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AASHE Honors Campus Sustainability Innovation
AASHE has revealed the winners of its 2012 Sustainability Awards. Faculty and students at University of Tennessee at Knoxville, University of California at Berkeley, Humboldt State University (CA), University of Oregon, Alfred State College, Owens Community College, Skidmore College and University of British Columbia were honored during the awards ceremony at the AASHE 2012 conference for innovations in green building, sustainability research, and leadership. The University of Wisconsin at Madison’s LEED Gold Wisconsin Institute for Discovery will receive the inaugural Innovation in Green Building award, presented in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council's Center for Green Schools.

Call for Abstracts: Ball State U Geothermal Conclave
Ball State University is accepting abstracts for the first in a series of annual Geothermal Conclaves. These events are designed to bring together researchers, practitioners and students interested in the design, installation and operation of large-scale geothermal heating and cooling systems. The deadline to submit an abstract is Dec. 1, 2012. The dates for this event have been changed from Sept. 24-26, 2012 to Feb. 11-13, 2013.

Ball State U Earns Int'l Recognition for Sustainability Efforts
The university has received the first Excellence in Integration Award from the International Sustainable Campus Network for its institution-wide efforts at environmental stewardship including its Council on the Environment; minor in sustainability; STARS Silver rating; transportation program that features hybrid and flex-fuel vehicles; commitment to green building; and innovative geothermal heating and cooling system.

AASHE Honors Campus Sustainability Champions
AASHE has revealed the winners of its 2011 Sustainability Awards. Faculty and students at Emory University (GA), University of Alberta, Washington University in St. Louis (MO), University of Texas at Dallas, McGill University (QC) and New York University are being honored during the awards ceremony at the AASHE 2011 conference on October 11 for innovations in green building, sustainability research and leadership. The University of Texas at Dallas' LEED Platinum Student Services Building will receive the inaugural Innovation in Green Building award, presented in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council's Center for Green Schools.

Environmental Champion Ray Anderson Dies at 77
Ray Anderson, founder and chairman of Interface, passed away last week of cancer at age 77. "He was and continues to be the icon of what a successful business must look like to survive indefinitely and lead society on a more healthy, fair and sustainable path," says Second Nature President Anthony Cortese in a tribute. The keynote speaker at the first AASHE national conference and several Second Nature regional workshops, Anderson was known as the "darling of college campuses," giving several commencement speeches and about 500 lectures and presentations at colleges and universities. As founder and chairman of modular carpet manufacturer Interface, Anderson focused his time and energy on the business case for sustainability, delivering more than 1,000 speeches and authoring two books on the topic. "Whenever I wanted someone from the private sector to make the case for education for sustainability, Ray was always at the top of the list and always the best," says Cortese.

U Michigan Creates Peregrine Falcon-Friendly Campus
To celebrate the first known hatchlings of a breeding pair of peregrine falcons that have nested on the University of Michigan's campus for several years, the university is offering children at a local hospital the opportunity to name the baby falcon through an online contest. The university hopes to create awareness of environmental stewardship and sustainability on campus and in the community. The falcons nest on the roof of the University Hospital, where staff modified the box to withstand higher wind speeds and other weather damage. The university also plans to build an access hatch that will allow Michigan Department of Natural Resources staff to band future chicks and better track their movements.

Taiwan Normal U Hosts U California Santa Cruz Delegation
Taiwan Normal University recently invited a delegation from the University of California, Santa Cruz to lead a two-day workshop on its campus. The conference covered topics including energy efficiency and sustainable food systems at the Santa Cruz campus and the University of California system. Speakers placed a special focus on student engagement in Taiwan. The conference was initiated by Taiwan Normal University's Graduate Institute of Environmental Education director, who visited the Santa Cruz campus to learn about the campus' sustainability initiatives and then invited the delegation to Taiwan to engage with a wider audience. Plans to extend the partnership beyond the trip include setting up regular videoconferences between University of California, Santa Cruz and Taiwanese sustainability student leaders to share project ideas and feedback.

