Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Looking for low-cost sustainable gifts this holiday season? Consider giving the gift of your time and expertise! Volunteer at your gift recipient’s favorite charity. Offer to babysit for new parents. Help with painting or household chores. Or make a home-cooked meal each month for a year. Does someone on your gift list need a running buddy or trainer? Want to learn guitar? Or how to knit? Or a second language? Pass your skills on as a gift. These meaningful gifts are low-impact on the planet and your wallet. However you celebrate, happy holidays!

Conservation Tips for a Sustainable Holiday Season


As we look forward to time away from campus, please remember that our building systems continue to operate during the break. With your efforts, we can reduce our environmental impact and costs over the holidays. 


Before leaving for any extended period, please: 

  • Shut down desktop and laptop computers unless instructed otherwise by IT or administrative staff. If your computer, speakers, phone charger, etc., are all on one power strip, turn off the power strip after shutting down your computer. 
  • Unplug nonessential equipment such as copiers, fax machines, printers, scanners, and chargers. Most equipment draws electricity even when turned off or in sleep mode. 
  • Unplug all appliances, including coffee makers, microwaves, televisions, and radios. Like office equipment, many appliances use electricity even when turned off. 
  • Adjust the thermostat to 65 degrees. 
  • Turn off office lights and as much public lighting as possible in hallways, bathrooms, break rooms, and conference rooms.
  • Check windows to make sure they are tightly closed and locked. 
  • Check faucets in bathrooms and break rooms to make sure they are completely turned off and not dripping.
  • If you work in a lab with variable air volume fume hoods, shut the sash completely (just as you should any time the hood is not in use). 
  • Call in any leaks or maintenance issues to your Facilities Services team (962-3456 or www.fac.unc.edu). 

These tips will help keep your building safe and energy-efficient. They also apply at home. Post this information to share with colleagues, suitemates, and fellow building occupants. Read more »

Mid-Year Move-Out Recycling and Reuse Resources

Packing for a mid-year move-out? Consider donating your unwanted items instead of throwing them in the dumpster. Reusable furniture can be offered for reuse at “Salvage Sheds” located at four Orange County Solid Waste Convenience Centers. Computers, computer peripherals, and other electronics can be recycled at the Orange County Landfill on Eubanks Road in Chapel Hill. Clothing and household items in good condition can be donated to local thrift or consignment stores. Unopened cans and boxes of non-perishable food items can be donated to the Inter-Faith Council Food Pantry in Carrboro. Visit the Office of Waste Reduction and Recycling and Orange County’s Student Move-out Waste Reduction, Reuse, and Recycling Resource to learn how to donate, dispose of, or recycle a specific item.

Carolina Students Produce NC Energy and Politics Multimedia Stories

Students taking an energy reporting class spent the fall semester writing and producing interactive multimedia stories that cover the intersection of North Carolina, energy, and politics. Story topics include: smart grid education, Progress Energy’s use of stimulus money, the state legislature’s shift on environmental policy, the future of offshore wind energy in North Carolina, the rapid growth of solar, the changing nature of food, and how climate change is affecting the state's sweet potato industry. All articles are available online.

Central Carolina Community College Recognized for Sustainability

The Green Genome Awards honor community colleges that have taken a strategic leadership role in sustainability and green workforce development. The awards are part of a larger initiative created by the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) and its Sustainability Education and Economic Development Center (SEED) to support sustainability practices, programs, and training. Green Genome Award recipients include: Central Carolina Community College, North Carolina for Program Design and Delivery; Butte College, California; Delta College, Michigan; Hillsborough Community College, Florida; and West Virginia University at Parkersburg. Read more »

Greenpeace Report Shows a Cleaner Pathway for Duke Energy

Using modeling performed by Ventyx, an energy consultancy, a recent Greenpeace report, “Charting the Correction Course: A Clean Energy Pathway for Duke Energy,” proposes specific changes Duke Energy can make to benefit ratepayers, the environment, and investors by investing in renewable energy and energy efficiency. According to the report, Duke could source 33% of its electricity from wind, solar, and efficiency resources. Under Duke’s current plan, the majority of energy generated in North and South Carolina over the next 20 years will be sourced from 70-year-old coal plants and nuclear plants. Read more »

