Most incoming college students are becoming aware of the need for environmental protection and a way to ensure the healthy and long-standing existence of the human race on Earth. They are also aware that some of the biggest surges in job opportunities will be in these areas. For this reason, college programs in sustainability and environmental protection are becoming more readily available. Here are some of the top programs in this important field.

Sustainability is one of the fastest growing degree programs in the United States today. Much of the focus in a sustainability program will be on how human beings can promote the well-being of their species and environment over the long term. Students will study the environmental, social and economic factors relating to this goal.

There are many colleges and universities offering degrees in sustainability. As long as the school is accredited, the degree should provide a thorough background in all areas necessary to begin a career in this field. There are also very interesting subsets within sustainability studies. For example, The University of New Hampshire offers a degree in EcoGastronomy, in which students study sustainable agriculture and holistic nutrition. They receive hands-on experience in kitchens, farms and laboratories in order to learn how to create and prepare food in an agriculturally sustainable way.

Source: Google Images - renewableenergyworld.com

Students at Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design can pursue majors in Green Interior Design. Here, they study how to create eco-friendly home and business interiors. They learn how to make homes more sustainable in the long-run and better for the environment in the short-run. They study LEED standards and practice redesigning buildings and making models of sustainable homes. They also work in the field, restoring historic Denver office buildings in order to make them more environmentally friendly.

Sustainable Tourism is another area of sustainability that should see a surge, as tourism is the world’s largest industry. Sustainable Tourism majors at East Carolina University will have the opportunity to study how to practice the business of tourism while preserving the environmental attributes of the vacation destination. Their studies relate to fields as wide-ranging as the arts, medicine, recreation and hospitality.

Environmental Studies is another degree that will become more popular with the advent of environmental awareness. Environmental studies is the study of human interaction with the environment and encompasses both the natural environment and the human-built environment. There are many colleges today offering environmental studies degrees.

The University of Pennsylvania has a program that allows students to earn a master’s degree in environmental studies and an MBA at the same time. This is especially relevant for students who would like to start their own sustainable or otherwise environmentally-related business. Also, Duke University offers a wide variety of environmental studies degrees, from Earth and Ocean Sciences to Master of Environmental Management in Energy and Environment.

Another great degree program for environmentally-minded students is Ecology. Ecology focuses on the scientific study of the small-scale biological relationships between organisms and their environments. One interesting school offering ecology programs is the College of the Atlantic. All enrolled students graduate with a major in Human Ecology, which is the study of the human relationship with the environment.

One thing tech-savvy students should also keep in mind is the amount of environmentally related majors that are offered today online. The Natural Resources Distance Learning Consortium aims to connect web-based learners with schools offering distance degrees in the environmental and natural resources studies. Some of the participating schools include Virginia Tech, University of Idaho, Utah State University, The University of Montana, Penn State, The University of Tennessee, Oregon State University, North Carolina State University, and Mississippi State University. Degree programs include Master of Natural Resources, Master of Geographic Information Systems, Master of Science in Resource Interpretation, Masters of Forest Biomaterials, Masters of Environmental Assessment, Masters of Science degree in Forestry, Masters of Parks, Recreation, Tourism and Sport Management, Master of Public Administration, and Master of Geospatial Information Science and Technology. And this is only a small selection of the types of degrees offered through distance education.

Mariana Ashley is a freelance writer who particularly enjoys writing about online colleges. She loves receiving reader feedback, which can be directed to mariana.ashley031@gmail.com.

With this in mind, the “New Year x(1)” practice of sustainability has been released as a very simple and painless way for each member of the world population to participate in contributing toward an increase in sustainability practices.

During the upcoming year, people can start their “New Year x(1)” practice as follows:

1. Use one less light each day, wherever it’s convenient. (reduces demand for electricity)
2. Buy one additional local product. (encourages local production to serve local communities)
3. Buy one less foreign product. (reduces supply chain CO2 emissions and demand for fossil fuels)
4. Turn the thermostat down one degree at bedtime. (reduces generation of greenhouse gases used to produce energy)
5. Buy one more product made from recycled materials. (promotes the economic engine that makes recycling a feasible business model)
6. Mow the lawn one time with a mulching mower (provides natural fertilizer for the lawn & reduces the need for so much chemical fertilizer)
7. Use one less plastic trash bag to collect the grass clippings. (reduces the requirement for more fossil fuels used in plastics manufacturing)
8. Eat one less hamburger. (reduces CO2 emissions from cow burps, the petroleum used for shipping, and the electricity used for freezing and cooking)
9. Rescue and put to use one item that’s headed for the landfill. (As Ben Franklin once said: Waste not, want not.”)
10. Devise one unique sustainable practice for yourself.  (choose from hundreds of options to spread new sustainable practices; the imagination has no limits – see Steven Sisters’ photo on natural pest control!)

