Friday, December 31, 2004
Students / EcoVersity / Models
2003-2004 NWF Campus Environmental Yearbook is now online!
RESTON, Virginia, Dec. 15, 2004 (NWF, via EFSWN) - The 2003-2004 edition includes 46 case studies focusing on conservation and sustainability projects ranging from generating wind power, to composting with worms, to restoring habitat for wildlife from 37 higher education institutions in the U.S. and Canada. Among the 46 projects highlighted in the new edition of the Yearbook, NWF awarded special recognition to seven of the colleges and universities for setting and achieving especially ambitious conservation goals: clean fuels for campus vehicles; composting dining service waste; offsetting 100 percent greenhouse gas emissions with renewable energy; creative approaches to fostering ecological literacy; solar-power water craft and paper waste reduction; sustainability assessment; and the student-run journal, USM Footprint. Published each year since 1989, NWF’s Campus Environmental Yearbook is the only publication of its kind in the U.S. The 2003-2004 projects are available on-line along with the previous year’s entries sorted by project topic and archived on NWF’s Campus Ecology Website at www.nwf.org/campusecology.
2003-2004 NWF Campus Environmental Yearbook is now online!
RESTON, Virginia, Dec. 15, 2004 (NWF, via EFSWN) - The 2003-2004 edition includes 46 case studies focusing on conservation and sustainability projects ranging from generating wind power, to composting with worms, to restoring habitat for wildlife from 37 higher education institutions in the U.S. and Canada. Among the 46 projects highlighted in the new edition of the Yearbook, NWF awarded special recognition to seven of the colleges and universities for setting and achieving especially ambitious conservation goals: clean fuels for campus vehicles; composting dining service waste; offsetting 100 percent greenhouse gas emissions with renewable energy; creative approaches to fostering ecological literacy; solar-power water craft and paper waste reduction; sustainability assessment; and the student-run journal, USM Footprint. Published each year since 1989, NWF’s Campus Environmental Yearbook is the only publication of its kind in the U.S. The 2003-2004 projects are available on-line along with the previous year’s entries sorted by project topic and archived on NWF’s Campus Ecology Website at www.nwf.org/campusecology.
Sustainable Industry / Resources
Canadian Reporting Initiative Launched
WEB Reference, Dec. 23, 2004 (Ethical Marketplace) - Canadian Government encourages companies to report on their social and environmental practices. The Government of Canada has called on companies to report on their social and environmental practices and performance. See the Sustainability Reporting Toolkit at www.sustainabilityreporting.ca. This Toolkit will assist you in learning more about sustainability reporting, assessing the need to report and creating an effective report.
Canadian Reporting Initiative Launched
WEB Reference, Dec. 23, 2004 (Ethical Marketplace) - Canadian Government encourages companies to report on their social and environmental practices. The Government of Canada has called on companies to report on their social and environmental practices and performance. See the Sustainability Reporting Toolkit at www.sustainabilityreporting.ca. This Toolkit will assist you in learning more about sustainability reporting, assessing the need to report and creating an effective report.
Sustainable Enterprise / Conservation
Conservation, Enterprises and Livelihoods
WEB Reference, Dec. 2004 (Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment) - Working with Local Communities to Enhance Rural Income and Conserve Natural Resources - A key question in India, as elsewhere, is how to provide incentives to local communities to conserve and sustainably manage their natural resources. Working with its partners, ATREE has helped Soligas , the indigenous people of Biligiri Rangan Hills in the Western Ghats, in establishing forest-based enterprises that incorporate principles of conservation and sustainable management. Here, enterprises based on non-timber products were established. These include a honey processing plant to process honey collected by wild honey bees, a food processing plant for wild fruits, and an herbal medicine plant. Soligas are managing the enterprises, which have generated and distributed profits. http://www.atree.org/ConsliveArticle1.html.
Conservation, Enterprises and Livelihoods
WEB Reference, Dec. 2004 (Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment) - Working with Local Communities to Enhance Rural Income and Conserve Natural Resources - A key question in India, as elsewhere, is how to provide incentives to local communities to conserve and sustainably manage their natural resources. Working with its partners, ATREE has helped Soligas , the indigenous people of Biligiri Rangan Hills in the Western Ghats, in establishing forest-based enterprises that incorporate principles of conservation and sustainable management. Here, enterprises based on non-timber products were established. These include a honey processing plant to process honey collected by wild honey bees, a food processing plant for wild fruits, and an herbal medicine plant. Soligas are managing the enterprises, which have generated and distributed profits. http://www.atree.org/ConsliveArticle1.html.
