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News from the University of Vermont Office of Sustainability September 2009 Office of Sustainability Newsletter University of Vermont In This Issue Thank You Deac Meed the New Graduate Fellows UVM Office of Sustainability Receives Grant from the Rocky Mountain Institute Mapping Renewable Energy Opportunities at UVM Environmental Forum Update Announcements Quick Links Office of Sustainability Website Email us The Office of Sustainability has moved its office from 284 East Avenue to the fourth floor of Billings Center, next to the Community-University Partnerships in Service Learning (CUPS) Office. See past newsletters on the Office of Sustainability website under "email archives". Thank You, Deac! The Office of Sustainability would like to thank Katherine "Deac" Decarreau for her hard work and dedication to campus greening at the University of Vermont. As director of Transportation and Parking Services at UVM, Deac has played a key role in in the past few years in changing the university's emphasis on "parking" to "transportation demand management" --reducing the need for cars around campus. This summer Deac accepted the challenging position of City Manager in Winooski, Vermont, her beloved hometown. Deac has been a remarkable leader as campus transportation manager. With her help we have natural gas-fueled buses, carsharing, restructured parking permits that help carpoolers, and free rides on local buses with a UVM ID. We have fewer people wanting parking spaces. As interim custodial services director, she also helped create the path for successful student efforts to change custodial products. In addition to her "day job," Deac made many more unique contributions to the University, in particular to the Office of Sustainability and the Environmental Forum. From 2006-2008 Deac served as the staff co-chair of the Environmental Council, supervising Gioia Thompson who was then the coordinator for the Council. With her hard work and mentoring, the Council became the Office of Sustainability, and Council meetings became the Environmental Forum. She was pivotal in the creation of UVM's Clean Energy Fund, and she helped launch the first Vermont Campus Sustainability Network's biannual meeting as meeting chair. She worked effectively with class projects, interns, and thesis writers, making it a formal part of her job description. She participated in a multitude of other projects on campus, becoming a go-to person for addressing organizational challenges. We will really miss her, and we wish her well! . Meet the New Graduate Fellows This year, we are sadly saying goodbye to Nell Campbell who made amazing strides in updating UVM's Greenhouse Gas Inventory. Nell graduated with an MS in Natural Resources and will be working as a consultant, turning her thesis research on farm-based biofuels into a tool that can be used by farmers. Tatiana Abatemarco and Christina Erickson will be continuing their graduate fellowships in the Office of Sustainability. They will be joined by two new fellows: Anna Mika and Stephen Posner. Anna Mika is a PhD student in the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources at the University of Vermont, studying the effects of managing biomass on carbon sequestration at various spatial scales. Anna completed a http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs024/1101916488629/archive/1102694253995.html[2/16/2011 12:26:38 PM] News from the University of Vermont Office of Sustainability Bachelor of Science and Masters in Environmental Biology at the University of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario. Her Master's thesis was on the uncertainties in modeling potential future distributions of agricultural pests with climate change. Anna was born in Poland and moved to Canada with her family when she was 8 years old. She has traveled around Canada and the US and been back to Poland. She has also been to the Amazonian forest in Peru and Bolivia for a field course during my Masters to study insects. Her primary academic interests involve investigating how human activities can exacerbate or mitigate climate change. In her spare time, Anna enjoys reading classic fiction, running, biking, traveling, and spending time with family and friends. Stephen Posner is a graduate student in natural resources and ecological economics. His graduate research focuses on applying ecological economic indicators, measuring the impacts of growing economies on the environment and human well-being, and evaluating institutional climate change policies and programs. Prior to joining the Gund Institute, Stephen has worked in several positions including with the ecological research institute Hudsonia, as a junior college assistant math instructor, and as a member of a local government's Environmental Conservation Commission. He has a B.S. in physics and astronomy from Haverford College and studied at Stanford University in the Graduate School of Education, where he also co-directed the Roosevelt Institute's Committee on the Environment and Energy. Stephen enjoys spending his time outside work with his wife Abby and their two children, Lily and Eli. His website is online at www.uvm.edu/~sposner UVM Office of Sustainability Receives $38k as part of Rocky Mountain Institute project The Office of Sustainability has been awarded a $38,000 gift for campus energy education as part of the Rocky Mountain Institute a project called Accelerating Campus Climate Change Initiatives. The project aims to develop tools and methods to inform institutional decision-making and individual behavior in support of greenhouse gas reductions through a multi-faceted campus energy education project at a our small, decentralized, comprehensive research university. The first step is developing web-based displays of energy use and generation on campus, to demonstrate the relative carbon reduction and cost avoidance potential of conservation behaviors, efficient technologies, and renewable energy. The campus Eco-Reps Program will test residential students' responses to the displays and incorporate the content into the Eco-Reps' campus-wide