Educating for the Future: Sustainability and Higher Education

Madren Continuing Education/Conference Center


Clemson, S.C.
Conference Summary

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SUI Home / Main Conferences Page / Introduction & Agenda

Alan Elzerman, Chair, Department of Environmental Engineering and Science, Clemson University and Sustainable Universities Initiative Executive Committee member opened the meeting, noting that "our objective is to introduce the project to you, to stimulate you to think and to learn, and to get you to be active--to interact with each other, because this is a multidisciplinary project, as well as a multi-institutional project."  "We're not here to push some credo...but to get people to ask the right questions and to do the appropriate things to ensure that we--and our students--are prepared for the future."

Alan Elzerman, Chair                              Environmental Engr. & Science                              Clemson University

"The world at the close of the 20th century is a  fundamentally different world from the one in which the current scientific enterprise has developed.  The challenges for society are formidable...Business as usual will not suffice."  Jane Lubchenco, President, American Association for the Advancement of Science

"We're glad you're here and we hope you're ready to work, because this  is a  workshop and not just a conference.  It's time for your input, your ideas, your action."

SETTING THE STAGE




Tony Cortese, CEO, Second Nature, described the need for dramatic new efforts focused on sustainability, and outlined the role higher education can play: "In 1992, the nations of the world came together in an unprecedented fashion to establish Agenda 21...an agenda for the 21st century to move us toward sustainability.  Yet 5 years later, every one of our living systems is in worse condition than it was in 1992.  As they say in Apollo 13 ‘Houston, we have a problem.'  We need a paradigm shift if we are going to reach a sustainable future."

Tony Cortese, CEO        Second Nature


 

"Environment isn't a "competing interest."  Environment is the playing field on which all other interests intersect."  Peter Dunn, quoted by Tony Cortese

"Now, where does higher education come in?  Higher ed can play a critical role.  Why?  Because institutions of higher education train all the professionals, all the leaders.  They've been given a charter by society...to try to help improve the world.  I believe that they have the moral responsibility to increase the awareness, knowledge, skills and values through education, research, policy development and community service, to lead us to a sustainable future.  Unfortunately, higher education has been one of the overlooked leverage points on the way to sustainability....and we're not taking the lead."  "The big issue is, can the universities change fast enough and strongly enough to deal with the unprecedented scope and speed of the challenges that lie ahead?  I believe we can.  I think there's a tremendous opportunity for leadership on the part of higher education.  I think there's a tremendous opportunity for leadership for you here in South Carolina because of the strong connection that the universities have always had with the communities and the economy in South Carolina.  I pledge the help of Second Nature and  the other organizations with which we are affiliated to aid in anyway we can."  THE CHALLENGE   -   KEYNOTE ADDRESS In his keynote speech, Ray Anderson describes the evolution of his own thinking, his realization that the planet is in crisis, that the first industrial revolution "was a mistake."   He noted that the cost of products does not adequately pay the true cost of production, and that tax laws favor those activities which harm the earth, while failing to discourage those which are beneficial..

 

In order to "lead us away from the edge of the abyss", we need to "begin to reinvent this whole civilization."  Noting that at Interface "we believe we know the direction of up" he described seven areas in which his company is changing the way it does business. One of these, "driving out waste," has already saved $50 million.  "We're trying to create the prototypic characteristics of a company for the next industrial revolution... It's a start."

UNIVERSITY PRESIDENTS RESPOND

As the participants reconvened after lunch, a brief video describing the Sustainable Universities project was shown, followed by remarksfrom the presidents of each research university.


 

"Clemson, USC, MUSC...the state's research universities...have collaborated on several projects in the past, but I sincerely believe this is the most important project that we will ever participate in and I look forward to working with the other universities."    James B. Edwards, President Medical University of South Carolina

"We have a lot of discussions in our university about what we should teach...Not information, but what habits of the mind, what skills in thinking do we need...in order solve problems and worry about the nature of the world to come.  That is the challenge before us."    John Palms, President University of South Carolina


 

Dr. Steffen Rogers, Provost of Clemson University, alluded to  the Worldwatch Institute's 1990 report giving the world 40 years to "reach sustainabililty" and quoted Bruce Wallace from Virginia Polytechnic Institute who reminds us that ‘the man or woman who will be president in the year 2030 is in our classes right now."  Dr. Rogers urged participants "to examine our role in preparing those individuals and in fact all of society, for the future."

Steffen Rogers, Provost                   Clemson University

WHAT WILL THE PRIVATE SECTOR EXPECT OF US?

A panel of private sector representatives presented their views on the role universities can and should play, the needs of the job market, sustainable agriculture, and environmental entrepreneurship.   Panelists included John Knott, CEO of Dewees Island, (SC) one of the nation's premier "sustainable communities" and the only one located on a barrier island; Gary Weinreich, of BMW, Greer, SC; Karl Domas, Carolina Flax Inc.; and George Fletcher, CEO of The Fletcher Group of companies, headquartered in Greenville, SC.

