Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Recycling Bins Installed Along Franklin Street

The Town of Chapel Hill is installing 13 new recycling bins along Franklin Street to collect cans and bottles. Purchased through a grant from the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the bins will be placed at crosswalks, bus stops, and parking lots, increasing opportunities for pedestrians to recycle. Read more »

New Morgan Creek Trail in Chapel Hill

The Town of Chapel Hill announces completion of the new Morgan Creek Trail. The trail provides access to open space to the south and west of Fordham Boulevard, a woodland corridor that James Taylor called “Copperline.” The trail is included in the new Bicycle and Greenways Map of Chapel Hill. Read more »

Piedmont Biofuels Announces Breakthrough in Production Processes

Piedmont Biofuels announces the first zero-waste production of biodiesel in the United States using its proprietary approach of enzyme catalysis. Biodiesel is a diesel fuel alternative made from fats and oils, which can be used in diesel engines without modification. Piedmont Biofuels has been investigating enzyme catalysis for over four years in efforts to find a successful zero-waste output. Read more »

Chapel Hill High School Club Fosters Green Energy

Chapel Hill High School recently placed in the top five schools in the DoSomething.org Green Your School Challenge. The Green Tiger Campaign, an environmental student group, installed motion-detection lighting and started a campus recycling center for batteries and other items. The group also maintains a community garden. Read more »

North Carolina Businesses Get Certified in Sustainability and Save Money

The Green Plus program, administered by the Institute for Sustainable Development, offers a roadmap for businesses to operate more sustainably. Approximately 250 businesses, many in North Carolina, have been certified. Over half of them report that it helped generate new business. Read more »

5k at Earth Action Day

East Chapel Hill Rotary Club and Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation present the first annual 5k and 1 mile Family Fun Run at Earth Action Day, from 10am - noon on Saturday, April 14, at Southern Community Park. Runners are encouraged to dress up in sustainability-themed costumes. Participants can register online; fees apply. Immediately following the 5k and Fun Run, the Town of Chapel Hill’s Annual Earth Action Day Festival will take place at Southern Community Park from Noon until 5pm. Read more »

Chapel Hill Solar Farm Proposed

Strata Solar recently proposed a large solar farm in Chapel Hill. If the North Carolina Utilities Commission approves the project, the new 5-megawatt solar farm would be the largest in the Triangle. Read more »

University of Vermont Will Stop Bottled-Water Sales

The University of Vermont will stop sales of bottled water on campus within a year, joining a small but growing number of institutions that have already done so. Vermont administrators said the drive to stop bottled-water sales was led by students. The university has set up bottle-filling stations around campus and will choose which beverages to sell “through their own national contracts and local connections, allowing for greater flexibility in addressing environmental and social values in relation to the beverages supplied.” Read more »

John Thompson Presents "The Epic Merger: Ecology and Entrepreneurship"

The Kenan-Flagler Center for Sustainable Enterprise will host John Thompson, eco-writer, Knight Journalism Fellow and author of The Environmental Entrepreneur, Wednesday, February 29, at 12:45 pm. He will discuss ecology and entrepreneurship and the need to convert consumer preferences to environmentally-intelligent products and services. Email CSE@unc.edu to RSVP. Read more »

"Work Well, Live Well" Expo Just Around the Corner

The annual Wellness Expo will be held this year on March 9 from 11:00 am – 2:00 pm in the Frank Porter Graham Student Union. Organized by the University Wellness Committee, the event will feature interactive exhibits on nutrition, fitness, recreation, and other aspects of a healthy lifestyle. Stop by the Sustainability Office table to learn about choices you can make to sustain health and wellness! Read more »

Global Conference Seeks Proposals

The 3rd Global Interaction in Design Conference (GLIDE) is accepting paper proposals. The virtual conference will be held on November 7, and will focus on international issues related to food, nutrition, and health. The deadline for abstract submissions is March 15. Read more »
Still planning what to do over Spring Break? Consider planning a camping trip with friends. Camping has less environmental impact than most other vacations and is great fun! Camping options in the Triangle include Eno River State Park and Jordan Lake State Recreation Area. Remember: pack-in, pack-out; take only photos; and safety first!

