Vote in the Union of Concerned Scientists’ 2013 Cartoon Contest

The 2013 UCS Editorial Cartoon Contest is your chance to vote for the best cartoons as we take a look back through time at some of the great cartoons from the past seven competitions. We’ve chosen 12 all-star cartoons that stand out in their ability to poke fun at the not-so-humorous challenges to the complex relationship between science and democracy. Which one is your favorite? Your choice will decide the cover of next year’s UCS 2014 Editorial Cartoon Calendar.

The cartoons cover a number of topics that are critical to the role of science in policy making, including the general state of public dialogue, corporate interference in science, attacks on the scientific regulatory system, barriers to the responsible use of science in policy making, the interaction of communications and social media with science, attacks on scientists, and the defense of science.

 

Greening Libraries Wins Award in the 2013 Green Books Festival

Via Library Juice Press. Congratulations to my fellow co-authors and to our editors.

The 2013 Green Book Festival awarded its top honor in the category of Best Business Book to Greening Libraries, edited by Monika Antonelli and Mark McCullough and published by Library Juice Press.

Greening Libraries provides library professionals with a collection of articles and papers that serve as a portal to understanding a wide range of green and sustainable practices within libraries and the library profession. The book’s articles come from a variety of perspectives on a range of topics related to green practices, sustainability and the library profession. Aspects of the growing “green library movement” covered include green buildings, alternative energy resources, conservation, green library services and practices, operations, programming, and outreach.

The Green Book Festival gives awards in a number of categories, as well as overall best and honorable mention awards, which makes it a useful collection development tool for librarians.

 

Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators Given to 11 US Teachers

The White House Council on Environmental Quality, in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has announced the winners of the 2013 Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators. Eleven teachers from around the country are being recognized for their exceptional work as leaders in the field of environmental education in formal school settings. Award recipients and their local education agencies will receive commemorative certificates and monetary awards to help support and encourage their use of environmental education in their classrooms and schools.

“The men and woman who are receiving this prestigious award have taken innovative steps to educate students about environmental stewardship and civic responsibility, and their work is a critical part of creating a cleaner, healthier and more sustainable future,” said EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe. “Thanks to their creative approaches to environmental education, students are developing a greater connection to the world around them – a skill that will benefit young people throughout their careers as they pursue the green jobs of the 21st century. At EPA, we are grateful to know that such exceptional educators are in American classrooms today.”

The Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators recognizes outstanding K-12 teachers and their local education agencies across the United States for excellence in integrating environmental education into their lessons and connecting students with their communities and the natural world.

This program recognizes and supports teachers from both rural and urban education settings who make use of experiential and environmental opportunities that utilize creativity and community engagement to help students develop a sense of civic responsibility and stewardship in ecosystems. This year’s winning teachers’ programs range from students’ participation in watershed stewardship and civic engagement in Virginia, to creating recycling programs for an entire school in Kansas, to land stewardship practices in Idaho. Many teachers have inspired and empowered their students to create spaces for “green” clubs and special environmental science projects that include whole communities and businesses that help to create learning opportunities that students may otherwise not experience. These teachers demonstrate exceptional skill integrating learning outside their classrooms and making use of real-world issues to help students connect with, and participate in the world around them.

“This award recognizes the outstanding educators in our classrooms who are taking innovative approaches to helping students understand the impact they can have on our physical world,” said Nancy Sutley, Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality. “The teachers who have earned this award are inspiring our nation’s future leaders to be responsible stewards of our environment, and preparing them to excel in the 21st century economy.”

Recipients of the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators include:

• Mary Marguerite Murphy, Camden Hills Regional High School, Rockport, Maine
• Mary Breslin, George Washington Middle School, Alexandria, Va.
• Carolyn Ruos Thomas, Wildwood Middle School, Shenandoah Junction, W. Va.
• Jeanna Burroughs Goodson, Maiden High School, Maiden, N. C.
• Mary Catherine Padgett, Ford Elementary School, Acworth, Ga.
• Anne Wiszowaty, North Shore Community School, Duluth, Minn.
• Mike Todd, Ames High School, Ames, Iowa
• Dominick S. DeRosa, F.L.Schlagle High School, Kansas City, Kan.
• Dominique Evans-Bye, Clark Magnet High School, La Crescenta, Calif.
• Ralph Harrison, Science and Math Institute, Tacoma, Wash.
• Lindsey Hoffman-Truxel, Barbara Morgan Elementary, McCall, Idaho

More information about the winners and this program: http://www.epa.gov/education/teacheraward

 

Harvard University Recognizes EPA Renewable Energy Program as a Top Government Innovation

Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) RE-Powering America’s Land Initiative was recognized as one of the Top 25 Innovations in American Government by Harvard University. The initiative, started at EPA in 2008, encourages development of renewable energy on potentially contaminated lands, landfills and mining sites.

