Global Institute of Sustainability News
Q & A: Everyday Sustainability
April 20, 2010
What we do each day makes a difference. A team of ASU staff members from university sustainability practices recently discussed at a Sunday luncheon how we can make our daily lives – at home and at work – more ecological.
Phosphorus, Food and Our Future
April 15, 2010
The mineral phosphorus (P) is critical to the creation of bones, teeth and DNA. “P” is also a key component of the fertilizers used to produce our food, as critical to agriculture as water. But is P, like oil, peaking? Natural and social scientists in Europe, Australia, the United States and elsewhere see growing evidence that the answer is yes. But when? That is the question.
Collaborative Workshop on Sustainable Future Wins Honor
April 14, 2010
Sustainability embodies the idea of transformative change and social-environmental stewardship. It compels us to think beyond linear projections of the past into systemically exploring and constructing alternative futures that foster the goals of intra- and inter-generational equity.
Sustainability Consortium Welcomes First Restaurant Company, Darden
April 13, 2010
Darden Restaurants has joined the Sustainability Consortium, an independent organization of diverse global participants that work collaboratively to build a scientific foundation that drives innovation to improve consumer product sustainability. The consortium is jointly administered by the University of Arkansas and Arizona State University.
Challenges and Options for Food Waste Reduction
April 13, 2010
by Bonny Bentzin, Director – University Sustainability Practices, Global Institute of Sustainability, Arizona State University (This article appears in the April, 2010 issue of The ACUPCC Implementer)
In today’s sustainability conscious world, there has been much discussion about food waste reduction options. At Arizona State University (ASU), in conjunction with our Carbon Neutrality goal, we have established a goal for Zero Waste (solid waste and water waste). Our food waste reduction strategy includes harvesting food from our landscaping, diverting food waste through appropriate donations, implementing trayless dining programs, monitoring consumption patterns and tracking orders, and the exploration of composting programs. Some of these options are proving more complex than others.
BASF First Chemical Company to be Founding Member of The Sustainability Consortium
Institute Press ReleasesMarch 18, 2010
FLORHAM PARK, NJ – BASF today announced that it is the first chemical company to become a member of The Sustainability Consortium, an independent organization of diverse global participants that work collaboratively to build a scientific foundation that drives innovation to improve consumer product sustainability. The company joins other retailers and consumer product manufacturers that have become members of the Consortium and its product “life cycle” mission, including social and environmental considerations.
ASU’s Global Institute of Sustainability Joins Phoenix Green Chamber of Commerce
Institute Press ReleasesMarch 11, 2010
PHOENIX, AZ – The Phoenix Green Chamber of Commerce (PGCC) announces today that Arizona State University’s prestigious Global Institute of Sustainability (GIOS) has joined the Chamber. The School of Sustainability is part of GIOS and also will be a participant in the Chamber.
The Green Chamber promotes sustainable business practices, including recycling, energy and water conservation, pollution prevention, and the use of energy-efficient facilities and equipment. It provides education forums on topical issues in sustainability, and business opportunities among members.
School of Sustainability Graduate Students Launch Sustainability Journal
Institute Press ReleasesMarch 11, 2010
TEMPE, Ariz. – As graduate students in the School of Sustainability at Arizona State University, Maren Mahoney and Zach Hughes had seen plenty of academic journals related to sustainability. But nowhere could they find a publication that made the complex concept of sustainability accessible to the everyday reader.
Safeway Becomes First Grocer to be Founding Member of The Sustainability Consortium
Institute Press ReleasesMarch 1, 2010
PLEASANTON, Calif. – March 1, 2010 – Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY) has become the first U.S.-based retail grocery chain and manufacturer for private label merchandise to join The Sustainability Consortium in support of the organization’s science-based work toward a more sustainable global supply chain. The company joins other retailers and consumer product manufacturers that have become members of the Consortium and its product “life cycle” mission including social and environmental considerations.
ASU Alumni Association honors Grimm and other world-changing innovators
February 18, 2010
Feb. 17, 2010/Tempe, Ariz.- The Arizona State University Alumni Association will honor faculty members and alumni involved in solving challenges with world-changing consequences.
