Advancing Green Building in Higher Education

Join Second Nature and the EPA Green Power Partnership for "The State of Renewables in Higher Education"

November 2, 2012

The State of Renewables in Higher Education

This webcast was broadcast on November 29th 2012, 2:00-3:00pm EST

Supporting Documents

Second Nature and the U.S. EPA’s Green Power Partnership are collaborating to identify the barriers to expanding renewable energy use among colleges and universities, identify solutions, provide education and training on green power procurement strategies and explore the possibilities of joint purchasing opportunities.

To kick-off this partnership, Second Nature and EPA invite you to participate in an interactive event to learn more about trends and possibilities in colleges and universities incorporation of green power onto their campuses, and in their climate reduction goals.

The live event will stream on this page.  Please bookmark this link and register to participate in the event.

We Have 100% of the Student Footprint

April 11, 2011

Last week, we released a new video that answers the two questions most frequently put to us since Second Nature was founded in 1993:

Why is Education for Sustainability so important?

Why focus on the higher education sector?

Heres’s our answer:

Watch the video on YouTube and Vimeo.

The Second Nature YouTube Channel
View this and other Education for Sustainability videos on our YouTube channel. While you’re there, become a subscriber!

Spread the Word
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Share Your Sustainability Videos With Us
Has your school or organization produced video content about its sustainability initiatives? Share them with us by leaving a comment below or on our YouTube channel page.

New on Campus Green Builder: The State of Education and Clean Energy Reform

January 31, 2011

Photo Credit: Sheryl Gay Stolberg, New York Times

Second Nature’s Advancing Green Building intern Vanessa Santos recently shared her thoughts regarding President Obama’s points on education and clean energy in his 2011 State of the Union address. Vanessa writes:

“President Barack Obama’s 2011 State of the Union address on Tuesday evening inspired optimism that future investments would be made in education, as well as in clean energy technology. Though skeptics can criticize whether the President will be able to hold true to his remarks yesterday evening, his address was successful in noting the connection between sustainable clean energy reform and the need to support higher education, specifically in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education.”

Read Vanessa’s full post on the Campus Green Builder blog, here.

Celebrating the Advancing Green Building in Higher Education Initiative

January 7, 2011

By Ashka Naik, Director of Capacity Building, Second Nature
(This article appears in the January, 2011 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

The ACUPCC

Two years ago Second Nature undertook an extensive research project to understand the needs and challenges faced by the U.S. higher education institutions that were disenfranchised from the mainstream “Green Building” movement for a myriad of reasons.  This inquiry, funded by the The Kresge Foundation, offered an in-depth look into the unique demographic, physical and economic as well as knowledge-based hurdles confronted by these institutions while pursuing sustainable building practices on their campuses.

Stepping Up for Sustainability: Second Nature’s Kresge Fellows Get Going When the Going Gets Tough

December 15, 2010

By Vanessa Santos, Advancing Green Building Intern, Second Nature

When the economy takes a turn for the worse, all organizations, especially those within the education sector, suffer. However, under-resourced and minority-serving colleges and universities are stepping up to prove that ambition, useful information and timely opportunities can overcome the financial concerns that are often associated with pursuing a sustainability agenda on campus.

Second Nature’s Kresge Fellowship Program – as part of its Advancing Green Building Initiative –awarded 40 fellowships total in 2009 and 2010 to senior-level executives at under-resourced colleges and universities. With these fellowships, the 40 executives attended a green building conference where they were able to network with each other and professionals in their field as well as to learn more about sustainability and green building on college and university campuses.

Second Nature's Ashka Naik with the 2010 Kresge Fellows at this year's AASHE Summit

The ACUPCC and Second Nature: Accelerating Education for Sustainability

December 7, 2010

By Anthony Cortese, President, Second Nature

(This article appears in the December, 2010 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

As you know, Second Nature is a non-profit organization whose mission is to transform the education, research, practice and community engagement of higher education in order to foster a healthy, just and sustainable society for all now and in the future. Senator John Kerry, Teresa Heinz and I founded Second Nature in 1993 to help lead this transformation.  Our view of “sustainability” includes and goes well beyond the environmental dimension to embrace the bigger questions of how we create a world in which all current and futurehumans are healthy, live in secure, thriving communities and have economic opportunity on a finite planet whose capacity to support life becomes more precarious daily.