Carolina in the News

Check out the recent media mentions of sustainability-related programs, practices, and people at UNC:
NC Has Largest Offshore Wind Resource on East Coast
WECT-TV (NBC/Wilmington)
There may be some jobs headed to the coastal region in the near future. According to a report released February 9 by Gov. Bev Perdue's Scientific Advisory Panel, North Carolina has the largest offshore wind resource on the east coast. The report confirms findings in studies done by UNC-Chapel Hill and the Energy Policy Council. Read more »

School Meals Still Carry Old Concerns
The News and Observer (Raleigh)
By Suzanne Havala Hobbs, a registered dietitian and a clinical associate professor in the department of health policy and administration in the Gillings School of Global Public Health at UNC-Chapel Hill.
It may come as a surprise, but those meals they serve at school were never meant to be solely about helping kids to be healthy. Understanding that fact makes it easier to make sense of the unrelenting squabbles between health advocates, food companies, school administrators, parents and a long line of others with interests in what gets served in school cafeterias. Read more »

Refugees in Carrboro Discuss their Needs
The News and Observer (Raleigh)
The U.S. State Department grants Burmese refugees legal status and gives them $900 per person to get on their feet, said Flicka Bateman, a former Chapel Hill Town Council member who has worked closely with the refugees. Many work as housekeepers at UNC-Chapel Hill, one of the reasons resettlement programs chose the Chapel Hill-Carrboro area. They ride the towns' free buses and send their children to the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, which began seeing a large influx in 2007, Bateman said. Read more »

Thanks to UNC News Services for finding these great stories AND compiling the summaries! You can find more UNC media coverage and stories online at http://uncnews.unc.edu

Job - NC

The Curriculum for the Environment and Ecology at UNC is seeking an Assistant Professor in Environmental Economics or Environmental Economic Policy.

Job - NC

Lenoir-Rhyne University is seeking an Assistant Professor to teach and coordinate the Master of Science program in Sustainability Studies. Read more »

Job - NC

The Stone House is hiring a part-time Garden Steward.

Job - NC

Advanced Energy is looking for a Program Manager to coordinate energy efficiency projects. Read more »

Job - NC

Strata Solar is hiring a Solar Superintendent, Lead Solar Installer, and Construction Manager. Read more »

Job - NC

Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College is looking for an Executive Director of Facilities and Operations. Read more »

Job - VA

The Wetland Ecosystem Ecology & Biogeochemistry Lab of the US Geological Survey is seeking a research technician. Read more »

Job - TN

The Institute for Sustainable Practice at Lipscomb University is hiring an Assistant/Associate Professor. Read more »

Job - DC

Partners for the Common Good is seeking a Public Policy and Communications Associate and a summer Social Enterprise Intern.

Job - WI

The University of Wisconsin-Madison is seeking an Assistant Professor of Urban and Regional Food Production Systems. Read more »

Job - CT

Yale University is looking for a Director of Energy Management. Read more »

Job - WA

Western Washington University is hiring a Dean for the Huxley College of the Environment. Read more »

Job - Flexible Location

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) is looking for a Web Application Developer. Read more »

Job - US

ESRI currently has over 100 full-time positions open and over 50 internship opportunities. Read more »

Internship - DC

The Environmental Law Institute is seeking summer undergraduate interns. Read more »

Internship - NY

The Mianus River Gorge Preserve is seeking undergraduate interns for its Suburban Ecology program. Read more »

Internship - CA

RSF Social Finance is hiring a Summer Lending Intern. Read more »

Internship - AK

Duke graduate student Amanda Koltz is looking for a field assistant for summer research in the Arctic.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Climate Action Plan Update

Since committing to climate neutrality by 2050, the university has made significant progress in stabilizing greenhouse gas emissions through renewable energy, alternative transportation, and energy efficiency programs. The 2010 Climate Action Plan Update reports that the university’s greenhouse gas emissions have remained constant, maintaining emissions near 2004 levels despite adding over 4 million square feet of space. Far from resting on our heels, the university continues to actively pursue climate neutrality. Read more » 

