will prepare students to manage the business aspects of implementing renewable-energy solutions.
Dominican U of CA Launches BA in Sustainable Communities
Dominican University of California will begin offering a Bachelor of Arts in Sustainable Communities this fall. The new program, which will be housed in the Department of Humanities, integrates environmental education with cultural analysis, public policy, social action, and project-based learning. The two-year upper division program, which will only be open to students with at least 70 credits, will be offered on weekends through Dominican’s Pathways program for adult learners. Students will enroll in core courses as well as in one of two concentrations: Ecological Food Systems or EcoDwelling. The core courses will examine cultural ecology, global economic literacy and international governance, sustainable land management, and sustainable communities. In addition to coursework, there will be co-curricular activities, service learning projects, community outreach, public events, and career/internship opportunities.
The New School Launches Environmental Studies Program
The New School (NY) has announced that it will launch an undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies this fall. The program will focus on urban ecosystems and sustainable design. Using New York City as its laboratory, students in the program will work hands-on with the city's natural ecosystems and will see firsthand how human activity in an urban setting can impact the environment. The New School will offer the degree, which will be administered by the Tishman Environment and Design Center, as a Bachelor of Science or a Bachelor of Arts. Bachelor of Arts students will be able to choose to concentrate in urban ecosystems or public policy. Bachelor of Science students will have the option of choosing a concentration either in sustainable design or urban ecosystem design. Both degree programs are cross disciplinary and include fieldwork, internships, and collaborative final projects.