School of Sustainability affiliated faculty member Nancy Grimm, who is principal investigator and co-director of the multi-million dollar Central Arizona–Phoenix Long-Term Ecological Research project (CAP LTER), will receive a Faculty Achievement Award for Research.
The Founders’ Day Awards Dinner is set for 7 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 24 at the Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa, 2400 E. Missouri Ave., Phoenix. The award ceremony has been a signature event for the university for decades, and it honors individuals who exemplify the spirit of the founders of the Territorial Normal School of Arizona, ASU’s predecessor institution, who received their charter from the Thirteenth Territorial Legislature on March 7, 1885.
Smithsonian Institution & ASU Form Sustainability Research & Education Partnership
February 18, 2010
The Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. has joined Arizona State University in an innovative education and science partnership aimed at sustaining a biodiverse planet. Today, Secretary Wayne Clough, head of the Smithsonian, and ASU President Michael M. Crow launched a global classroom – with one foot in Arizona’s Sonoran Desert and the other in the tropical landscapes of Panama.
Insect wranglers invade the Garden at Southwestern science EXPO
January 22, 2010
Raymond Mendez, the “original insect wrangler” who tamed 25,000 roaches, and trained moths to attack on command for the movie “Silence of the Lambs,” headlines the Southwest’s first Social Insect Science EXPO on Feb. 20 at the Desert Botanical Garden.
Designed for inquiring minds and families, the EXPO brings together some of the top scientists from Arizona State University, their favorite critters and the public. Attendees will be able to peer inside bee colonies and rub elbows-to-antennae with leaf-cutter, harvester and trap-jaw ants. Mendez, founder of Work as Play, which develops exhibits for zoos and museums, will bring his live ant and naked mole-rat colonies to share, in addition to speaking about his work in science, film and television, design and advertising.
Electronics Companies, Retailers Team to Simplify Green Electronics Purchasing for Consumers
Institute Press ReleasesJanuary 21, 2010
Best Buy, Dell, HP, Intel, Toshiba and Walmart to Establish System to Help Consumers Identify “Green” Electronics
TEMPE, Ariz.- The Sustainability Consortium, along with leaders in the manufacturing and sales of consumer electronics, today announced plans to establish a system, including social and environmental considerations, to help consumers identify “green” electronics. The Sustainability Consortium is co-administered by Arizona State University and the University of Arkansas.
Working with Best Buy, Dell, HP, Intel, Toshiba, and Walmart, the consortium will research and publish findings on the lifecycle environmental and social impacts of electronic products. These findings will be used to support efforts to identify products as sustainable or “green.” This type of information is designed to reduce consumer confusion and help standardize product claims.
“Customers tell us they want to purchase electronics that have a minimal impact on our planet. This is an effort to help them do that using a common methodology that manufacturers across the industry participate in,” said Scott O’Connell, environmental strategist, Dell. “This is about making it easy for customers to determine what’s ‘green’ and what’s not, and we’d like to have the whole industry involved.”
Sustainability Consortium clarifies goals, Walmart relationship
December 11, 2009
Sustainability Consortium co-chairs Dr. Jay S. Golden of the School of Sustainability, Barrett Honors Faculty, at Arizona State University, and Dr. Jon Johnson of the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas, were the guest speakers at a 90-minute Webcast, “Inside the Sustainability Consortium,” presented by GreenBiz.com on Dec. 2.
The Consortium is an independent group of scientists and engineers from leading academic research institutions around the world who engage with other leading researchers from the NGO, governmental and industrial sectors. The primary function is to develop the science to support the indexing of consumer products throughout all phases of the products life.
The Consortium clarified its mission and strategies in the Webcast, while debunking the misconception that it is working on a Sustainable Product Index exclusively for Walmart. While the discount retailer was a founding partner of the Consortium, the Consortium’s steering committee is made up of CPGs, NGOs, government agencies, and others interested in advocating for good business.