U Illinois Urbana-Champaign Recycles 6,300 Pounds of Batteries
The University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign has recycled more than 6,300 pounds of battery waste since 2003, when it partnered with nonprofit organization Call2Recycle in an effort to streamline the recycling of rechargeable batteries. By providing 13 collection locations on campus, the program has saved the university waste disposal fees and prevented battery waste from entering landfills. Waiting on quote about how much in waste disposal fees

Brown U, Cornell U Awarded Int'l Sustainable Campus Awards
Brown University (RI) and Cornell University (NY) were honored by the International Sustainable Campus Network (ISCN) at the recent International Sustainable Campus Awards. The awards are open to any college or university worldwide that has developed outstanding construction or educational projects that promote sustainability on campus and in the surrounding community. Brown University received the Excellence in Campus award for its Greenhouse Gas Reduction Program and Goals, which is well ahead of schedule with a 21 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions since 2007 and an annual savings of $1.8 million. Cornell University Sustainable Design, a student-led organization, won the Student Leadership in Sustainable Campus award for its Schoolhouse South Africa project, an interdisciplinary student-led project to finance, design and build a 6,000-square-foot preschool and teacher training center in South Africa.

Wharton School Hosts Sustainability Innovation Tournament
The winners have been announced of the global Innovation Tournament hosted by Knowledge@Wharton, an online journal of the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, and IT solutions provider Wipro Technologies. This year's tournament themes included new ideas in the area of sustainability and implemented solutions related to sustainability. The tournament received more than 160 submissions with winners from India, the Grenadines, Tanzania and the U.S. Egg Energy, a low-cost solution for electricity distribution in Africa, received the grand prize of $20,000.

SEI Green Report Card on Hiatus; Collaborative Effort Underway
AASHE, the Princeton Review, Sierra Magazine and the Sustainable Endowments Institute (SEI) have launched a collaborative effort to improve the process of collecting sustainability data from higher education institutions, it was announced in a joint statement released recently. In an effort to reduce the college and university staff time required for data collection and survey completion, the organizations will work together to develop common sustainability survey language. It was also announced that SEI will take a sabbatical this fall from publishing the College Sustainability Report Card in order to have adequate time to plan and revise the survey process.

Johnson County CC Earns Edison Green Award
Johnson County Community College (KS) recently earned a silver Edison Green Award for its sustainability efforts. Part of the annual Edison Awards series, the Green Award recognizes an organization's commitment to developing sustainable solutions and green business models. It is designed as a platform to recognize efforts to create green collar jobs through new innovation methods and improve community health and self-sufficiency. Judging criteria included societal impact, marketplace innovation, marketplace success, technological innovation and market structure innovation. The only institution to be honored in the category, the community college was recognized for its green workplace practices, sustainable resource management projects, green workforce training programs and initiatives to teach sustainability across the curriculum.

U California Merced Campus Plan Wins National Award
The Society for College and University Planning has announced that the University of California, Merced has earned an Excellence in Planning for an Established Campus honor award for its Long-Range Development Plan. The plan will be used to guide the campus’ physical growth, development and land-use priorities. Included within the plan is a “Triple Zero Commitment” that aims to produce as much energy from renewable sources as is used, eliminate landfill waste and produce zero net greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.

Udall Scholars Announced
The Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation has announced the 2011 Udall Scholars. Eighty students from 61 colleges and universities will receive up to $5000 and assemble in August to meet policymakers and community leaders in environmental fields, tribal health care and governance. An independent review committee selected this year's group, which includes Native American/Alaska Native Scholars who intend to pursue careers in tribal public policy and health care.

American U Sharjah Students Win DuPont Eco Challenge
Students at American University of Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) recently took top prize in the DuPont Bright Ideas Eco Challenge for their project titled "Rid the Environment of Waste Rubber." The award aimed to increase awareness about environmental disasters and concerns and help facilitate possible solutions. With their project titled "Generating Electricity Using Quartz Crystal Electric Technology," another group of American University of Sharjah students earned third place in the competition.