Apply Now for the Burch Field Research Seminar

The Burch Seminar in Germany, Sweden, and Denmark offers students an up-close view of several European cities that are leaders in sustainability. Students will explore a wide range of topics, including renewable energy, urban planning, and high-performance building. Students will receive six credits that count toward an Environmental Studies major or toward the sustainability or environmental minor. The program is open to all students who will have completed two semesters at Carolina by the end of the spring semester. Apply to the Study Abroad office by February 14. Read more »

Funding Opportunity in Biological Systems Science

UNC faculty may be interested in a U.S. Department of Energy request for proposals to fund: exploring the frontiers of genome-enabled biology; discovering the physical, chemical, and biological drivers and environmental impacts of climate change; and seeking the geological, hydrological, and biological determinants of environmental sustainability and stewardship. Approximately $400 million will be awarded. Apply by September 30, 2013. Read more »

Carolina in the News

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

Is environment making us fat? (Opinion-Editorial by Mieka Sanderson, a masters of Public Health candidate at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Public Health in the Health Behavior Department) 

The Robesonian 
Robeson County, population 134,000, is not only one of the largest rural counties in North Carolina but also tops the list as the biggest county within the state, BMI-wise. According to 2009 data from the CDC National Diabetes Surveillance System, nearly 40 percent of adult Robeson residents are obese compared with the national average of 25 percent. Obesity researchers have found that there is a complex link between diet, physical activity and the environment. The environment is composed of social and physical elements such as safety, as well as the actual man-made structure and layout of buildings that comprise a town, city or community. Certain physical environmental designs, also known as the built environment, allow for and actually encourage physical activity by including wide sidewalks, bike paths, and pedestrian crosswalks in land development designs. Read more »

Roadwork to snarl Chapel Hill traffic 
The News and Observer (Raleigh) 
A road project expected to cause major delays around UNC-Chapel Hill this spring could also cost nearly $2 million more to maintain existing bus service. Triangle Grading & Paving Inc. of Burlington started installing signs and removing trees Tuesday from South Columbia Street. The $4.6 million project will add bike lanes, sidewalks, a center-turn lane and bus pull-offs to a busy 0.8-mile stretch between Purefoy Road and Manning Drive. The two-lane corridor, located just south of the UNC-CH campus, is one of the busiest transit routes in the region, if not the state, Chapel Hill Transit Interim Director Brian Litchfield said. Read more » 

Walking back to the days of New Urbanism (Opinion-Editorial by Carly Sieff, a master’s student in UNC’s Department of City and Regional Planning) 
The Chapel Hill News 
The benefits we reap from walking and biking regarding obesity prevention have been proven time and time again. One study, for example, demonstrated that a 5 percent increase in walkability is associated with a per capita 32.1 percent increase in time spent in physically active travel and a 0.23-point reduction in body mass index (Frank et al 2007). Benefits also go far beyond weight loss. New Urbanism communities demonstrate improved environmental health through a reduction of emissions associated with driving; increased social capital resulting from interactions and shared experiences; decreased mental illness and anxiety that comes with driving and inactivity; and financial savings through reductions in car maintenance, gas, health-related costs and gym memberships. 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.

UNC – Sustainability Office – Design and Education Intern – NC

UNC – Sustainability Office – Data Interpretation and Visualization Intern – NC

NC State – Energy Program Coordinator – NC

NC State – NC Solar Center – Clean Transportation Specialist – NC

Duke University – Transit Planner/Transportation Demand Program Manager – NC

NC State – Center for Environmental Farming Systems – Local Foods Initiative – Researcher Position – NC

Second Nature – American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment – Implementation Fellow Position – MA

Second Nature – American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment – Recruitment Fellow Position – MA

Tufts University – Office of Sustainability – Education and Outreach Coordinator Position – MA

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) – Member Relations Coordinator Position – CO

Portland Community College – Environmental Center – Coordinator Position – OR

Sea Grant College Program – School of Architecture/SOEST – Sustainable Building/Community Design – Assistant, Associate or Full Professor Position – HI

NACUBO – Facilities Management and Environmental Policy – Director Position – DC

University of Delaware – College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment – Marine Sciences Summer Intern Program – Research Experience for Undergraduates – DE

Georgia Tech – Aquatic Chemical Ecology Summer Intern Program – Research Experience for Undergraduates – GA