"You need to be about changing the culture of the university at every single level, in every single place.  If you're not about that, you're not about a sustainable university project."  "What I'd like to challenge you to do is to think about the university as a living laboratory.....examine the core of your systems...bring your professors, administrators, and maintenance personnel  all together...you will reach a level of excellence unmatched anywhere in this country."  "You not only have a responsibility to the students, but to the whole state."

John Knott, Dewees Island

Gary Weinreich, BMW

"We need people for tasks that grow.  We need to look at where the organization is going to be and hire folks that can fulfill those needs.  They have to be flexible.....  "We don't need more associates in the environmental department...we're not growing there.  We growing in the number of associates throughout the plant that are environmentally literate."


 

"Wayne Gretsky says you have to skate to where you think the puck is going to be."  Gary Weinreich, BMW

"Flax is an interesting case.  It's been grown and used for 6000 years or so,without change...mainly for linen.  When linen is produced from flax, fiber represents about 30% of the material, seeds make up a very small percentage, and woody material makes up the rest. The seed is used for linseed oil, in paints, and now for some health food applications.  The shives, as the woody material is called,  are mixed with wood and used to produce fiber board.  The processing machinery is constructed so that dust is captured, pressed into briquets, and used as fuel.  So what happens with flax is that all of the material is utilized.  There is no waste at all."

Karl Domas, Carolina Flax


 

"It's an incredibly exciting time.  I know it's tough for a lot of graduates to find jobs (in this area) because they narrow their focus to those jobs that are environmental, but as Gary Weinreich said, any job is environmentally related.  You have to get the job in order to see what kind of opportunities are out there that you can extract and build into an environmental business.  I sort of wish I could do it all over again."

George Fletcher, The Fletcher Group

"It will be the entrepreneurs who will lead the effort to incorporate sustainability into business practices.  George Fletcher, The Fletcher Group


 

During the question and answer period, a participant asked what the panelists look for in an employee.  John Knott:  "Energy level...think out of the box..pretty wholistic background, strong on liberal arts, skills of adaptability, problem solving, analytical thinking.  If you have those skills, I can teach you my business.  Gary Weinrich answered the same question:  "motivation, wise use of electives, case studies, combination of skills and motivation."  John Knott:  "The problem is what I call a vertical system...engineers have their own language, biologists have their own language, economists have THEIR own language....it's like if you tried to run a company with someone from Spain, someone from Kuwait, someone from Nebraska, someone from Japan...they wouldn't know each others' language, each others' customs.  I can't run a business that way, but I get too many students and professionals who think and work like that."   LESSONS LEARNED Kurt Teichert from Brown University and Carol Foley from Georgia Tech shared their experiences.


 
 

Teichert works primarily with student teams functioning as environmental or business consultants to "clients" within the university.  Students solve operational problems for the university, learning practical skills in the process. "In the case of particular retrofit measures, it does take an investment.  In our case, its typically the facilities maintenance department that pays it out of operating funds as an investment in reduction of future operating funds.  In the case of integrated engineering design of buildings, if you have the right design team...save off the first cost of the building, then there's all the other savings."

Kurt Teichert, Brown is Green              Brown University


 

Brown Is Green Initiative Top-level recognition, initial committee Facilitate communication between academics and administration Develop strategies to reduce environmental impacts of university operations Exchange information with other institutions                    Carol Foley                 Director, Center for Sustainable Development                 Georgia Institute of Technology Carol Foley, Director of Georgia Tech's Center for Sustainable Development, described the 8 year process necessary to bring the school to its current level of interest in sustainability, and counseled 3 P's:  Patience, Perseverence, and Passion.  "It is important to bring fuzzy concept of sustainability into reality...vagueness can be the kiss of death ...you have to bring it into their world and make it real."   Break out Sessions OPERATIONS: GOVERNMENT ASSISTANCE & BETTER PRODUCTS Those interested in facilities operation joined Charlotte Pitt of DHEC's Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling and Tricia Tangney of the State Energy Office in a discussion of financial and other types of assistance available to facility managers.    Ms. Pitt reminded participants that waste is not just an environmental problem, but a cost to the institution.  She also pointed out sections of the Solid Waste Management Act which not only require recycling, but also mandate efforts to control waste through purchasing.  State agencies, including universities, are allowed to pay up to 7% more than the low bid in order to obtain recycled products.  Ms. Pitt described university grants of up to $15,000 to promote solid waste reduction and recycling.  Additional information is available at www.state.sc.us/dhec.  Charlotte Pitt, DHEC Office of Solid Waste                                Reduction and Recycling                      Tricia Tangney, State Energy Office                    Division of Regional Development Ms. Tangney described the state's new building code which  favors renewable energy projects and requires reporting on energy consumption for all buildings.  She described various forms of financial assistance available through her office, and provided her web address for those interested in more information, assistance with energy accounting software, etc.  (www.state.sc.us/energy)    Steve Hoffman, of Milliken's Millicare ® Environmental Services gave one example of the types of environmentally sensitive products that are becoming increasingly  available in response to purchasers' concerns.  He urged participants to consider partnerships, and to use their collective purchasing power to encourage the introduction of more environmentally benign products.                Steve Hoffmann, Market Manager               Millicare ® Environmental Services