We did this because of three beliefs.  First, despite heroic efforts on public health and environmental protection in the last 40 years, society was and continues to be on an unhealthy, inequitable and unsustainable path that threatens the viability of a complex modern civilization.  Secondly, we need transformative change in the mindset and actions of individuals and institutions that must be led by higher education.  And thirdly, the current structure and direction of higher education is largely (though unintentionally) reinforcing the unhealthy, inequitable and unsustainable path that society is pursuing.

Kresge Fellows at 2010 Greenbuild

November 23, 2010

 

Advancing Green Building in Higher Education

While attending the 2010 Greenbuild Conference in Chicago, IL, Second Nature’s Ashka Naik brought together the eleven 2010 Kresge Fellows who attended this year’s GreenBuild thanks to the funding they received through their fellowships. The group shared their experiences as campus sustainability champions over a meal and had the opportunity to discuss their challenges with content experts in the field of green building. Read more on the Campus Green Builder blog.

Second Nature Kresge Fellows at 2010 Greenbuild

More information about the Advancing Green Building in Higher Education Kresge Fellowship Program.
More information about the Campus Green Builder web portal.

 

Transitions

October 6, 2010

By Michelle Dyer,  Chief Operating Officer, Second Nature

(This article appears in the October, 2010 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

After the ACUPCC Climate Leadership Summit in Denver I will be stepping out of my role as Chief Operating Officer of Second Nature, to join Intersection Partners, a private equity investment firm that builds sustainable businesses, as Principal.  I joined Second Nature to support Tony Cortese and the Second Nature team through a time of significant growth and to build the organizational capacity to advance its mission.  With the excellent team now have in place, and the phenomenal success of the ACUPCC and the Advancing Green Building in Higher Education Initiative, the time has come for me to move forward.

This opportunity came quite unexpectedly as I was conducting early research into potential next steps in my career path.  I knew it would be rare to find an investment company with the supportive atmosphere and committed team I have enjoyed during my tenure at Second Nature, not to mention difficult to make a transition given the current state of the economy.  I was blessed to connect with my new partners, who understand sustainability deeply and feel a vocation to create meaningful, positive businesses.

Unity College Joins Bill McKibben in a Road Trip to Put Solar Panels on the White House!

September 21, 2010

By Vanessa Santos, Advancing Green Building Intern, Second Nature

Last Tuesday evening at Old South Church in Boston, MA, you couldn’t turn around without seeing bright white signs that read “Put Solar on the White House!”

This is Bill McKibben’s clear and simple message. Mr. McKibben, with the support of 350.org, the students of Unity College, as well as many local and national environmental groups, has successfully brought this message from Maine to Boston, judging by the crowd of people that was present at the church to support the movement on September 7, 2010. The team then continued this ”Solar Road Trip” to disseminate this same message to New York City and eventually to Washington D.C. Hopefully this message will prompt President Obama to take action on 10/10/10, the day when organizations, politicians and people around the world will get to work to mitigate climate change.

Traveling with one of the very solar panels that President Carter put on the White House in 1979 (which Reagan removed during his presidency), Bill McKibben and some Unity College students made their first stop in Boston, as they rallied to get President Barack Obama to return this solar panel, and other donated solar panels, to the roof of the White House.

Building Capacity to Make Sustainability ‘Second Nature’ For All!

September 7, 2010

By Ashka Naik, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Second Nature

(This article appears in the August, 2010 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)

Within the Advancing Green Building in Higher Education Program, a capacity-building initiative funded by The Kresge Foundation, Second Nature has been building the sustainability capacity of many under-resourced institutions for the past two years.  As Second Nature continues to work on this initiative, we thought of taking this opportunity to share with you some of the highlights and success stories of this program.

