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SUSTAINABLE SCOTS NEWSLETTER
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| Sponsored by the Macalester Sustainability Office | 26 January, 2012 |
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Hello everyone!
Welcome back to Macalester for second semester! I hope you all enjoyed break!
It is almost February now, which is Energy Awareness Month here at the Sustainability Office. We would like to encourage all students (and faculty and staff!) pay particular attention to their energy usage this coming month. Throughout this time we will be providing "Energy Tidbits" through means of the Daily Piper-- which will provide useful suggestions of ways to reduce energy consumption.
To get your brain going a bit, here are a basic hints to get started:
- "More than 25% of energy consumption in homes goes to lighting."
- People say it all the time, but turning off lights when you leave a room is a simple gesture towards energy sustainability."
- "Many electronics use energy even when turned off to keep display clocks lit and remote controls working."
- Plugging all your electronics into a power strip is an easy way to turn them all off at once when not in use! Don't have one? They are available at Ace Hardware, down the street, and at Target.
- "Around 80% of the energy used to wash clothes comes from heating the water."
- If you use warm or cold water to wash your clothes and only wash and dry full loads you will save energy, money, time and wear on your clothes!
- To be even more of an energy star (heh heh), use a drying rack! Extra plus: you will be able to dry your clothes even when you're out of quarters. These can be checked out from your hall office or bought for cheap (check out this spiffy model from IKEA: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50095091/
The Sustainability Office will also be hosting a (Low) Energy Party! Keep your eyes peeled for more information on the event!
Have a great week,
Maria Langholz
mlanghol@macalester.edu
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Macalester News and Events!
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Public Health Fellowship Information Session
Tuesday Feb 7, 2012, 12-1 PM
Olin Rice 247
Come to an info session on the Public Health Associates Program (PHAP), presented by Environmental Studies major Hannah Rivenburgh '10. PHAP is a competitive, two-year, paid fellowship for recent liberal arts graduates of any major within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Hannah works at Minnesota Department of Health in the Sexual Violence Prevention Program.
Pizza lunch will be provided.
Questions? Contact Ann Esson at esson@macalester.edu.
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Heads Up: Clean Plate Days Start Up Again!
Every Tuesday lunch time in Café Mac
Starting January 31st, next Tuesday
As we have had a long break since the last Clean Plate Day, here is a quick refresher:
Why: - Raise awareness about the food we waste each day
- Reduce the amount of waste caused by taking more food than we actually want to eat
-Give the dishwashers, who work so hard cleaning up after us, a little break
How it works:
1. Try to take only as much food as you want to eat. You can always go back for seconds, thirds, fourths and even fifths!
2. When you are finished eating, bring your plate to the dish scraping station
a. Food waste goes in the Blue Pig Trash Cans
b. Caffeine goes in the small white buckets
c. Napkins and other trash go into the Black Trash Cans
3. Give us your plate
4. Have a wonderful afternoon!
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EnviroThursdays
Olin Rice 250 at noon
February 2nd, 2012 --"Volunteering with the Peace Corps"
Moderator: Janice McInerney (Ukraine, 2002-2004)
Panelists: Randee Edmundson (Tanzania, 2007-2009), Paul Karlson (Poland, 1996-1998), Nicole Menard (Madagascar, 2000-2002), Shannon Skally (Morocco, 1996-1998)
Peace Corps Volunteers assist communities where environmental issues are in conflict with basic needs for farming and income generation. A panel of returned volunteers will share stories and images from their service and talk about the impact that Peace Corps had on their host country communities as well as themselves and their careers.
February 9, 2012
Speaker: Evangeline Heiliger
February 16, 2012 -- "Delisting of the Gray Wolf"
David Mech is a Senior Scientist with the Biological Resources Division, U.S. Geological Survey and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology, and Ecology, Evolution and Behavior at the University of Minnesota. He has studied wolves and their prey since 1958, as well as several other species of wildlife. Mech will speak about the delisting of the gray wolf (Canis lupus) in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan from the federal Endangered Species List.
For the most up-to-date descriptions of the presenters and their topics, check out the Enviro-Thursday webpage: http://www.macalester.edu/environmentalstudies/envirothursday/envirothursdayfall2011.htm
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Mac Free Swap!
Feel free to stop by the Mac Free Swap, located next to the Sustainability Office in Kagin, to check out all the awesome and FREE stuff! Also, we are always looking for donations- so if you have extra things sitting around, that someone else may find useful, feel free to drop them off!
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Conference: Water, War, and Conflict
January 28th, 2012, 1-4 PM
Kelley Board Room, William Mitchell College of Law, 875 Summit Avenue, St. Paul
Dr. Charlie Clements, Executive Director of the Carr Center for Human Rights at Harvard University, and Grahame Russell, co-Director of Rights Action, will speak about resource scarcity and discuss the current situation in Guatemala, where over 200,000 people were killed, kidnapped, and raped in the 1960-1996 genocide.
Local speakers include Thomas Haines, Carver County attorney and board member of G Project, Reverend Michael Macmillan of Edina Morningside Church, and JT Haines, president of G Project (www.gprojectfilm.org).
Admission: $10 general public, $25 for CLE credit, free to Mitchell students.
To register, or find out more about the event, head to:
http://worldwithoutgenocide.org/jan28
Sponsored by World Without Genocide, co-sponsored by the Human Rights Program and the Program in Human Rights and Health at the University of Minnesota.
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Interesting Tidbits...
Read up on this family's zero-waste lifestyle:
Why it's better to fix up an old home, than build a new one..
Check out who your favorite politicians get funding from (Local, State, and National levels)
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 Energy-related Links
Ugh, don't let these facts about energy consumption get you down... Instead, modify your behaviors!
Do household tasks while asleep?
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Internship and Grant Opportunities!
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Be the Next Eco-Star!
Have you or one of your friends done something significant to become more sustainable or eco-friendly? If so, consider this awesome opportunity to get recognized for it! Find out how to nominate yourself, or a friend, to be "America's Next Eco-Star" at: www.americasnextecostar.com
Meanwhile, don't forget the prizes! One is just for you:
- An all-expenses-paid trip to the summer 2012 Sustainable Futures Academy at the Salzburg Global Seminar in Austria
- A fellowship in the Washington, D.C., office of SmartPower
- $1,000 grant to the winning school's sustainability office, for use toward a campus sustainability project.
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Sustainability Small Project Fund
Rolling Deadline
The Sustainability Office has designated a portion of its funding to support small on-campus projects that promote sustainability through creative and innovative action. If possible, projects should encourage collaboration between faculty, staff, and students. An individual or a group can apply for up to $1,000 in funding. Applications are rolling but funding is limited. Click HERE for the application. Questions should be directed to sustainability@macalester.edu or X8138.
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NEED HELP?
Contact the Sustainability Office!
We are located in Kagin Commons, 124. Email us: sustainability@macalester.eduEmail Sustainability Manager Suzanne Savanick Hansen: shansen2@macalester.eduSend one of your student workers to the Sustainability Student Worker Network!Assign one of your students to work on sustainability issues for your department and send the Sustainability Office their contact information. We will assist with project planning and connect them with a twice-a-month sustainability network meeting. * * * * *To submit something or make a correction to the Sustainable Scots Newsletter please contact:
Maria Langholz- mlanghol@macalester.edu |
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