“We are honored that EPA and the RE-Powering Initiative have been recognized for its promotion of innovative land revitalization. The EPA saw an opportunity to return contaminated or potentially contaminated lands to productive reuse while supporting renewable energy development,” said Mathy Stanislaus, assistant administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. “As President Obama has made clear, investments in American-made renewable energy are vital to our economic security and environmental health.”

The RE-Powering Initiative supports the transformation of liabilities into assets for surrounding communities. Since RE-Powering’s inception, more than 70 renewable energy projects have been installed on contaminated sites or landfills. These early projects represent over 215 MW of installed capacity, which could power approximately 35,000 homes, and provide a foundation for future development as demonstrations of the latest technologies in both renewable energy and remediation design.

The Harvard Innovations Award is funded by the Ford Foundation and administered by the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Over 400 government initiatives have been recognized since the Innovations program began in 1985.

“These Top 25 innovations in government offer real, tangible ways to protect our most disadvantaged citizens, educate the next-generation workforce, and utilize data analytics to enhance government performance,” said Stephen Goldsmith, director of the Innovations in Government program at the Ash Center. “Despite diminishing resources, these government programs have developed model innovations that other struggling agencies should be inspired to replicate and adapt to their own communities.”

In 2000, the EPA Brownfields program was recognized as the Innovations in American Government’s overall award winner. Final award selection for this year is anticipated later in 2013.

• More information on the Innovations in American Government program and the Top 25 programs recognized: www.innovations.harvard.edu.
• More information on the RE-Powering America’s Land Initiative: http://www.epa.gov/renewableenergyland/

 

University of Arizona Recognized in EPA’s First-Ever Campus RainWorks Challenge

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced the four winners of the Campus RainWorks Challenge, a new design challenge created to inspire the next generation of landscape architects, planners and engineers to develop innovative green infrastructure systems that reduce stormwater pollution and support sustainable communities. The University of Arizona in Tucson, Ariz., was named 2^nd place winner for large institutions.

The Campus RainWorks Challenge engages students and faculty members at colleges and universities to apply green infrastructure principles and design, foster interdisciplinary collaboration, and increase the use of green infrastructure on campuses across the nation. Teams of undergraduate and graduate students, working with a faculty advisor, developed innovative green infrastructure designs for a site on their campus showing how managing stormwater at its source can benefit the campus community and the environment.

Stormwater is one of the most widespread challenges to water quality in the nation. Large volumes of stormwater pollute our nation’s streams, rivers and lakes, posing a threat to human health and the environment and contributing to downstream flooding.

The University of Arizona team’s design plan centers on the redevelopment of a 70,000-square-foot parking lot located within a cluster of academic buildings. The design will replace the parking lot with a campus common area featuring two rings of retention basins to infiltrate stormwater runoff, five underground cisterns to harvest runoff and HVAC condensate from the adjacent buildings, and a translucent shade structure with an ephemeral water feature. Water collected in the underground cisterns is used to irrigate the landscape, reducing potable water use from 700,000 to 90,000 gallons/year.

The other challenge winners were the University of Florida, Gainesville (1^st prize, large institution), the – Illinois Institute of Technology (1^st prize, small institution), and the Missouri University of Science and Technology (2^nd prize, small institution). Teams from Kansas State University, Columbia University, California State Polytechnic University, and University of Texas-Arlington were recognized as honorable mentions for their entries.

The challenge received submissions from 218 teams, which were reviewed by more than 30 expert judges from EPA, the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Water Environment Federation, and the American Society of Civil Engineers. Many of the submissions proposed transformative additions to the campus landscape that would reduce stormwater impacts while educating students about the movement of water through the urban environment. The winning teams were selected based on six criteria: analysis and planning; preservation or restoration of natural features; integrated water management; soil and vegetation management; value to campus; and likelihood of implementation.

Green infrastructure helps communities to maintain healthy waters, support sustainable communities, and provide multiple environmental benefits. Green infrastructure captures and filters pollutants by passing stormwater through soils and retaining it on site. Example of effective green infrastructure include green roofs, permeable materials, alternative designs for streets and buildings, trees, rain gardens and rain harvesting systems.

More information: http://www.epa.gov/campusrainworks

 

2012-2013 College and University Green Power Challenge

Throughout the 2012-13 academic year, EPA’s Green Power Partnership tracked the collegiate athletic conferences with the highest combined green power usage in the nation. The Green Power Challenge is open to all U.S. colleges, universities, and conferences. To join the Partnership, visit http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/join/index.htm.

On April 17, 2013, EPA concluded the Green Power Challenge and recognized a Champion Green Power Conference as well as the largest single green power users within each participating conference as 2012-13 EPA Green Power Challenge conference champions. The Champion Green Power Conference and individual conference champions are listed here. To be listed, a conference must have at least one Green Power Partner and an aggregate green power purchase of at least 10,000,000 kWh across the conference.

The Big 10 Conference was the Collective Conference Champion. The Ohio State University was individual champion. 23.5% of Ohio State’s power comes from green power sources.

