[event] Sustainability Studio: Food and the Environment

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Food and the Environment: Come hear how ENVIR 480 Sustainability Studio students evaluate UW’s dining program and food system

From composting and conserving to recycling and conservation, UW and Housing and Food Services’ priority is to move toward a zero-solid waste goal while sourcing and offering food and beverages that are certified as sustainably grown, harvested, produced and processed. This Spring Quarter, Program on Environment ENVIR 480 students conducted Life Cycle Assessments of eight food items (for example, comparing local to non-local and organic to non-organic ) and developed recommendations for a more sustainable UW dining program and food system. Please join us on Thursday, May 29th, for their presentation. 

What: Class Presentation and Q&A

 
Time: May 29th, presentation from 11:00am-12:00pm, followed by a reception with light snacks and refreshments until12:30pm.
Place: Wallace Hall 1st floor Commons, on the corner of NE Pacific and Brooklyn
Food items: Beef, chicken, salmon, milk, bread, tofu, spinach, and tomatoes

Class Partners and Contributors: UW Housing and Food Services and Real Food Challenge, among others

Hope to see you there!

This class report to be posted soon. Also view past class reports at: http://depts.washington.edu/poeweb/undergraduate_programs/courses/sustainability-studio.php

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Come hear about innovative efforts by ENVIR 480 Sustainability Studio to achieve a Zero Waste campus!

The University of Washington has established a goal to divert 70% of waste by the year 2020. In 2012, about 57% of waste was diverted through composting and recycling. This Winter Quarter, Program on Environment ENVIR 480 students engaged in their own Zero Waste experiments and initiated innovative projects to help the UW meet and exceed its waste diversion goals. Please join us on Thursday, March 14th 2013 for the class final presentation.

What: Final Class Presentation and Q&A

 
Time: March 14th, presentation from 11:00am-12:00pm, followed by a reception with light snacks and refreshments until 12:30pm.
Place: Wallace Hall 1st floor Commons, on the corner of NE Pacific and Brooklyn
Topics include: Educational Videos to Promote Waste Diversion, Inventory of Composting Infrastructure on Campus, Encouraging “Ave” Businesses to Reduce Waste, Promoting Reusable Coffee Cups at Suzallo Cafe, and a Business Plan for Soap from the UW Biodiesel Co-op
Partners include: UW Recycling, Housing and Food Services, Garbology project, UW Biodiesel Co-op, and others.

Hope to see you there!
For more information, please see http://envir480.tumblr.com/post//come-hear-about-innovative-efforts-by-envir-480 or email the instructor Megan Horst at horstm@uw.edu.

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Spring 2013 ENVIR 480 Sustainability Studio– 5 credits
Topic:  Greening up UW’s investments

Can UW’s investments be green? Earn course credit and gain professional experience while contributing to a hot topic among universities across the country. In Spring 2013 ENVIR 480 Sustainability Studio, students will engage in applied research about the environmental and social impacts of their personal investments, as well as provide analysis and insight to a UW discussion about the topic.

Did you know…the UW has an investment portfolio of over two billion dollars? This includes endowment investments of almost $13 million in sustainable industries and almost $200 million in sustainable forest lands. The UW encourages ethical considerations in its investing decisions, and investing in Sudan or in tobacco companies is prohibited. Should environmental impacts be considered? Meanwhile, there is discussion at UW about establishing “greener” options including a sustainability revolving loan fund  for faculty and students to research campus sustainability solutions.

In ENVIR 480, we will explore  potential green investing strategies, and their social and economic implications, for the University of Washington.  Possible questions for student research projects include:

  • What strategies have other institutions used to green up their portfolios?
  • What are the likely financial, environmental and social consequences, both pro and con, of fossil fuel divestment? (a question being pushed by Bill McKibben, see http://gofossilfree.org/)
  • What are financial implications for low-income and minority students?
  • What are the possible financial returns of a sustainability revolving loan fund?
  • How can more innovative sustainability initiatives be funded?

Students will partner with high-level financial administrators at the University of Washington, such as the Treasury Office, as well as environmental economics experts.

SLN: 13747
Class Date/time: Tues/Thurs afternoons
Taught by Megan Horst, Teaching Associate in POE and pre-PhD in Urban Design and Planning
Open to all majors/no prerequisites- Only an interest in sustainability. Capped to maintain small class size.