A mixture of coffee and rum is placed in the bottom and then hung on the coffee tree. The bugs are attracted to the coffee smell, drink the mixture, get drunk, fall into the liquid and drown. Voila! Instant, natural pest control!

Such a list can grow exponentially for those who choose, but let’s look at the results from simple “New Year x(1)” math to measure effectiveness: 10 practices for each member of the population of this country – now counting at 308 million people – multiplies out to 3.8 billion sustainable practices in one year. Or if the world population of 6.9 billion people takes up this practice, multiplying by a factor of 10 will generate 69 billion more sustainable acts than were generated in 2010.

This is doable, quite easy to practice, and saves more than money. Cheers to the Future!

Happy New Year!

The GreenReportCard.org website and the College Sustainability Report Card are both initiatives of the Sustainable Endowments Institute. The Institute is a nonprofit organization engaged in research and education to advance sustainability in campus operations and endowment practices.

GreenReportCard.org recently released its annual list of the top 52 sustainable colleges and universities in the nation. Wilson says, “In the past, the highest overall score was an “A-”. For the first time, seven schools achieved an “A.”  While the schools with the highest grades are Brown University, Dickinson College, Oberlin College, Pomona College, University of Minnesota–Twin Cities, University of Wisconsin–Madison and Yale University, below are some additional schools to take notice. Let it be known that I am not associated with any of these schools. (To see the full list of green colleges and universities go to The 2011 College Sustainability Report Card.) I chose these schools because I felt that the schools that made A’s were quite repetitive (they made the same initiatives and reforms.) So I wanted to highlight what other schools were doing to add some variety.”

Colorado College: Colorado Springs, Colorado

Colorado College is located in an area lush with forestry and wildlife. So it’s no surprise that it wants to ensure that the state’s beauty is properly preserved. According to the report card, students recently conducted a semester-long campaign that managed to reduce energy by 12 percent and increased the waste diversion rate by more than 200 percent. In addition, aside from the campaign, students also collectively work together to educate children about environmental issues, hand out fair trade coffee, and operate a bike and car-sharing program. Colorado College’s ultimate goal is to achieve carbon neutrality within the next decade. To help implement their goal, the school has installed electric metering and steam line insulation in all of its buildings, lighting retrofits in 90 percent of buildings, and an energy management system in about 65 percent of the buildings. And to reduce waste, the college mandates that all printers are set to print double-sided. About 43 percent of the school’s food budget is spent on local products.

Arizona State University: Tempe, Arizona

ASU was not only the first public university in the U.S. to create a School for Sustainability where students can take courses such as international development, the economics of sustainability and sustainable ecosystems, but also the first school to create a housing facility where those who like to live green can unify. In general the school as a whole works together to put on programs to save the planet such as RecycleMania and the Solar Decathlon. About half of all the students do their best to use an alternative means of transportation, such as utilizing the campus shuttle or ASU’s bike-sharing program. The dining hall has been trayless since 2008 and serves some vegetarian-fed meat and hormone and antibiotic-free chicken and milk. Like most universities, ASU recycles standard materials such as paper and electronics, and donates or reuses forgotten items at move-out.

Tulane University: New Orleans, Louisiana

Since 2006, Tulane University has reduced its green house gas emissions by 3 percent. In order to continue with its mission to be a more sustainable facility, the university has not only implemented a variety of energy management systems, it has begun to install a number of low-flow faucets and showerheads, and weather-informed irrigation systems all across campus. While there is currently no building that meets LEED standards as of yet, the university has a huge construction project in Dinwiddie Hall, which is expected to meet LEED standards. As a new reform, all new incoming freshmen receive information about sustainability during orientation.

University of Minnesota

According to the report card, UMN has managed to effectively reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by installing numerous energy efficiency technologies. Some include creating a cogeneration facility, installing an energy management system and lighting retrofits. In addition, UMN generates about 3 percent of its energy from burning oat hulls for biofuel, the report card states. The university shines when it comes to its dining facilities and green practices. For example, the school ensures that it composts about 30 tons of pre- and postconsumer food waste each month; most of the food severed at the university is local and organic such as cage-free eggs, grass-fed beef, and hormone-free milk; and to encourage students to be more sustainable the school also offer discounts for students who use reusable bags, mugs, and to-go boxes.