This initiative has a two-fold mission. The first one is to level the playing field and offer access to all under-resourced higher education institutions to embrace institutional sustainability.  And, another long-term mission is to assist these institutions in committing to climate neutrality by enabling them to sign and implement the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment(ACUPCC).  Second Nature is directly working with more than 50 under-resourced institutions through this initiative.

Third UNCF Building Green Learning Institute—The Journey to a Green Campus Continues

June 29, 2010

By Van Du, Advancing Green Building Intern, Second Nature

Second Nature’s Advancing Green Building in Higher Educationteam participated this month in the third and final UNCF Building Green Learning Institute. Hosted in San Antonio, Texas, from June 10-12, 2010, the institute once again brought together faculty, staff, and students from colleges and universities across the country to continue the discussion on sustainability efforts in higher education.

As with the previous institutes, this was a great forum for colleges and universities to learn from one another about the different sustainability and building green initiatives that each school is implementing.  In addition to showcasing schools and their ‘greening’ efforts, conversations and remarks at the institute underscored the importance of dedicating time and effort to this journey.  Many schools began by making a commitment to change. For example, Elizabeth City State University just recently became a signatory of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment—the first UNCF Building Green Learning Institute participant school to do so.   However, it was clear that the real challenge for many schools is the transformation from commitment to action.

Winona LaDuke - Creating a Just and Equitable Economy

May 7, 2010

Winona LaDuke spoke this afternoon at the 2nd UNCF Green Building Learning Institute about how tribal colleges and communities are working to create a equitable and just economy.  In order to build their resilience and self-reliance they are training technicians and renewable energy installers, putting up wind turbines and solar panels, and building healthy, efficient buildings.

At the same time they are fighting to protect themselves from a future destabilized by a continuation of the dirty energy economy by working to stop new coal plants that degrade the land and aquifers where the mining occurs, contribute to climate disruption, and create localized pollution problems like mercury in lakes and fish.

While she didn’t use the term, she touched on many of the core concepts ofecological economics – internalizing the true costs of our activities, recognizing the interrelationship, interdependence, and inseparability of human and natural systems, etc.

Winona may be best known as Vice Presidential candidate on the Ralph Nader ticket in the 1996 and 2000 elections, but she is along time rural development economist and advocate. Currently she serves as executive director of Honor the Earth, based in Minnesota that works to break the geographic and political isolation of Native communities and to increase financial resources for organizing and change.

2nd UNCF Green Building Learning Institute - Part I

May 7, 2010

“Let us put our minds together and see what life we will make for our children”
– Sitting Bull

The second of three Green Building Learning Institutes is being held in Minneapolis, MN with strong representation from tribal colleges in the region.

The highlight of the opening reception last night was an incredible dance performance from Larry Yazzie of Native Pride Dancers and his eleven-year-old son and three-year-old daughter.  Learning about their work of preserving these cultural traditions and passing them on to the next generation was a powerful reminder of the importance preserving a suitable habitat for humans on this planet and a global society that fosters, not destroys, a diversity of human cultures.

We also heard from Dr. Karl Reid who head Academic Programs and Strategic Initiatives for UNCF and Minneapolis City Councillor, Robert Lilligren, who talked about a host of exciting sustainability initiatives, including installing the largest green roof in the state and being recognized as the country’s number one biking city last year.

So far the event promises to be an excellent venue for networking and accelerating the great work that is being done in tribal communities and communities of color – and particularly the institutions of higher education that serve those communities – to create a healthy, just, and sustainable society.

College Planning & Management - The Green Issue

May 4, 2010

by Georges Dyer, Second Nature

The April issue of the College Planning & Management is once again focused on sustainability this year and provides a wealth of information and examples on green building and sustainable campus planning.

Topics covered include education for sustainability at UC San Diego (“Learning Green” by Rex Graham); repurposed materials for buildings at Johnson State College (“A New Use for Old Wood Bleachers” by Tonya West); and green IT at campuses across the country (“IT Is Easy Being Green” by Rhonda Morin).

