On Campus

Under the guidance of Timothy Gutowski, professor of mechanical engineering, a group of MIT students has measured the range of carbon emissions from the richest to the poorest Americans, finding that even the United States’ lowest energy users tend to account for more than twice the global per-capita carbon emission. According to results that they’ll be presenting at the International Symposium on Electronics and the Environment in May, there is a floor of about 8.5 tons, below which the individual, annual carbon footprint of a United States resident will not drop. This is largely because basic government services such as police, roads, and libraries—which are available to everyone in America—were allocated to everyone studied, including the homeless, monks, and children.

The students derived a system called ELSA—environmental life style analysis—to quantify the carbon-emission rates of people sorted into 18 lifestyles. They paid special attention to often-overlooked factors such as the "rebound effect," a term used to describe the result when someone saves money on an energy-efficient product such as a hybrid, and then spends the surplus cash on something like international air travel.

Professor Gutowski’s current group of students has been expanding on the findings, exploring personal factors that can lead to a reduction in carbon output, and considering the role that individual consumer choices can play in lowering the nation's overall carbon emissions.

The American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) is a high-profile effort to address global warming by garnering institutional commitments to neutralize greenhouse gas emissions, with 518 signatories to date.

If your U.S. college or university has not yet become a signatory, encourage the administration to do so. International institutions may also join and will be acknowledged for their leadership. Foundations, corporations and individuals can support the effort through a number of endorsement and sponsorship programs.

From June 5-6, 2008, the ACUPCC will be presenting a Leadership Summit in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where institutions will learn about reducing their carbon footprint, incorporating sustainability into their curriculum, and addressing carbon offsets in climate action plans. Ray Anderson, Founder and Chairman, Interface, Inc. will provide the keynote address.

The University of California, Davis is inviting science and engineering students and researchers to spend a week learning to recognize, develop, and bring to market green businesses built on their ideas. The Green Technology Entrepreneurship Academy is a five-day immersive program, scheduled for July 7-11, 2008 in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, helping students to understand how to bring innovative ideas out of the lab and into the marketplace.

Among other skills, participants will learn about evaluating technology/market opportunities; pursuing IP patenting and licensing strategies; crafting business plans; and modeling finance and investment strategies.

Application deadline is May 2, 2008. Click here to download the application.

Green is more than just the school color for the University of Northern British Columbia, it defines who they are, and how they operate. Ranked by Maclean’s magazine as the best small university in western Canada (and fourth nationwide), it’s also one of the greenest in the country. UNBC is a Canadian leader for the proportion of students in environmental programs, and can boast a number of “green” accomplishments, making it a model for other Canadian schools:

• The first university in BC to receive an award from Philips for its energy-efficient lighting. The campus has 33,000 fluorescent lights.

• UNBC’s Quesnel campus has been built to LEED gold standard and uses only 34% of the energy and 59% of the water than a building of the same size built to regular specs.

• The school, host to the province’s primary bioenergy conference, plans to build a new Forest Products and Bioenergy Innovation Centre.

• All grade statements and course schedules are provided online, reducing the need to print and mail thousands of documents.

• Students run the biggest composting program of any BC university.

Share with us the sustainability programs going on at your campus…