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Stay Informed about the Cancun Climate Negotiations
The U.S. Center is hosting dozens of live, 90-minute programs, from the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP-16. Each program is centered around one of six elements necessary for an effective global response to climate change.
http://www.connectsolutions.com/cop16/ |
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P3: People, Prosperity and the Planet Student Design Competition for Sustainability
EPA's P3 - People, Prosperity, and the Planet-Program is a unique college competition for designing solutions for a sustainable future. P3 offers students quality hands-on experience that brings their classroom learning to life.
The competition has two phases. For the first phase of the competition, teams are awarded a $15,000 grant to develop their idea. They bring the design in April to the National Sustainable Design Expo in Washington DC to compete for the P3 Award and a grant of $90,000 to take their design to real world application. [Read More]
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"Biodegradable cutlery" not making the cut
Many people, including Universities have been purchasing so-called "biodegradable" forks, knives, and spoons with the intentions of reducing waste. However, many of these pieces of bioplastic-ware do not degrade quickly enough and actually hinder the overall composting process (they don't degrade at all unless they're put in a commercial composting facility BTW). There is, however, certified biodegradable cutlery that the Biodegradable Products Institute guarantees will degrade at a comparable rate to the rest of the compost. So next time you're hosting a picnic and trying to choose what disposable cutlery to purchase, make sure you use BPI certified.  |
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Greetings!
Welcome back! I hope everyone had a delicious and relaxing Thanksgiving. For me, the week back from Thanksgiving always marks the beginning of crunch time, when I can see the finish line ahead, as well as all of the hurdles in front of me. This is also the time I find myself procrastinating and finding any means available to avoid work. In the spirit of this, the Environmental Action Ex-College class, taught in part by Tina, has put together some very entertaining YouTube videos. So if you're feeling the need to be distracted for just a short while, click the links below!
Also, I'd like to highlight a job opportunity at TIE, right next door to us. Check it out in the jobs section!
Stay Green!
-Jason Header photo: 350.org recently staged the project 350 eARTh project, which consisted of a series of huge art installations across the globe. This installation, titled "Don't Ignore the Elephant in the Room: Climate Change" was implemented in India with the help of 3,000 students. To see photos of other projects, visit this link.
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Environmental Action Class goes Viral!
Tina's Environmental Action Class has been campaigning against bottled water on campus. Recently they've put together a few humorous videos explaining reasons to forgo the bottl e and drink from the tap. Check out one of the videos here and explore the rest of the videos on their YouTube channel. |
Tufts Energy and Climate Policy Research Seminar:
GHG Emissions Reductions from Power Plants in Response to Carbon Pricing With Joseph Cullen
December 6, 2010, 12:30pm-1:45pm
Tisch Library, Room 304
Joseph Cullen is the Morgan Blake Environmental Fellow: 2009-2011, at the Harvard University Center for the Environment (HUCE). He is an economist who studies the interaction between government regulation, business decisions and the environment.
Dr. Cullen's research looks at the relationship between firm behavior and environmental policy in an empirical setting. An immediate extension of his current research is to understand the long-run implications of wind power in generating capital on electricity grids using a dynamic model of investment. He also seeks to understand the implications of pollution permit banking provisions in environmental regulations on environmental outcomes in the electricity sector.
Dr. Cullen graduated with a B.A. in international studies from the University of Idaho in 2002 and completed a PhD. in economics in 2009 at the University of Arizona. For his doctoral dissertation, Dr. Cullen modeled the effect of wind power investments on outcomes in the Texas electricity grid. Using the inherent randomness of wind power production, he was able to quantify the pollution offset by wind farms over a two-year period. He also built a dynamic, structural model of power plant operation to predict how fossil fuel generators would respond to more wind power on the grid or to government regulations that would tax carbon dioxide.
Sponsored by the Tufts Department of Economics, Tufts Institute of the Environment, and Fletcher's Center for International Environment and Resource Policy.