To view past class reports and topics, please visit: http://depts.washington.edu/poeweb/students/fyi.html
For questions, please contact instructor: horstm@uw.edu

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ENVIR 480: Sustainability Studio students take on the sustainability of UW Laboratories!

Did you know laboratories use 5 to 10 times more energy per square foot than an average office building? Labs also use a lot of water and generate (literally) tons of waste. Meanwhile, lab facilities make up about 13% of square feet at UW- altogether almost 2.4 million square feet.

Save the date for THIS THURSDAY for the presentations about student-led projects to foster Green Laboratories at UW:

December 6th, 11:00am-12:00pm, followed by a short reception.

  • Poplar Hall Commons, corner of Brooklyn Ave and NE Campus Parkway (and home to a Sustainable Living Community).
  • Topics include: Green Purchasing, Waste, Sink Aerators and Growth Chambers, and Energy Use.
  • Clients include: various UW labs, Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Office, UW Facilities, Purchasing and Procurement and more.

The student projects are a springboard to a formal UW Green Labs program, being launched by the Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Office. 

Hope to see you there! 

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ENVIR 480: Sustainability Studio students take on the sustainability of UW Laboratories!

Did you know laboratories use 5 to 10 times more energy per square foot than an average office building? Labs also use a lot of water and generate (literally) tons of waste. Meanwhile, lab facilities make up about 13% of square feet at UW- altogether almost 2.4 million square feet.

SAVE THIS DATE for a presentation about student-led projects to foster Green Laboratories at UW:

Thursday, December 6th, 11:00am-12:00pm, followed by a short reception.

  • Poplar Hall Commons, corner of Brooklyn Ave and NE Campus Parkway (and home to a Sustainable Living Community).
  • Topics include: Green Purchasing, Waste, Sink Aerators and Growth Chambers, and Energy Use.
  • Clients include: various UW labs, Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Office, UW Facilities, Purchasing and Procurement and more.

The student projects are a springboard to a formal UW Green Labs program, being launched by the Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Office. 

Hope to see you there! 

[course]: Green Labs and Sustainability on Campus

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Still plenty of space open in this unique field oriented course!

ENVIR 480 Sustainability Studio

Autumn 2012: Green Laboratories and Sustainability on Campus

TTH 10:30-12:20
SLN 13799

Help make UW’s laboratory spaces more environmentally-friendly!  Did you know that laboratory facilities comprise about 13% of the UW’s building inventory – altogether almost 2.4 million square feet? Did you know that laboratories use significantly more energy and water, per square foot, than office and residential buildings?

In response to this challenge, the UW Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Office is launching a new Green Labs program. In Autumn 2012, ENVIR 480: Sustainability Studio, students will support this new program by engaging in activities such as:

·  Pilot testing the new Green Labs tool with specific groups on campus

·  Creating a framework for competitions among labs regarding resource use

·  Conducting outreach to different lab groups on campus to create awareness about the program

·  Developing a list of “how to” resources for the reporting tool

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Interested in learning more about sustainability on the UW campus related to the topic of water? Want to find out what students really do in the ENVIR 480: Sustainability Studio course? Follow this link for the final report from the winter 2012 section: [link]. ENVIR 480 is offered every autumn, winter, and spring quarter with specific quarter focus. [For reports from other quarters]

[event] Water, Stormwater, & Sustainabilty on Campus

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Student research on the University of Washington’s impact on water

Friday, March 9
2:00 – 3:00 pm

Wallace Hall, POE Commons
(formerly the Academic Computing Center)
3737 Brooklyn Ave NE

Students in PoE’s Sustainability Studio spent this quarter researching options for more sustainable use of water on UW’s campus! This presentation is your opportunity to learn from their work. Projects include:

  • Case Studies of Permeable Pavement on Campus – decreasing the impacts of runoff on water quality.
  • Small- and Large-Scale Rainwater Catchment Systems on Campus – using rainwater for laundry and the landscape.
  • Profiles of Student-Led Water Sustainability Projects on Campus – supporting students in having impact on the campus environment.

If you have any questions, please contact Justin Hellier at hellier@uw.edu.