The Future of Smart Grid: Speaker Panel at Kenan-Flagler Business School

The Energy Club at Kenan-Flagler Business School is hosting a speaker panel on the future of electric power, Thursday, February 16, at 4:15 pm. The panelists have backgrounds in the energy field, including power generation, distribution, communications, data management, and public utilities. The event is free and open to the public, registration required. Read more »

Clean Energy Connections: Fueling Business through Social Media

The North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association presents a public talk on clean energy and social media, Tuesday, February 21, at 7pm. This event is part of the Clean Energy Connections series. Read more »

Recyclemania Tournament 2012

UNC goes head-to-head with more than 580 other schools for Recyclemania 2012, a 10-week-long competition among university recycling programs. Schools report recycling data each week and are ranked accordingly. As always, remember to recycle and follow UNC’s progress at Recyclemaniacs.

Exhibit on Invasive Plants Opens at the NC Botanical Garden

"Plant This, Not That—Alternatives to Invasives,” an exhibit featuring original paintings by graduates of the Botanical Illustration Program, opens Saturday, February 25, at the North Carolina Botanical Garden. The display explains the impacts, prevention, and management of invasive species and identifies alternatives for a healthy, biodiverse ecosystem. Read more »

Earth Action Day in Chapel Hill

The Town of Chapel Hill will sponsor the Fifth Annual Earth Action Day, Saturday, April 14th, at Southern Community Park. The event features the Swap-O-Rama clothing swap, interactive workshops, live entertainment, and the local food pavilion. The UNC Sustainability Office will host an exhibit. Stop by our table to learn about campus sustainability initiatives! Organizations and artists who practice and encourage sustainability are encouraged to apply for exhibitor space by March 10. Read more » 

Raleigh Offers New Sustainability Walking Tour

The Office of Sustainability in Raleigh unveiled a self-guided walking tour of the city last week. The tour features 24 sites of environmental interest, including a solar-powered trash compactor and solar-powered electric vehicle charging stations. The walking tour can be viewed on Google Maps. Read more » 

The State of Green Business Report 2012 from GreenBiz.com

The fifth annual edition of the “State of Green Business” report from GreenBiz.com measures the environmental impacts of the emerging green economy. The report documents the progress companies are making to improve their environmental performance and tracks larger trends that will affect corporate America in 2012. Complete a short form to download the free report.

ACC Clean Energy Challenge

The ACC Clean Energy Challenge, supported by the US Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, encourages southeastern university students to develop business plans for new clean energy companies. The winner of the competition will receive a $100,000 prize and compete in the DOE National Clean Energy Business Plan Finals in Washington, DC. Initial entries are due February 20. Read more »

Water Resources Research Institute (WRRI) Conference

The WRRI annual conference focuses on North Carolina's water resource issues, solutions, and opportunities. The conference will be held at the Jane S. McKimmon Center at NC State, March 27-28. See the website to submit an abstract or register for the conference. Read more »

Carolina in the News

Check out the recent media mention of sustainability-related programs, practices, and people at UNC:

Study Lauds Role of Early Ed
The News and Observer (Raleigh)
Poor children who get high-quality day care as early as infancy reap long-lasting benefits, including a better chance at a college degree and steady employment, according to a UNC-Chapel Hill study that followed participants from birth to age 30. The latest findings, published this week in the online journal Developmental Psychology, are from one of the longest-running child care studies in the United States. Read more » 

Planning is more than a Process
The Chapel Hill News
In the first of two presentations Jan. 5, Dave Godschalk, of UNC's City and Regional Planning Department, delivered a lecture on sustainable comprehensive planning. Godschalk began his talk by stressing that planning is not just about a process, which has been much of the focus of Chapel Hill 2020 thus far, but also about a final end product. Read more »

N.C. Tour Turns Poverty's 'Bloodless Statistics' into Reality
The Los Angeles Times
Gene Nichol, director of the Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina, listened to dozens of people pour out their life stories. Poverty is far more than cold statistics, he told one gathering, "it lives in wounds to the human heart," he said. Read more »

