Environmental Council
Minutes of March 30, 2005
Old Chapel 206
Attending: Nan Jenks-Jay (Chair), Connie Leach Bisson (Vice Chair), Anne Knowles, Jeff Munroe, Brenda Ellis, Diane Munroe, Sara Dewey, Kelly Blynn, David Wright, Olivia Katz, Sharai Lewis-Gruss
Missing: Steve Trombulak, Charlotte Tate, Makely Lyon, Dalal Al-Abdulrazzak, Louis Paolella, John Reed, Whitney Creed, Clare O'Reilly
The Environmental Council meeting was called to order at4:45.
- Announcements
The NOLS Biobus will be on campus on Thursday, April 14th. It was noted that this is the same day as Project Biobus' colloquium presentation. The visit by NOLS is being sponsored by Middlebury Mountain Club.
James Howard Kunstler, author of The Geography to Nowhere and upcoming book release in May The Long Emergency: Surviving the End of the Oil Age, Climate Change, and Other Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-first Century will be speaking on campus on Wednesday, April 6th at 7:30 in Dana, sponsored by the Architecture Table.
- Minutes ofMarch 14, 2005
The minutes of March 14, 2005 were approved as submitted.
- Wise Energy Use
Connie shared that several students and recently a staff member have contacted her, concerned about lights and computers left on in empty classrooms and offices. She asked if the Environmental Council would like to create something to remind the college community about the importance of being mindful about energy use.
A question was asked about computers in the labs being left on all night – is there another way to achieve the maintenance work that has to be done without having the computer on all night.
Suggestions for the education piece included:
create an e-mail with bullets of the top ten energy saving tips,
use humor,
Craft so it is not accusatory, and
put something in Middpoints and the Campus rather than sending an e-mail.
These ideas led to possibly creating an Energy Saver of the Month. One example shared was staging a photo with a staff member or student turning off a light that could be accompanied by the caption "Caught turning their light off before heading out to lunch" – followed by statistics of college electricity use. Connie will draft something based on the ideas generated in this discussion.
- List of 5
Earlier in the year, EC members has submitted five environmentally-related things they would like to see in place on campus by 2012. Time was spent looking at the cumulative list, discussing certain items, suggesting possible categories for grouping these ideas, and confirming with those participating on task forces which of these ideas were already under consideration.
Some things to note from this discussion:
* Transportation related to emissions is not being addressed by the Pedestrian Campus subgroup as a recommendation to the Task Force on Campus Facilities and the Environment
* EC should discuss the importance of Orientation with President Liebowitz
* ES could increase opportunities for building a sense of community and support for those newly entering the major (or minor)—such as a monthly lunch, a physical space, regular hikes, visible place for showcasing environmental projects
* It would be helpful if some CSO scholarships could have an environmental focus
* Develop opportunities for more technically-oriented workshops to complement the liberal arts education (e.g. how to do a greenhouse gas emissions inventory, how to modify an engine for using biodiesel, planting a green roof, how to become a good manager
Jeff suggested that possibly endowments for internships could be coupled with the Environmental Center. Nan explained that currently the fundraising priorities do not include internships – the focus needs to be on budget replacement.
Will there be an opportunity for students to be involved in the Environmental Center design? Nan noted that a Pre-Architecture/ES joint major (Green Arches) had just been approved based on a recommendation from Devin Green. Nan shared that a new cost estimate was necessary for renovation to Hillcrest as the future Environmental Center because building costs are rapidly rising. When the project is approved by the Trustees, Nan would welcome student involvement and also mentioned that Susan Personette, the new Director of Facilities Planning will be another person with whom to discuss such opportunities.
- Other business
Diane asked about whether we would be bringing up the Porter Hospital Retirement Housing project with Ron. Nan shared that she felt the Lands Subcommittee is not the right forum for that discussion since it has been inactive this year. Nan does plan to discuss this project with President Liebowitz and Treasurer Bob Huth. David Wright asked if there could be some kind of statement from Environmental Council supporting the use of the Guiding Principles. Nan agreed that given that the College is providing a 99 year lease, this would be appropriate. It was determined that a letter should be drafted and circulated to EC members, then sent to President Liebowitz in advance of the April 13th meeting.
- Meeting with President Liebowitz
President Liebowitz will be joining the Environmental Council for the first forty-five minutes of its regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, April 13 in Old Chapel 206 beginning at 4:30.
The tentative agenda includes a discussion of Environmental Grants, Orientations, Internships, and a draft letter recommending that the Guiding Principles used by the College be incorporated into the conditions of the lease for the proposed Retirement Community adjacent to Porter Hospital.