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Preparing for the Sea: The Physiology of Anadromy and its Importance
to Atlantic Salmon Conservation with Dr. Stephen McCormick, UMass/Amherst
December 6, 2010, 4pm
Barnum 104
Coffee, tea, and cookies will be available in the Barnum Elephant Lobby before each Friday talk,
at 3:45pm. Undergraduates are encouraged to attend.
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Green Building Tour
December 12, 2010, 12:00pm-12:30pm
Mass. Audubon's Boston nature Center and Wildlife Sanctuary, Boston
Visit one of the greenest (environmentally friendly) buildings in Boston. Tour the Boston Nature Center and learn about all of the techniques and tools we use to reduce our impact on the earth. Free.
Registration not required.
For more information, contact bnc@massaudubon.org
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Previously Mentioned:
(Click the links for more information)
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Maple Syrup Brunch
December 4, 2010, 10am-4pm
The Independent, Union Square, Somerville
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Educational Opportunities |
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The Bard Center for Environmental Policy Masters in Environmental Policy or Climate Science and Policy
 Bard CEP is guided by the belief that today's young people are coming of age at an extraordinary moment in human history. By virtue of being born around 1990, their generation must shepherd humanity through this critical bottleneck: in which rapidly rising populations, all seeking a better way of life, are running up against critical resource limitations and profound environmental challenges-chief among these, the ever-thickening blanket of CO2 that is quickly heating up the planet.
Their focus is on leadership education, giving students the skills and ambition to transform businesses, NGO's and governments, to rewire the world with clean energy, and to build a just and sustainable economy. The first year curriculum is a unique, interdisciplinary mix of science, economics, policy and law. In the second year, all students participate in a 4-6 month internship, and then return to Bard to complete their Master's thesis.The exceptional faculty-student ratio and small class size ensure close attention to the individual student's career preparation and placement. |
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Across Borders: Managing Trans-Boundary Environmental Resources in the Middle East and the United States
CALL FOR APPLICATIONS
"Across Borders: Managing Trans-Boundary Environmental Resources in the Middle East and the United States" is an international exchange program for Emerging Professionals (EPs), sponsored by the US Department of State's office of Citizen Exchanges. This highly selective, 4-week study-abroad program is designed to foster a substantive understanding of how environmental, economic, social and political factors converge to influence policy and practice in the management of trans-boundary environmental resources, with a particular focus on the Middle East and United States. An interdisciplinary program of study, combined with site visits, experiential learning and skill building activities will form the basis of the institute. Participants will work together to complete interdisciplinary group projects on program themes.
Applications are invited for the "Across Borders" Summer 2011 session, which will be hosted by the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies (AIES) in Israel in partnership with Dickinson College.
Emerging Professionals, including both early career academics and practitioners and public servants in the areas of environmental studies and environmental management, policy studies, international affairs and government, as well as EPs from the military and the media, are invited to apply.
All participants selected will receive full funding for the program, including travel, housing, meals, books and materials, limited sickness and accident benefits coverage, and visa processing. This project is funded by the Fulbright-Hays Act under the aegis of the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational Affairs, Office of Citizen Exchanges.
Applications must be received by December 15, 2010. More details about the program and application are available here: http://blogs.dickinson.edu/acrossborders/
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Previously Mentioned:
(Click the links for more information)
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EPA Sustainability Grant Opportunity
Deadline: December 22, 2010
Inman Square, Cambridge (specifics TBA) |
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Solectria Renewables Webinar Series
Friday, December 3rd, 2010 at 2pm - Utility-Scale Solar
For more information, and to register for the webinars, click here. |
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U.S. Center 2010 Cancun Web series
Daily until December 10th
The U.S. Center is hosting dozens of live, 90-minute programs, from the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP-16. Each program is centered around one of six elements necessary for an effective global response to climate change: mitigation and transparency; adaptation; finance; technology; forests/REDD+; and climate science. From November 29 through December 10, programs begin daily at 10:00 and will end at 18:15 CST (GMT-6 hours). CO.NX will open an online window into U.S. technical work on climate change through interactive webcasts and webchats with leading climate change experts. For more information and links to the videos, visit this website. |
The Tufts Office of Sustainability
http://sustainability.tufts.edu/
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