EcoDesign / Sustainable Neighbourhoods
Local Enhancement and Appreciation of Forests
TORONTO, ON, Dec. 2004 (LEAF) - LEAF is a Toronto-based, non-profit group that is dedicated to protecting and enhancing Toronto's urban forest. Our goals are to raise public awareness of the value of our urban forest and to actively involve individual property owners in urban forest stewardship. http://www.leaftoronto.org.
Local Enhancement and Appreciation of Forests
TORONTO, ON, Dec. 2004 (LEAF) - LEAF is a Toronto-based, non-profit group that is dedicated to protecting and enhancing Toronto's urban forest. Our goals are to raise public awareness of the value of our urban forest and to actively involve individual property owners in urban forest stewardship. http://www.leaftoronto.org.
Youth Leadership / EcoJobs
You take the kid out of the city . . . . You take the city out of the kid.
TORONTO, ON, Dec. 18, 2004 (Project C.A.N.O.E.) - Project C.A.N.O.E. takes young people on wilderness canoe trips. For more than 25 summers, we've given our campers a chance to get out of the city and into the woods. They paddle over pristine lakes, work together to cross portages, cook over an open fire and sleep in tents under the stars. Our staff guides them through the experience, providing a safe and nurturing environment for challenge and self-discovery. C.A.N.O.E. stands for Creative And Natural Outdoor Experience. This is what we aim to provide young people who would not otherwise get to have a summer camp experience. Each camper's needs are used to design a trip to help him/her feel better about themselves, learn to get along with others and have fun in the wilderness. We believe that the canoe trip experience is unique. It works the body and mind. It changes lives. For Ecojobs with Project C.A.N.O.E. click - http://www.canoe.org/jobs.htm.
You take the kid out of the city . . . . You take the city out of the kid.
TORONTO, ON, Dec. 18, 2004 (Project C.A.N.O.E.) - Project C.A.N.O.E. takes young people on wilderness canoe trips. For more than 25 summers, we've given our campers a chance to get out of the city and into the woods. They paddle over pristine lakes, work together to cross portages, cook over an open fire and sleep in tents under the stars. Our staff guides them through the experience, providing a safe and nurturing environment for challenge and self-discovery. C.A.N.O.E. stands for Creative And Natural Outdoor Experience. This is what we aim to provide young people who would not otherwise get to have a summer camp experience. Each camper's needs are used to design a trip to help him/her feel better about themselves, learn to get along with others and have fun in the wilderness. We believe that the canoe trip experience is unique. It works the body and mind. It changes lives. For Ecojobs with Project C.A.N.O.E. click - http://www.canoe.org/jobs.htm.
Science & Technology / Green Building
Case Studies on Green Schools and Buildings
The Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (http://www.mtpc.org) an economic development agency, is funding the preparation of case studies to document the lessons learned from the green buildings and green schools projects funded by the Renewable Energy Trust. The purpose of these case studies is to educate a broad range of professional and general audiences on the benefits of onsite renewable energy technologies. http://www.greencampus.harvard.edu. Contact maggie_husak@harvard.edu, 617-496-1278.
Case Studies on Green Schools and Buildings
The Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (http://www.mtpc.org) an economic development agency, is funding the preparation of case studies to document the lessons learned from the green buildings and green schools projects funded by the Renewable Energy Trust. The purpose of these case studies is to educate a broad range of professional and general audiences on the benefits of onsite renewable energy technologies. http://www.greencampus.harvard.edu. Contact maggie_husak@harvard.edu, 617-496-1278.
Cool Projects / EcoDesign
Green Space Infrastructure - Natural Connections
CHICAGO, IL, Dec. 2004 (CNT Update) - Have you ever tried to get a comprehensive picture of the Chicago region's natural resources? Until recently, you couldn't. To address this glaring information gap, CNT and the [Openlands Project][5] created Natural Connections: Green Infrastructure in Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana. Natural Connections is a database of the green infrastructure---the interconnected network of open spaces and natural areas that provides wildlife habitat and recreational opportunities---covering 14 countiesextending out from the greater Chicago region, including the counties bordering the Wisconsin-Illinois and Illinois-Indiana state lines. The data, all 170+ layers of it, was attained from more than 60 local, state, and federal agencies, as well as private land trusts and conservation groups. All of it is available in a series of maps on the website. The maps highlight the many opportunities that exist for cross-border conservation and restoration efforts. http://www.greenmapping.org/.