Tony Cortese and I also had the opportunity to submit an article titled “The Commitment to Change” on the importance of leadership from senior administrators (in addition to all of the tremendous and necessary leadership from students, faculty, and staff) in really embedding a sustainability perspective into the culture of the institution.

HBCUs Building Green, Building Community

April 15, 2010

by Georges Dyer, Second Nature

On Thursday, April 7th, 2010, an historic event took place in Atlanta, GA – Spelman College, on their Founders Day, unveiled the first LEED certified building for new construction on an historically black college, achieving a LEED Silver rating.

Dr. Beverly Tatum (President), Art Fraiser (Director of Facilities Management), and David Freidman (US Green Building Council representative) spoke about the efficient features of the building, such as non-toxic and repurposed materials, efficient HVAC systems, a white roof (to reduce heat gain), and efficient lighting.

The Spelman ceremony (and student-guided tours of the building) also served as the kick-off for first of three Building Green Learning Institutes in 2010 developed by the UNCF Institute for Capacity Building and made possible by theKresge Foundation.

Second Nature at Thurgood Marshall's Member University Professional Institute

March 22, 2010

by Ashka Naik, Program Manager, Advancing Green Building in Higher Education, Second Nature

Earlier this month, I traveled to Nashville, TN, where I attended the Thurgood Marshall College Fund’s (TMCF)Member University Professional Institute, “2010 HBCUs* and Beyond.” Felicia Davis, Director of UNCF‘s Facilities and Infrastructure Enhancement program invited me to join her at this event.

We had a two-fold mission in attending this meeting, one part of which was to make new connections. Public HBCUs (around 50 member schools of TMCF) often remain severely under-represented in Second Nature’s programs; only 9 of these 50 institutions are ACUPCC signatories. Therefore, we wanted to seize the opportunity to engage this group of higher education institutions and share details about our activities. With the help of two enthusiastic attendees, I made the acquaintance of several interesting individuals. Renford Brevett, Director of Title III Programs at Lincoln University, introduced me to more than 20 leaders including presidents, provosts, deans, CFOs, and faculty members. Felicia Davis and I also presented at one of the panels, “Building Green at HBCUs,” during which we discussed the challenges HBCUs face while building green and how Second Nature’s capacity-building programs could help them overcome these barriers.

Fast Company Publishes Third in Series of Articles by Second Nature

March 5, 2010

by Rima Mulla, Communications Associate, Second Nature

Image courtesy of Fast Company

Second Nature President Anthony Cortese and Senior Fellow Georges Dyerdiscuss “The Campus as Living Laboratory” in their latest web article for Fast Company’s Inspired Ethonomics series. They cite examples of institutions already benefiting from having adopted sustainable practices in their operations, and point to resources developed by Second Nature to move the higher education sector in this direction. Two of the resources highlighted were the Case for Investing in Improved Energy Performance on Campus document, developed in conjunction with the Clinton Climate Initiative, and theCampusGreenBuilder.com web portal, produced by our Advancing Green Building in Higher Education team, which helps under-resourced and minority-serving institutions build green.

My Second Nature Experience

February 25, 2010

Gaby Rigaud recounts her experience as she wraps up a year of interning with Second Nature’s Advancing Green Building in Higher Education program. We’ll miss you, Gaby!

by Gaby Rigaud, Advancing Green Building Intern, Second Nature

Gaby Rigaud, Second Nature InternWe all have moments in our lives when we’re forced to adjust and make difficult decisions that we hope will change our lives for the best. One such moment for me came at the end of 2008. At that point, I had spent nearly four years working as a civil engineer at a Fortune 500 consulting firm in Boston, and I found myself at an impasse. Lacking both variety and a sense of purpose in my daily activities, feeling unsupported, I began to be unfulfilled in my professional life. My initial remedy was to go to graduate school to broaden my knowledge; I quickly found, though, that this would not be sufficient. I reevaluated the situation, asking myself the usual questions: “Where do I see myself in 5-10 years?” and “What am I passionate about?” This exercise resulted in a decision that most people who know and are close to me saw as irrational. My future was presented to me in a new light, and putting up new condo buildings and underground parking garages for the next 40 years was not part of it.

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