Education News

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EPA does ABCs

KANSAS CITY, Kan.—A team of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) scientists participated with groups of elementary school students to test water quality and examine aquatic life in ponds and streams in Kansas and Missouri.

EPA scientists taught students about the chemistry of water bodies as well as their biology. They also looked for certain species of fish and insects that indicate pond and stream health. Students learned about water’s physical environment and habitats and how various land uses and urban runoff can affect a watershed and the stream into which it drains.

For more information, see www.epa.gov

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Green Schools save 7.9+million kilowatt hours

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA—Green Schools, an Alliance to Save Energy program funded by Southern California Edison reported energy savings of more than 7.9 million kilowatt hours among the 117 schools involved in the program over the last three years.

This amount of electricity savings is equivalent to preventing two tons of CO2 emissions into the environment and saving $1.3 million in energy costs. These savings resulted not from expensive retrofits, but from no-cost behavior and operations changes initiated by students as part of their hands-on learning about energy efficiency.

For more information, see ase.org

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Princeton Review releases green guide

NEW YORK—The Princeton Review, in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), has released the “The Princeton Review’s Guide to 286 Green Colleges” – the first, free comprehensive Guidebook solely focused on institutions of higher education who have demonstrated an above average commitment to sustainability in terms of campus infrastructure, activities and initiatives.

The Guide looks at an institution’s commitment to building certification using USGBC’s LEED green building certification program; environmental literacy programs; formal sustainability committees; use of renewable energy resources; recycling and conservation programs, and much more.

The free Guide can be downloaded at www.princetonreview.com and www.usgbc.org

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Austin College students contribute to community

SHERMAN, Tex.—More than 200 Austin College students gave up a Sunday afternoon to make the local environment a bit nicer—preparing sites at the Sherman Community Garden, distributing free energy efficient light bulbs, picking up garbage at several Sherman sites, and doing cleanup and landscape work for several area social service organizations.

That effort, Green Serve, was just one project of Austin College’s new sustainability initiative, Thinking Green.

For more information, see www.austincollege.edu

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Portland State names Center director

PORTLAND, Ore.—Portland State University has named Robert Costanza to direct its Center for Sustainable Processes and Practices.

Costanza is currently the Gund Professor of Ecological Economics and director of the Gund Institute for Ecological Economics at the University of Vermont. He is internationally acclaimed for his visionary work across disciplines, linking ecology and economics to sustainability. Costanza’s selection follows an extensive national search.

For more information, see www.pdx.edu

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