Macquarie U Wins Green Globe Award
Macquarie University (Australia) recently won a Green Globe Award from the New South Wales government, which celebrates sustainable uses of natural resources and leadership in tackling climate change. The university's blueprint for sustainability received a Public Sector Sustainability Award in the category of people, plant and participation. In addition to operating as a fair trade campus, the university's sustainability initiatives include a recycling program that uses 100 percent recycled paper and diverts 70 percent of its waste from landfills; green cleaning, IT and e-waste policies; and a sustainability website, committee and campus tours.

U New South Wales Sustainable Binding Concept Earns Grand Prize
Students at the University of New South Wales (Australia) are the winners of the inaugural Staples Global EcoEasy Challenge, a search among universities around the world to find the next green office product. The students were awarded the $25,000 grand prize for their Binder Interlock Neat Device (BIND) concept, a tie-and-ring system for organizing documents. The BIND's locking mechanism provides a reusable alternative to products like binders, paper clips and cable ties. In second and third place were students at the University of California, Berkeley and the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras for the Eco-Stapler and Step Shredder (a manual shredder that eliminates the need for electricity), respectively.

U Richmond Implements Employee Benefit to Purchase Local Food
The University of Richmond (VA) has created a new employee benefit that allows them to purchase shares of local produce through a payroll deduction. Employees may elect to purchase full or half shares of produce to be delivered to campus for 14 weeks by Rural Virginia Market CSA, a cooperative of a half-dozen farms in central Virginia. The new benefit compliments the university’s community garden, established last year with 25 plots where students and employees can access locally grown and organic produce.

Furman U Student Wins Fellowship for Sustainability Studies
Furman University (SC) student Cameron Tommey has received a Compton Mentor Fellowship that will allow him to pursue a yearlong project related to the environment following graduation. Tommey, who majored in Earth and Environmental Science with a concentration in Latin American Studies, will use his $35,000 fellowship to implement a one-year project entitled, “Sustainability and Reforestation in the Comotan Region of Guatemala: A Community-Based Approach.” The Compton Fellowship is a post-graduate fellowship focusing broadly on issues of sustainability.

Antioch U New England Student Selected as Congressional Fellow
Antioch University, New England's (NH) Wendy Scott, a master's candidate in environmental studies who has chosen a concentration in advocacy for social justice and sustainability, has been selected as the 2010 Congressional Progressive Caucus fellow. Scott will spend the summer in Washington working with Representative Raúl M. Grijalva (Democrat-Arizona), who chairs the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands.

Udall Scholars Are Announced
The Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation is pleased to announce 80 students from 63 colleges and universities have been selected as 2010 Udall Scholars. A 14-member independent review committee selected this year's group of Scholars on the basis of commitment to careers in the environment, health care or tribal public policy; leadership potential; and academic achievement. The review committee also awarded 50 Honorable Mentions. Each scholarship provides up to $5,000 for the Scholar’s junior or senior year. The 2010 Udall Scholars will assemble August 4-8, 2010, in Tucson, Arizona, to receive their awards and meet policymakers and community leaders in environmental fields, tribal health care, and governance.

Haverford College Student to Study Sustainable Living Worldwide
Haverford College (PA) student Tim Richards has received one of 41 2010 Watson Fellowships. As part of his project, "Holistic Environmentalism: Community Approaches to Sustainability," Richards will explore sustainable living across five continents. Richards will travel to Argentina, Australia, India, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Scotland, and Thailand, and will live in three types of communities that have emerged as international movements aimed at achieving sustainable lifestyles. They are: permaculture communities, human settlements that mirror the relationships found in natural ecologies; ecovillages, international communities of people who strive to live environmentally low-impact lives; and Transition Towns, pre-existing communities that address environmental issues by reducing their carbon emissions and use of fossil fuel.