Virginia Commonwealth University; Richmond, Virginia

Like many of the other schools that made the grade, this university spends about 16 percent of its budget on local and organic food products. Almost all of the dairy and milk products are hormone and antibiotic free; almost all of the seafood is sustainably harvested; and all of the coffee and chocolate are fair-trade. In addition, not only is the dining hall a trayless zone, the university also operates a program that reuses and recycles surplus goods such as furniture, appliances, and clothing. As far as the structure of the buildings is concerned, there are exactly 11 that meet LEED standards (covering about 14 percent of campus). The school has also made additional initiatives to be green having installed water-saving technologies that include low-pressure showers, dual-flush toilets, and waterless urinals.  According to the report card, full-time students can ride the bus for free and employees who carpool receive the best parking

Kate Willson, who writes on the topics of top online colleges.  She welcomes your comments at her email Id: katewillson2@gmail.com.

These clips come from Business Fights Poverty.

Read the post by Andy Wales, Head of Sustainable Development at SABMiller: “Could a floating brewery provide a business solution to water scarcity?”

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Almost 1 billion people on this planet live without enough water.

Buckminster Fuller, designer of the geodesic dome Source: BFI

For those still considering creating one of this world’s next great solutions, there are but 15 days left to prepare and submit applications for the 2011 Buckminster Fuller Challenge. Those standing on the sidelines should run onto the plying field; our world needs the help.

This important global event is considered by some to be one of socially responsible design’s highest awards. This premier international prize program awards $100,000 to support the development and implementation of a solution that, broadly stated, “has significant potential to solve humanity’s most pressing problems.”

According to the BFI Challenge, entering creates “an opportunity to become part of a network that is advancing and accelerating the practice of whole systems thinking and design to develop the kind of high impact global solutions we so desperately need.”

The Buckminster Fuller Institute, named after Buckminster Fuller, creator of the geodesic dome, was created to share and advance imaginative work that might lead the way to solving problems for global housing and infrastructure requirements.

15 days remain to enter the 2011 BFI Challenge. SOURCE: BFI Challenge

According to BFI’s press release, “Past entries included bold, visionary strategies, from a radical solution to urban mobility in the world’s largest cities to a strategy to dramatically increase crop yields and economic development in the grasslands and savannahs of Africa. While the entries cover a broad range of topics, the common thread among them is a highly integrated approach to design— one that is simultaneously comprehensive, anticipatory and aligned with nature’s fundamental principles. This focus on integrated design strategies is what distinguishes the Challenge from all other prize programs. “

The jury for this year’s challenge will include “systems thinkers and design pioneers across a wide spectrum of human endeavor are invited from all over the world.”

Past jury members have included Janine Benyus, Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, Helena Norberg-Hodge, John Thackara, Hazel Henderson, Danny Hillis, Alan Kay, Hunter Lovins, Bill Browning, José Zaglul, William McDonough, Adam Bly, Greg Watson and Vandana Shiva.

For those wanting to review the criteria that drive the selection of the winning solution click these links:

Challenge Criteria Video http://challenge.bfi.org/Challenge_Criteria

Challenge Criteria Webpage http://challenge.bfi.org/criteria

Mathis Wackernagel, PhD - President, Global Footprint Network Source: FootprintNetwork.org

Mathis Wackernagel of Global Footprint Network, is working with global leaders to help us understand and ultimately align our activities with the basic carrying capacity of the earth.

This 14-minute speech is very much worth seeing and sharing.

Video presented by: Sustainable Life Media:

“We may finally be on the verge of a tipping point wherein mainstream attention to identifying and mitigating a company’s carbon impact will become a core strategic priority for all businesses. But what comes next? The reality is, global warming is just one of the detrimental impacts of unchecked business activity. During this time of seismic shift in awareness of the interconnectedness of things, the opportunity is to take a longer, more systemic view of the many ways our activities impact the world around us.

“By doing so, we will begin to anticipate and respond more quickly to both the needs and the enormous world of possibility in front of us to innovate for a whole, healed world. Be inspired by this thought leader who is working with leaders around the globe to help us all understand and ultimately align our activities with the basic carrying capacity of the earth. Learn more about Sustainable Business & Design at: sustainablelifemedia.com“

Sustainability is a state of balance. We see it in nature every day but we don’t notice it until something goes haywire. Take the Dust Bowl for example. In the early 1900s, cattle ranching across the Great Plains began to be replaced by cultivation. With new efficient technologies, farmers were able to plow vast areas of virgin prairie. They didn’t realize that the grass was essential to the ecosystem. The grass and twelve inches of topsoil was a skin that held in place the soil and moisture below. Removing it was preparation for a huge disaster. Erosion began to wash the soil away and all of the nutrients with it.

