Related Blog Posts - Government & Legislation

Engaging Campus Sustainability through Students at COP15

Submitted by Rima Mulla on December 2, 2009 - 9:52pm
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by Sarah Brylinsky, Sustainability Education Coordinator, Center for Environmental and Sustainability Education, Dickinson College

As the world turns to watch climate change negotiations in Copenhagen this December, institutions of higher education are paying particular attention to the potential for translated educational opportunities and institutional reform. Eight college and university delegations will be attending the UNFCCC 15th Conference of the Parties, contributing 300 students from American institutions in addition to the more than 500 American youth and 3,000 international youth expected to participate. Student and institutional delegates are attending as researchers, observers, teachers, administrators, and climate activists focused on finding new roads to sustainable development and education.

College and university participants will be blogging, twittering, and reporting on lessons and developments of the COP15 through live Q & A calls, making information and updates accessible to the broader higher education sustainability community (See all of the ways to stay connected during the COP15 negotiations below). Their observations and experiences will provide lessons on how to create timely and aggressive climate reduction commitments, re-think institutional policies for economic and environmental savings, and use the reduction of campus greenhouse gas emissions and resource-intensity as a model for sustainability education.


Federal Policy Summary on Climate & Sustainability Funding Opportunities for Higher Education

Submitted by Stephen Muzzy on September 11, 2009 - 2:03pm
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Stephen Muzzy, Program Manager at Second Nature, highlights sessions and resources from the 2009 ACUPCC Climate Leadership Summit, which took place in Chicago in mid August, 2009. In this post, he shares the presentation from Dr. Jim Elder, Founder of the Campaign for Environmental Literacy, on federal climate and sustainability policy.

Dr. James Elder, founder of the Campaign for Environmental Literacy (CEL) tracks federal legislative activity regarding environmental and sustainability education. CEL provides individuals and organizations with information to advocate for increased federal funding for environmental, ocean, conservation, and sustainability education. Dr. Elder provided summit participants with the following one page handout on the most recent activity for increased federal funding for higher education.


The New Financial Climate: Converting Risks of Climate Change into Opportunities

Submitted by Stephen Muzzy on September 8, 2009 - 12:01pm
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Stephen Muzzy, Program Manager at Second Nature, highlights sessions and resources from the 2009 ACUPCC Climate Leadership Summit, which took place in Chicago in mid August, 2009. In this post, he shares highlights from the presentation of Joe Grasso, Assistant Dean for Finance and Administration at Cornell University.

Mr. Grasso,the Assistant Dean for Finance and Administration at Cornell University and Chair of the National Association of College & University Business Officers (NACUBO) Sustainability Advisory Panel discussed the proposed American Clean Energy & Security Act (ACES) HR 2454 and the potential financial implications climate legislation would bring to the higher education sector. If passed into law, ACES would create a new financial environment that would require higher education institutional leaders to adapt their roles by:


Martha J. Kanter, U.S. Undersecretary of Education, Spoke at Climate Leadership Summit

Submitted by Stephen Muzzy on August 28, 2009 - 11:02am
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Stephen Muzzy, Program Manager at Second Nature highlights sessions and resources from the 2009 ACUPCC Climate Leadership Summit, which took place in Chicago in mid August, 2009. In this post, he describes the presentation of Dr. Martha J. Kanter, U.S. Undersecretary of Education.

Dr. Martha J. Kanter the U.S. Undersecretary of Education and former Chancellor of Foothill-De Anza Community College District delivered the opening keynote at the 2009 ACUPCC Climate Leadership Summit. Dr. Kanter made clear that the Obama administration recognizes the importance and the challenge of addressing climate disruption and that formal education is a key strategy to halt it. With the administrations support, the Department of Education is focused on creating a common agenda for how we live and how we educate in order to provide health and economic prosperity for all. To achieve this, Dr. Kanter believes that sharing information and collaborating across sectors are the most effective means to scale up efforts towards a green and clean economy. Dr. Kanter shared the following key developments in federal policy, stimulus funding, and information on creating healthy, high performance schools:
 


How is your Campus Using Stimulus Money to Promote Sustainability?

Submitted by Niles Barnes on July 2, 2009 - 2:11pm
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Now that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) has passed, there are many opportunites for two-year funding and awards for a variety of special projects.

I recently had a question from an AASHE member instution regarding what fellow campuses were doing with the federal economic stimulus money in regards to energy efficency upgrades. In particular the member asked, "What we could really use is a list of energy saving projects that other campuses are going to fund with stimulus money. We are having trouble coming up with ideas because we have been proactive over the years. We really have taken care of most of the low hanging fruit. We need ideas!"


Campus Renewable Energy Advocates: Be Aware of Attempts to Expand the Definition of 'Renewable'

Submitted by Niles Barnes on May 26, 2009 - 11:24am
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I suppose it really shouldn’t come as a surprise but I was still caught off guard by a recent article, (“With billions at stake, trying to expand the meaning of ‘renewable energy’ ”) which describes industry lobbying groups seeking to expand the definition of renewable energy to cover everything from waste coal and methane from coal mines to the burning of used tires. I laughed, until I realized that those two examples are actually legitimate in certain states that currently have renewable energy mandates (PA and NV respectively).

The article is important for campuses to be aware of for a couple of reasons. First, it strikes to the heart of the ongoing debate regarding renewable energy credits (or RECs) and the validity of these for reducing GHG emissions. (For background on RECs see section 5.4 of the AASHE Climate Action Planning Wiki)
It also provides further justification for examining what it is exactly your campus is buying before signing up for a large REC purchase through a utility or other party.


Congress Passes Higher Education Sustainability Act (HESA)

Submitted by Judy Walton on August 1, 2008 - 1:19pm
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For those who have been following the Higher Education Sustainability Act (HESA), I'm thrilled to report that today Congress overwhelmingly passed all HESA provisions as part of the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HR 4137). The Act should be signed into law very soon by the President. The terrific support for HESA by the campus sustainability community made a difference! HR 4137 contains two key campus sustainability provisions:
  • Summit on Sustainability.

Legislative Update from Capitol Hill

Submitted by Judy Walton on July 28, 2008 - 1:12pm
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Our friend Jim Elder, Director of the Campaign for Environmental Literacy, has started a new blog on legislation relevant to environmental education.  His first post includes some valuable updates on legislation relevant to campus sustainability. Here are a few excerpts:

Hill Update for Environmental Education - July 24, 2008


Interview with Senator Bernie Sanders on Federal Support for Campus Sustainability

Submitted by Julian Dautremont... on February 13, 2008 - 6:00am
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In late December, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007< was signed into law. The Act included language introduced by Senator Bernie Sanders (VT) that authorizes $250 million annually in grants and another $500 million in direct loans for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects at higher education institutions, public schools, or local governments. We recently interviewed Senator Sanders to learn more about this new legislation. The full exchange is included here.


Quick Guide to Carbon Policy Solutions

Submitted by Sam Hummel on December 3, 2007 - 1:12pm
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If your school is planning for a future in which carbon emissions are regulated and restricted (which it should be!), then you will want to understand what may be coming down the pipe as far as legislation goes. This quick guide to carbon policy solutions can help!
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