Green Space Infrastructure - Natural Connections
CHICAGO, IL, Dec. 2004 (CNT Update) - Have you ever tried to get a comprehensive picture of the Chicago region's natural resources? Until recently, you couldn't. To address this glaring information gap, CNT and the [Openlands Project][5] created Natural Connections: Green Infrastructure in Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana. Natural Connections is a database of the green infrastructure---the interconnected network of open spaces and natural areas that provides wildlife habitat and recreational opportunities---covering 14 countiesextending out from the greater Chicago region, including the counties bordering the Wisconsin-Illinois and Illinois-Indiana state lines. The data, all 170+ layers of it, was attained from more than 60 local, state, and federal agencies, as well as private land trusts and conservation groups. All of it is available in a series of maps on the website. The maps highlight the many opportunities that exist for cross-border conservation and restoration efforts. http://www.greenmapping.org/.
EcoDesign / Sustainable Neighbourhoods
The New Transit Town: Best Practices in Transit-Oriented Development
CHICAGO, IL, Dec. 2004 (CNT Update) - An edited volume published by Island Press that brings together experts in planning, transportation, and sustainable design to examine the first generation of transit-oriented development projects and derive lessons for the next generation. http://www.islandpress.org/books/detail.html?SKU=1-55963-117-1 Read [Chapter 1][9] in its entirety. [9]: http://www.islandpress.org/books/excerpt/NewTransit.pdf.
The New Transit Town: Best Practices in Transit-Oriented Development
CHICAGO, IL, Dec. 2004 (CNT Update) - An edited volume published by Island Press that brings together experts in planning, transportation, and sustainable design to examine the first generation of transit-oriented development projects and derive lessons for the next generation. http://www.islandpress.org/books/detail.html?SKU=1-55963-117-1 Read [Chapter 1][9] in its entirety. [9]: http://www.islandpress.org/books/excerpt/NewTransit.pdf.
Sustainable Future Views
Terra Firma Wins 2004 CHBA Golds for Ultra-Healthy Rammed Earth Home!
SALT SPRING ISLAND, BC, Dec. 2004 (Terra Firma website) - Meror Krayenhoff, head of Terra Firma, says that the awards really go to the homeowners. They wanted a home that would improve their health. This goal drove every decision throughout the building process. The homeowners positioned the house on a downhill site rather than an uphill one with a better view in order to avoid microwaves and radio waves. Two-foot thick earth walls and a concrete tile roof also block micro/radiowave pollution. Read more. http://www.sirewall.com/ultra-healthyrammedearthhome.html.
Terra Firma Wins 2004 CHBA Golds for Ultra-Healthy Rammed Earth Home!
SALT SPRING ISLAND, BC, Dec. 2004 (Terra Firma website) - Meror Krayenhoff, head of Terra Firma, says that the awards really go to the homeowners. They wanted a home that would improve their health. This goal drove every decision throughout the building process. The homeowners positioned the house on a downhill site rather than an uphill one with a better view in order to avoid microwaves and radio waves. Two-foot thick earth walls and a concrete tile roof also block micro/radiowave pollution. Read more. http://www.sirewall.com/ultra-healthyrammedearthhome.html.
Conferences / Events – Portland, OR
The North American Conference on Sustainability and Higher Education
GALT, CA, Dec. 17, 2004 (CIPNews, Carol Brodie) - In October I attended one of the most inspiring and heady conferences I have ever had the privilege of being present at. It was the North American Conference on Sustainability and Higher Education, offered by Education for Sustainability West (http://www.efswest.org ). The conference brought together over four hundred people from many states, and several continents and countries, and was held at the University of Portland from October 21- 23, 2004. Read more.
The North American Conference on Sustainability and Higher Education
GALT, CA, Dec. 17, 2004 (CIPNews, Carol Brodie) - In October I attended one of the most inspiring and heady conferences I have ever had the privilege of being present at. It was the North American Conference on Sustainability and Higher Education, offered by Education for Sustainability West (http://www.efswest.org ). The conference brought together over four hundred people from many states, and several continents and countries, and was held at the University of Portland from October 21- 23, 2004. Read more.