Dept of Energy Releases Video Encouraging Students to Save Energy
The U.S. Department of Energy has released a new video encouraging college students to help America save energy, save money, and cut pollution. The video highlights the work of students at the University of Central Florida, who launched a dorm-based competition called "Kill-a-Watt" to reduce energy use and energy bills on campus with easy steps like unplugging your electronics, raising the air conditioning temperature when in class, and taking the stairs instead of an elevator. Students in different campus residence halls compete against each other to achieve energy savings with residents from the winning dorm earning up to $200 in scholarships.

Stony Brook Southampton to Scale Back Sustainability Programs
The State University of New York at Stony Brook Southampton has announced plans to shut down large portions of its campus due to a budget crisis. A marine-science program and a writing program will remain open at Southampton, and all other programs will be moved to the West campus. No new students will be admitted and all residence halls will be closed. Acquired in 2006, the Southampton campus focuses on sustainability.

North Carolina State U Student Wins Green Car Design Contest
A North Carolina State University graduate student has won the 2010 Shell Eco-Marathon Americas (SEMA) Urban Concept Car Competition with an eco-friendly concept car designed for a class project. The industrial design student’s car will be constructed and displayed at the SEMA event which showcases fuel-efficient futuristic vehicles designed by high school and college students from across the country.

U King's College Student Named Rhodes Scholar
A University of King's College (NS) student, Rosanna Nicol, has been named a Rhodes Scholar. As a scholar she will spend at least two years at Oxford University in England conducting post-graduate study. Nicol has always been interested in refugee and sustainability issues and plans to focus her thesis on how socially responsible investing can create capital flow to areas in need.

U King's College Student Named Rhodes Scholar
A University of King's College (NS) student, Rosanna Nicol, has been named a Rhodes Scholar. As a scholar she will spend at least two years at Oxford University in England conducting post-graduate study. Nicol has always been interested in refugee and sustainability issues and plans to focus her thesis on how socially responsible investing can create capital flow to areas in need.

Johns Hopkins U Secures Funding for Campus Sustainability Initiatives
The Johns Hopkins University (MD) associate financial deans have authorized funding for the campus' Sustainable Hopkins Infrastructure Program (SHIP). SHIP will offer funding for students and employees who have ideas for practical green projects on campus. Projects may receive funding as long as they reduce environmental impacts, do not interfere with ongoing projects, and do not require any ongoing maintenance. The funding will be allocated by the SHIP executive board, which consists of five students, and an evaluations committee.

Sustainable Endowments Institute Announces Innovator Awards
The Sustainable Endowments Institute has announced the winners of its Sustainability Innovator Awards. These awards serve to recognize sustainability innovators among colleges and universities with smaller endowments that also merit recognition. This year's winners include Green Mountain College (VT), Northland College (WI), and the University of Prince Edward Island.

DOE Awards 6 Higher Ed Biofuels Projects
The U.S. Department of Energy has selected six advanced biofuels projects in which it plans to invest up to $4.4 million, subject to annual appropriations. These awards to U.S. institutions of higher education will support research and development for cost-effective, environmentally friendly biomass conversion technologies for turning non-food feedstocks into advanced biofuels. Combined with the minimum university cost share of 20 percent, more than $5.7 million is slated for investment in these six projects. The institutions selected include the University of Toledo (OH); Stevens Institute of Technology (NJ); Montana State University; University of Georgia; University of Maine; and Georgia Tech Research Corp. By engaging these partners, the DOE is working to meet the Renewable Fuel Standard mandated by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which has a requirement of producing at least 36 billion gallons of U.S. renewable fuels by 2022.

AASHE 2008 Conference Passes 1000 Registrants
The AASHE 2008 Conference, Working Together for Sustainability – On Campus and Beyond, has passed 1000 registrants. With 2 months left before the November conference, over 200 faculty, 164 students, 140 administrators, 199 Sustainability Officers, 124 staff, and 121 upper management staff have committed to attend. The departments represented at the conference will include the President's Office, the Provost's Office, Facilities, Campus Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction, Business Schools, Transportation, Dining and Food Services, and Sustainability. The AASHE 2006 Conference had 700 attendees.