“Walmart understands that multiple retailer engagement is necessary if this initiative is going to work,” noted Dr. Johnson.
This information, along with a comprehensive dialogue on the types of product data to be collected and shared around sustainability were the topics of the Webcast.
Article source:
GreenerPackage.com
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Professors Awarded Public Health Law Research Grant
December 10, 2009
Timothy Lant, research director at ASU’s Decision Theater, and James G. Hodge Jr., the Lincoln Professor of Health Law and Ethics at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, have received a grant to examine the role law plays in critical public health emergencies, such as the H1N1 flu pandemic.
Research Looks at Water, Energy Impacts of Climate Change
November 30, 2009
Climate projections for the next 50 to 100 years forecast increasingly frequent severe droughts and heat waves across the American Southwest, sinking available water levels even as rising mercury drives up demand for it.
Declining water supply will affect more than just water flowing from taps and spraying from hoses and sprinklers. It will also strongly impinge on power generation, testing the capacity of sources like Hoover Dam, with its roughly 1.3 million customers in Nevada, Arizona and California, to generate adequate power with less water.
Now, Patricia Gober and David A. Sampson of the Decision Center for a Desert City at Arizona State University are teaming with David J. Sailor of Portland State University on a $65,000 grant to wade into this deep problem.
ASU Plays Key Role in Arizona’s Landing of Suntech
November 18, 2009
The sun shines bright in the Valley, but that is not the reason why China’s leading manufacturer of solar panels, Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd., decided to locate its first manufacturing plant here. It is its longstanding ties to Arizona State University that helped convince the manufacturer of the benefits of metropolitan Phoenix, said Jonathan Fink, a Foundation Professor in ASU’s School of Sustainability and the School of Earth and Space Exploration.
“These earlier steps, which date back more than a decade, represent the apolitical, technology based cultivation that universities are best suited to carry out, usually behind the scenes,” Fink said.
Suntech announced its choice of the Phoenix metropolitan area for its first U.S. plant on Nov. 15 and cited several reasons, including the research strengths of ASU, Arizona’s statewide renewable energy policies and the favorable local business climate fostered by groups like the Greater Phoenix Economic Council. While Suntech will provide a modest initial commitment of about 75 new jobs and a facility of about 100,000 sq feet of space, it is the fact that they chose the Valley that has many people excited.
Renowned Global Climate Change Expert to Lead ASU Law and Sustainability Initiative
Institute Press ReleasesNovember 13, 2009
Daniel M. Bodansky, a preeminent authority in international climate change law, has been appointed the Lincoln Professor of Law, Ethics, and Sustainability at Arizona State University, according to Paul Schiff Berman, Dean of the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law.
Bodansky also has been named an Affiliated Faculty member in both the College of Law’s Center for Law and Global Affairs, and in the Global Institute of Sustainability’s School of Sustainability at ASU. His appointment is effective Aug. 1, 2010.
“The hiring of Dan Bodansky is a tremendously positive step for advancing ASU,” said ASU President Michael Crow. “On the law and sustainability front, Dan will bring us global thinking at the highest level. This is a great day for ASU.”
New H1N1 Survey Reveals Arizonans’ Flu Season Plans
November 9, 2009
TEMPE, Ariz. (Nov. 9, 2009) — Arizonans are gearing up for more H1N1 activity this flu season, and a new survey reveals how much they really know about the virus and how they’re preparing for its spread.
The new survey of more than 700 Arizona households was designed and analyzed by faculty and students from the School of Health Management and Policy at the W. P. Carey School of Business, the Decision Theater at the Global Institute of Sustainability, and the School of Public Affairs at Arizona State University. The study was sponsored by the Arizona Department of Health Services and was conducted during the month of October. The results will be used by public information officials from various hospitals, public health agencies and related organizations to determine how to best communicate to the public about H1N1 influenza.
> Read more see “New H1N1 Survey Reveals Arizonans’ Flu Season Plans”
ASU Polytechnic gets Gold LEED Rating
October 28, 2009
Arizona State University received a gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership and Energy and Environmental Design program for the academic complex at its Polytechnic campus.