Category: Education

Learning the 4 R’s: Kansas City Area Students Strive to Reduce Food Waste

Read the full post from U.S. EPA.

About 95 percent of the food we throw away ends up in landfills or combustion facilities. That is a huge problem for our country. Over the last year, I’ve had the pleasure of working with many great people to help schools in the Kansas City metro area understand more about food waste and what they can do to reduce it.

I really enjoy teaching the 4 R’s – refuse, reduce, reuse and recycle. “Refuse” means saying no to accepting unnecessary packaging, such as plastic bags. Kids get it. I also involve custodial and kitchen staff in the process. My focus is to help the school divert waste from the landfill, while remaining focused on not adding more work tasks to school staff.

Uncovering solar energy solutions in Michigan’s cloudy climate

Read the full post at Be Spartan Green.

With an average of only 174 sunny days every year and many months of cold weather, East Lansing, Michigan may seem like an unlikely hub for solar energy research. However, MSU’s commitment to sustainability is driving university researchers to uncover clean energy solutions, no matter the difficulty.

“We’re testing the effectiveness of solar water heaters in Michigan’s climate, specifically on MSU’s campus,” said PhD candidate Sina Jahangiri, solar water heater researcher from MSU’s Department of Mechanical Engineering, “as water accounts for a substantial portion of energy use at many residential, commercial and institutional buildings, the project has an opportunity not only to reduce environmental footprint, but also to lower energy cost.”

Call for Proposals: Smart and Sustainable Campuses Conference 2017

With a theme of Renew, Restore, Regenerate, interested parties are invited to submit proposals for the 2017 Smart and Sustainable Campuses Conference, March 26-28, 2017, in College Park, Maryland. Sessions are 50- and 80-minutes in length and alternative presentations styles are supported. Proposals are due on Oct. 30.

NREL No-Cost Solar Screenings and Implementation Assistance for Universities

In support of the U.S. Department of Energy’s SunShot initiative, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is offering no-cost technical assistance to universities seeking to increase solar energy on campus. Any U.S. higher education institution is eligible to apply. The program is designed to increase the deployment of mid-scale solar photovoltaic systems at universities, engage stakeholders to develop deployment solutions and empower decision makers. Applications are due Oct. 15.

Zero Waste takes initiative focuses on student outreach to reduce ASU’s landfill waste

Read the full story from the State Press.

For ASU’s Zero Waste program, reducing the University’s waste is less about recycle bins and compost and more about outreach.

According to Zero Waste program coordinator and ASU graduate Katie Schumacher, Zero Waste is a diversion program and department that oversees the University’s goal to reduce the total amount of waste sent to the landfill by at least 90 percent.

Student waste leads to weird and wonderful creations at Campus Recycling

Read the full story in The Post.

In a humid, airless facility tucked behind the The Ridges, forgotten memories can be found.

Used textbooks, bobbleheads, little league trophies and cameras sit delicately on a far shelf. The “Hall of Cool Things,” Campus Recycling and Zero-Waste Manager Andrew Ladd calls it.

A swirling art project that once was displayed on campus hangs above as decor and gives the stuffy storage facility life — especially on this sticky Athens summer day, when standing outside is almost unbearable.

Ladd and Campus Recycling collect the forgotten relics to give them a second life after O[hio] U[niversity] students leave them behind.

In St. Louis schools, water fountains are symbols of inequality again

Read the full story in the Washington Post.

Dangerous levels of lead in dozens of public schools have made the water undrinkable — but not for white, wealthy kids.