educational events. A graduate Fellow, Steve Posner, will work with the project team to define the most cost-effective and culturally acceptable ways to reduce energy use in the research buildings, and to test the effectiveness of an educational energy campaign in one or more buildings. The expected outcomes include transferable educational tools and a report based on analysis of stakeholders' comments.On our campus this project will facilitate energy competitions among buildings and http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs024/1101916488629/archive/1102694253995.html[2/16/2011 12:26:38 PM] News from the University of Vermont Office of Sustainability other awareness raising activities to encourage conservation and efficiency. It will also begin to bridge the disconnection between campus sustainability activities and the research community. The tools we develop and lessons we learn are likely to be useful on many other campuses. We will be building on our success in this regard: we have heard from a number of campuses that our web-based display of energy and water use at the Davis Center, our LEED Gold student center (which earned us LEED innovation points), has served as a model for other institutions. Mapping Renewable Energy Opportunities at UVM As an intern for the Office of Sustainability I worked on two projects this summer. One project involved mapping different potential locations for installing solar panels. The other project also employed maps using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Maps of campus buildings were created to express data relevant for ongoing and future environmental management programs. The map is intended to help UVM students, faculty and staff envision envision what our renewable energy future could look like. I created diagrams of several potential solar panel installation sites, with calculations of the number of panels that could be placed at each particular site. Those findings can then be used to estimate cost, payback periods and overall energy savings. For another project, existing maps of campus buildings were linked to data that various University departments collect. This connection allows for the graphic display of key environmental performance data such as electricity use. Several departments already collect data relevant for future Office of Sustainability programs. Now that data can be analyzed in its spatial context, and can more easily be shared with the wider campus community, it will be easier to document opportunities for improved environmental management and unlock the potential for future research and educational opportunities. Maps can help us see UVM as it is today, ultimately helping us to realize the world we wish to see tomorrow. -Dexter Locke, '09 http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs024/1101916488629/archive/1102694253995.html[2/16/2011 12:26:38 PM] News from the University of Vermont Office of Sustainability Environmental Forum: Fall 2009/Spring 2010 The Environmental Forum is a monthly meeting hosted by the UVM Office of Sustainability. Open to all faculty, staff, and students, Forum meetings are a chance to learn about and participate in efforts to green the UVM campus. Our first meeting of the year will be 2-4pm, Wednesday, Sept 23 in the Jost Foundation Room in the Davis Center. There will be a presentation on UVM's Climate Action Plan, as well as an opportunity for individuals to provide feedback. Come and be a part of making UVM a climate-neutral campus! The Environmental Forum is a great place to report on work that relates to environmental sustainability, pose challenging questions, and start conversations. We welcome all members of the UVM community as presenters and audience members. If you are interested in presenting at an Environmental Forum meeting, please contact [email protected]. Environmental Forum Schedule: Fall 2009/Spring 2010 All meetings are on Wednesdays from 2-4pm Sept 23- Jost Foundation Room, Davis Center October 21- John Dewey Lounge, Old Mill November 18- John Dewey Lounge, Old Mill January 27- Jost Foundation Room, Davis Center February 17- Jost Foundation Room, Davis Center March 24- Jost Foundation Room, Davis Center April 21- Jost Foundation Room, Davis Center Announcements UVM Sustaianbility Faculty Fellow Program now accepting applications The deadline is fast approaching. Faculty- please consider applying. Students- please encourage your professors to apply! The goals of the program are to: 1. Create a community of faculty committed to integrating interdisciplinary approaches to environmental sustainability into the UVM curriculum 2. Enhance the understanding of environmental sustainability concepts among faculty and students, particularly those not trained in environmental fields Fellows will receive a $400 development stipend Applications are due *September 30* For more information and to apply go to http://www.uvm.edu/ctl/? Page=sffp/index.php Beyond Today's Capitalism: Searching for a New Political Economy James Gustave Speth Former Dean, Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, Chair of the UN Development Group, Founder and President of the World Resources Institute, and Cofounder, Natural Resources Defense Council. Date/Time: Tuesday, September 15th at 5:30PM Location: 103 Rowell Building, UVM The mission of the Office of Sustainability is to foster sustainable development and promote environmental responsibility at the University by strategically bridging the academic activities of teaching, research, and outreach with http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs024/1101916488629/archive/1102694253995.html[2/16/2011 12:26:38 PM] News from the University of Vermont Office of Sustainability the operations of the University. Questions? Comments? Anything else you would like to see in here? Office of Sustainability The University of Vermont 401 Billings Center 48 University Place phone: (802) 656-0906 fax: (802) 656-1075 email: [email protected] Email Marketing by http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs024/1101916488629/archive/1102694253995.html[2/16/2011 12:26:38 PM]