 

Massachusetts Institute for Technology Center for Collective Intelligence Announces Contest for Innovative Approaches to Climate Change

This call for approaches is part of Climate CoLab, an online community of researchers and practitioners that is using crowdsourcing to develop climate change response strategies, including adaptation.  Climate CoLab is sponsoring thirteen contests that seek creative and practical solutions, innovations and business models to address climate change.  Contest winners will be awarded $10,000 and will have the opportunity to present at a conference at Massachusetts Institute for Technology (MIT).  The deadline for submittals is May 31st, and anyone worldwide can participate.

MIT is aiming to have as diverse a pool of participants as possible.  For more information, access the Climate CoLab website at: http://climatecolab.org/web/guest;jsessionid=A8D1D7D16A4861EDF0D3B57D21D5E6A6.

 

White House Honors Champions of Change: Community Resilient Leaders

The White House recently honored twelve citizens, businesses, and community leaders who are “Champions of Change” working to prepare their communities for the consequences of climate change.  These individuals are leaders and innovators working to build community resilience by preparing for increasingly extreme weather and other costly climate-related impacts.  The “Champions of Change” program was created as a part of President Obama’s Winning the Future initiative.  Each week, the White House features a group of Americans - individuals, businesses and organizations - who are empowering and inspiring members of their communities.  To read about the honorees, visit: http://www.whitehouse.gov/champions/.

 

John Wiley, Elsevier to sponsor APEC prize for ocean research

APEC member economies have announced that they will honour a young scientist in 2013 whose collaborative work in the region has made an outstanding contribution to sustainable ocean development. Publishers John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and Elsevier are sponsors for the APEC Science Prize for Innovation, Research and Education (ASPIRE Prize).

‘Sustainable Ocean Development’, the theme of this year’s ASPIRE Prize, is seen to reflect members’ focus on boosting cooperation that can help to generate innovative, environmentally and economically sustainable management solutions for the region’s oceans and waterways. It targets young scientists from APEC economies who specialise in fields such as oceanography and marine sciences, aquaculture and fisheries science, hydrology, hydrography and costal geography. The merit of their collaborative accomplishments must be evidenced by scholarly publication.

Each APEC member economy may nominate one individual under 40 years of age for the 2013 ASPIRE Prize which is sponsored by Wiley and Elsevier, and carries $25,000 in prize money. The submission deadline is May, 3 2013.

 

IIT wins EPA Campus RainWorks Challenge

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced that the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, won first prize among small institutions in the Agency’s first Campus RainWorks Challenge. EPA created the challenge to inspire the next generation of landscape architects, planners and engineers to develop innovative green infrastructure. The student team will receive a $2,500 cash award and IIT will receive $11,000 for faculty research on green infrastructure.

“EPA’s Campus RainWorks Challenge encourages the use of green infrastructure to manage stormwater — to improve water quality and to prevent the type of flooding caused by the heavy rains that hit Illinois last week,” said EPA Region 5 Administrator Susan Hedman, who presented the award today at an Earth Day ceremony at IIT. “The concept and technical quality of the IIT team’s design is truly impressive.”

The IIT team designed a plan to redevelop a 1,200-foot section of Dearborn Street on the IIT campus. The plan incorporates green infrastructure design elements, including rain gardens that double as outdoor seating areas and permeable walkways. Once implemented, the project will reduce stormwater runoff by more than 70 percent and reduce water used for campus landscaping by 3 million gallons annually.

The project will serve as an ongoing stormwater management design and research site for IIT’s campus and the city at large. IIT’s team was composed of a faculty advisor and 14 graduate and undergraduate students from various disciplines including landscape architecture, business and engineering.

“This is a really great moment for the IIT Master of Landscape Architecture program, for the College of Architecture and for the University, because it brings focus and attention to an increasingly vital urban landscape infrastructure issue: a great design problem for design education,” said Mary Pat Mattson, Studio Assistant Professor, Illinois Institute of Technology. “The award gives us an opportunity to build on our ideas through further research and coursework. And we look forward to seeing how this impacts the campus landscape in very real ways.”

More than 30 expert judges from EPA, the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Water Environment Federation and the American Society of Civil Engineers reviewed submissions from 218 teams. The winners were selected based on six criteria: analysis and planning, preservation or restoration of natural features, integrated water management, soil and vegetation management, value to campus, and likelihood of implementation.

Stormwater is one of the most widespread challenges to water quality in the nation. Large volumes of polluted stormwater degrade our nation’s rivers, lakes and aquatic habitats and contribute to downstream flooding.

The Campus RainWorks Challenge engages students and faculty at colleges and universities to apply green infrastructure principles and design, foster interdisciplinary collaboration, and increase the use of green infrastructure on campuses across the nation. Green infrastructure filters and captures pollutants by passing stormwater through soils and retaining it on site. Green roofs, permeable surfaces and rain gardens are some of the most common types of green infrastructure.