 

Those interested in trends in research funding heard from Dr. Judith Bostock, Assistant Manager for Science, Technology and Business Development at the Department of Energy Savannah River Operations Office.  Dr. Gary Tabor, Executive Director of the Center for Conservation Medicine at Tufts University and a consultant to several foundations, spoke on the same topic from the perspective of private foundations.  Both offered encouragement for multi-disciplinary work such as that contemplated by the Sustainable Universities Initiative.  INCORPORATING SUSTAINABILITY IN THE CLASSROOM

 

Jeff Arpan, Director                       Masters in International Business Program                      USC School of Business

Jeff Arpan moderated and participated in  a panel of faculty members who are already including principles of sustainability in their courses.  In addition to Dr. Arpan, Director of USC's Masters in International Business Program, panelists included Brenda VanderMey, of Clemson's Department of Sociology, Gisela Bosch, of the University of Florida, and David Taylor,  Converse College English Department.  Rick Bunch, of the World Resources Institute's BELL program, provided information on recent studies related to incorporation of sustainability into national business curricula.

 

Steps to "green" the international business curriculum:  half day overview half day symposium with business leaders full day field trip to two industries group research project

 

"We decided to use the infusion method, to take an existing course...business ethics and leadership...and add environmental considerations to it.  We were working toward three sequential goals:  increased awareness that business has an effect on the environment; increased understanding of the nature of the impact; and competency, leading to action."   "It's about competition.  It's about opportunity...too often, we think about environmental considerations as market destroyers, but that's not entirely true."

Rick Bunch, World Resources Inst.                BELL Program

 

Gisella Bosch             Center for Construction and Environment             University of Florida

Gisella Bosch described efforts to "green"  the University of Florida, which now has a "greening UF Council."  Interested individuals can track new developments through the Council's website (see Links section on the Sustainable University Initiative Home Page.)  The School of Building Construction in the College of Architecture has been especially active, but Gisella noted that "we are trying to stimulate action in every other college."

 

Things every professor in the School of Building Construction should know:  ASTM is producing Green Building Standards The US Green Building Council is the major US force in greening the build environment New Urbanism and Sustainable Architecture are rapidly increasing in influence Healthy interior environments are critical LEED:  US Green Building Rating System Waste = Inefficiency = Lost$ Center website:  www.bcn.ufl.edu/sustainable

 

Brenda VanderMey combines sociology with service learning and horticulture to teach many life lessons.  She is also the coordinator of  Landscapes for Learning, a multi-faceted entity that promotes environmental education and stewardship, strengthens communities and provides service learning opportunities through the creation and celebration of learning landscapes.  "I cannot teach environmental stewardship. Teaching in the classroom is nothing but preaching.  The best way we can get at this is to find mechanisms for students to engage in stewardship and instill it in others."

Brenda VanderMey                    Clemson University Dept. of Sociology

 

David Taylor                     Converse College English Dept.

"Regardless of what course I'm teaching, I ask students to help me conserve resources and be conscious of our behaviors.  I ask that they recycle and use email for handouts and syllabi as often as possible."   Dr. Taylor described "writing across the curriculum" as a mechanism for integrating disciplines.  "English profs stay in their towers, other disciplines stay in their towers, and we don't feel comfortable with each other's material."  One way of dealing with the problem is to team teach; Dr. Taylor described his efforts to involve a microbiologist in his writing courses as a way to integrate disciplines and spark creative efforts.

"(Through writing across the curriculum) students realize that the environment isn't just something you walk by, but something to interact with and interact with in different ways-- through poetry, creative writing, science, art."  Describing his course "Writing in Place: Widening Circles of Community" Dr. Taylor noted that "students, through writing stories and essays about where they are, learned to care about it

 

"Our students don't think of where we are as where they live." David Taylor, Converse College

 

Bad weather  prevented our scheduled closing speaker, Walter Bickford of Malden Mills, from leaving Massachusetts.  John Warren graciously agreed to abbreviate his planned presentation to the operations breakout session and to deliver the closing luncheon address instead.  The result was entertaining and inspirational.  Mr. Warren's slides can be viewed at his web site: http://www.p2.pnl.gov:2080/DFE/warren.html  "I think teaching is a powerful profession. ....be exciting...otherwise, don't teach; do research."

John Warren                     Pacific Northwest Labs

 

"People in the environmental community tend to have wussie goals.  ‘Let's see if we can reduce our emissions by 50%.'   What if Dean Smith (NC basketball coach) said ‘Let's go out and win half our games.'  Do you think we'd think of him the same way we do now?  Of course not!  Don't settle for wussie goals.  Develop compelling goals that capture the imagination.  Don't do your project like it's 1985...it's 1998...2000!"

 

"Some time you're going to meet someone, see, hear, read or experience something that changes your life.  That's what your project is all about.  Remember that a lot of people are going to be affected by what you do."

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