UNC Proposes Changes to Carolina North
The Chapel Hill News
The town of Chapel Hill has received a request from UNC for modification to its plans for Carolina North. The university wants to realign the conservation areas of the proposed campus to "improve the ecological value and connectivity of the 311 acres of the Carolina North property." The modification does not change the size of the areas, which are popular with local trail runners and hikers. Read more » 

UNC to Host Free Nutrition Lecture Series at NCRC
The Salisbury Post
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will host a free nutrition seminar series at the NC Research Campus. The Appetite for Life Academy, hosted by the UNC Nutrition Research Institute in Kannapolis, brings the latest scientific research down to earth in educational, interactive community programs. Read more »

Thanks to UNC News Services for finding these great stories AND compiling the summary! You can find more UNC media coverage and stories online at http://uncnews.unc.edu/

Job- NC

Duke University is seeking a Sustainability Education Project Coordinator (job code 400580237). Read more »

Job- NC

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) is hiring a Web Application Developer. Read more »

Job- NC

The North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association is hiring a Database Developer. Read more » 

Job- NC

Advanced Energy is seeking a Project Manager for their Transportation Initiatives Team. Read more »

Job– NC

The Village of Clemmons is seeking a Stormwater Engineer.

Job– TN

The Institute for Sustainable Practice at Lipscomb University is hiring an Assistant/Associate Professor. Read more »

Job– TN

The University of the South is looking for a Farm Manager. Read more » 

Job– DC

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is seeking an Affiliate Advocacy Coordinator. Read more » 

Job– OH

The University of Akron is looking for a Sustainability Manager to lead the university’s sustainability initiatives. Read more »

Job– MA

Bristol Community College is seeking a Renewable Energy and Green Jobs Director. Read more » 

Job– CO

The Aspen Center for Environmental Studies is seeking two Environmental Educators for the next school year. Read more »

Internship– NC

Self-Help is seeking a paid summer intern to promote green initiatives at a school in Durham. Read more » 

Internship– NC

Democracy North Carolina is hiring paid summer interns to work as student organizers promoting fairer elections. Read more »

Internship– NC

HOPE Gardens is seeking summer staff members to help support and manage the garden.

Internship – NC

The Conservation Trust for North Carolina is hiring ten paid summer interns for placements across North Carolina. Read more »

Internship– NC

The Highlands Nature Center is hiring two Assistant Naturalists for the summer. Read more » 

Internship– NC

The Highlands Botanical Garden is looking for a summer intern to maintain the garden and educate the public about the plant species. Read more »

Internship– NC

Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge is hiring summer interns to do biological surveys, gather data, interact with the public, and assist with trail maintenance. Read more »

Internship– NY

The Huyck Preserve is seeking four undergraduate students for a summer internship conducting field research in the preserve. Read more »

Internship– MN

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is looking for students to help conduct aquatic biomonitoring surveys on rivers and streams this summer. Read more »

Internship– IL

The Chicago Park District is seeking a Lab Sampler to collect water samples and conduct field tests. Read more »

Internship– IL

The Chicago Park District is hiring summer “Beach Ambassadors” who will provide visitors with information about water quality, wildlife, and beach health. Read more »

Summer Undergraduate Research– MA

The Marine Biological Laboratory is looking for an undergraduate student to assist with a study in the salt marshes of the Plum Island Estuary.

Summer Undergraduate Research– VA

Radford University and Virginia Tech are hiring an undergraduate student to help study disease ecology in aquatic freshwater communities. 

Summer Undergraduate Research– OR

Oregon State University is seeking a student researcher for a Research Experience for Undergraduates focused on plant and animal phenology in the Oregon Cascades. 

Summer Undergraduate Research– WI

The Lindroth Research Group at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is looking for an undergraduate student to help study the genetic and chemical determinants of ecological interactions between plants and herbivores.
Struck by cupid’s arrow? Consider these Valentine’s Day green gift ideas: Make your own message-in-a-bottle by reusing a glass bottle and including a romantic letter. Give live flowering plants instead of cut flowers. Consider organic fair trade chocolate. For a romantic outing, skip the traditional dinner out and take a walk together in a park or garden. Battle Park, Carolina North, Coker Arboretum, and the North Carolina Botanical Garden are all fantastic local options.