Beginning in 1930, drought allowed the soil to become dry dust. Over the next few years, a series of windstorms took the dust to the skies and the US experienced an ecological and economic catastrophe. Millions of tons of soil darkened the skies of the eastern US all the way to New England. In some areas of the Great Plains, day was turned to night by the “black blizzards” that reduced visibility to inches, destroying a way of life and an ecosystem only inches in depth.

This was perhaps our first hard lesson in sustainability. The US government stepped in to promote better farming methods and work on rehabilitating the land. The big word then was not sustainability but conservation.

We experienced on a very large scale how new, powerful farming technology, and the desire for profit, tipped the scales toward imbalance, with disastrous results for economy and ecology. This lesson did sink in, but not much beyond better ways to plow. Grass was still just grass.

Sustainability exists all around us in the ecology and the economy. It is a state of balance that is ordinary and invisible. We don’t appreciate it until things big things fall apart. In the fall of 2008, the economy was in a “free fall”. We were looking for the “bottom”, another way of saying sustainability. It seems to have leveled out, but we are reminded that our man-made economy follows natural laws of balance, and we seem to have a lot to learn.

Only 80 years after the Dust Bowl, we’re pressured to think and act smarter. We are smarter, but the question is this: “Who is driving?” Unfortunately, it’s too often the corporate mind-set that values short-term profit over long-term sustainable returns, which includes profit along with quality of life benefits.  The concept of just enough is spun into anti-business.

Our economic condition is our latest lesson on sustainability. Hopefully we are gaining a larger awareness of how things are connected that will help us make better decisions. This awareness is what’s behind the interest in local food, a building block of economics that has been lost. The interest in local food drives the interest in aquaponics, a technology that grows fish and vegetables in the same system. It has the capacity to deliver a lot of food quickly in a small space.

If you consider the history of agricultural technology, it’s all been about cultivating increasing acreage with greater efficiency. Aquaponics breaks the mold and provides a solution based on concentrated yields in portable or fixed containers. It’s a scalable system that can be delivered and installed most anywhere at a very low cost.

Aquaponics is sustainable technology that doesn’t seem to have a downside. It has a lot to teach. May I suggest it is worth your time to look into it.

Mark Stoiber

“Executives today are being taught about ’social innovation’, a term that seamlessly incorporates the best of the above three terms, and reaches further – bringing along collective spirit, new thinking and economic responsibility for the ride.

“How does this work in real life? Consider:

“Ford developed a plastic shipping container used to ferry parts from one plant to the next. The shipping container eliminates the use of cardboard, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, reduces the number of shipments required, and is more ergonomic for factory workers. It is also recycled into splash shields for the F-150.

“This shipping container saves Ford 25% in shipping costs, helps people, and helps the environment.

“Another thing we need to do – show people that there is an intersection where desire and virtue meet. You can still fulfill your desire for wants beyond needs, and make the world a better place at the same time.

“Maybe Bono summed it up most succinctly, talking about his new line of products under the RED label…

“‘And that’s what Red is all about, the knowledge that desire – the desire to shop – and virtue – the wish to see the world a better place – are not always contradictory.”

“No longer optional.

“We need to make sure companies that we work with know that if they don’t start acting on sustainability initiatives now, they are going to be stuck in a losing game of catch up.

“Sustainability is on the very cusp of being mainstream and it will move forward quickly. Grab the advantage before it becomes table stakes.”

Marc Stoiber is an entrepreneur with experience building brands, and has nearly two decades of global experience in every sector from packaged goods and beverage alcohol to pharma, financial services and tech. In addition to leading Change, he is a public speaker on the subject of green brand innovation.

Earthship logo

“Long Way Home and Architects for Humanity will present world-renowned founder of Earthship Biotecture, Michael Reynolds (http://www.earthship.net/home/begin-here.html) as part of BuildBoston 2009 at the Seaport World Trade Center in Boston on Nov. 18, 2009 from 7 until 8 pm.

“Reynolds is best known for starting Eathship.net, a socially conscious construction venture that builds homes out of garbage with yearly utility bills under $100.”

Nov 16 and Dec 15 events:Nov 18 Webinar with Michael Reynolds
(venue in Boston, MA) Followed by Q/A, approximately 2 hours. Anyone in the world with an internet connection can virtually attend. You can also have people physically gather together and have a laptop with projector on site so everyone can see. $10 per person (per connection).

Dec 15 Webinar With Michael Reynolds
(venue in Melbourne, Australia) Followed by Q/A, approximately 2 hours. Anyone in the world with an internet connection can virtually attend. You can also have people physically gather together and have a laptop with projector on site so everyone can see. $10 per person (per connection).