Humboldt State U Open Hydrogen Fueling Station
Humboldt State University (CA) has opened a hydrogen fueling station on campus. The new station will provide enough hydrogen fuel, which HSU makes from electricity and water, to maintain a fleet of four vehicles. The idea for the new installation came from a group of HSU students' submission to the National Hydrogen Association's H2U International Design Competition, which the students went on to win.

Marriott's U Maryland Inn Announces Green Standards
Marriott's University of Maryland University College Inn and Conference Center (UMUC ICC) has announced "green standards" which are designed to allow meeting participants to have eco-friendly gatherings and help reduce their environmental impact. As part of the program, UMUC ICC uses recycled note pads in meeting rooms, has reduced the use of bottled water, has reduced the amount of linen used, has a vigorous on-site and guest room recycling program and composts about 1,000 lbs. of food waste a day. In the

Swarthmore College Installs Green Roof
Swarthmore College (PA) has installed a green roof on its news student residence, David Kemp Hall. The new green roof is the second on campus.

U Denver Installs CNG Refueling Station
The University of Denver (CO) has installed a compressed natural gas vehicle refueling station on its campus. The new pump serves the growing fleet of maintenance and other DU vehicles that run on natural gas. DU is the first university in the state of Colorado to install a CNG fueling station.

Missouri S&T Opens First Hydrogen Fueling Station
The Missouri University of Science and Technology has opened E3 (E-cubed), its first fueling station for hydrogen vehicles. Two Missouri S&T hydrogen buses that provide shuttle service in Rolla and back and forth to Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. were on display during the ribbon cutting ceremony along with a coast-to-coast tour of hydrogen vehicles sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Humboldt State U Adds Hydrogen Car & Fueling Station to Campus
Humboldt State University (CA) has added a new hydrogen-powered car to its campus fleet and installed a new hydrogen fueling station on campus. The station, now in its test phase, will produce enough hydrogen fuel to maintain a fleet of three or four hydrogen-powered cars. The hydrogen-powered car will be shared by HSU and other public agencies that have jointly supported the station project.

UC Davis Announces New High-Level Sustainability Initiative
The University of California, Davis recently launched the Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Initiative. The project includes a new office to coordinate university-wide efforts on sustainability, seed money to support new projects, and the creation of a chancellor-level advisory committee. The new office, housed within the Office of Resource Management and Planning, will work with other units to develop strategies and plans to implement the UC regents' sustainability policies. Initial goals for the new committee include developing university principles of sustainability and environmental stewardship, fostering collaboration among the administrative and academic units, and developing fundraising opportunities.

Juice Energy Highlights NCAA Tournament Schools' Green Initiatives
Juice Energy has created a list of green initiatives that are taking place at NCAA Tournament Team's colleges and universities. Categorized by NCAA conference, the webpage includes initiatives from every tournament participant.

Yale U Develops Sustainable Event Guidelines
Yale University (CT) has developed Sustainable Event Guidelines for campus events. The guidelines provide sustainable energy, waste, transportation, materials and food strategies to help reduce the environmental footprint of the occasion. Events will be awarded a bronze, silver, or gold sustainability rating depending on how many of the guidelines to which they adhere. The program was launched in an effort to make sustainability part of the campus culture, and was created by the Yale Sustainability Office, the Yale Sustainable Food Project, Yale Recycling, and Yale Catering.

SUNY ESF Enlarges Alternative Fuel Supply
The SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry recently had two 3,000 gallon alternative fuel storage tanks delivered to its campus in order to supply the college's growing fleet of alternative fuel vehicles. Over 34% of SUNY ESF vehicles run on fuels such as flex-fuel, biodiesel, electric hybrids, concentrated natural gas, and propane.

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