Sustainability@UIC

Watch Bioneers Speakers This Weekend

2009-10-16T09:35:00.000-05:00

Bioneers is a unique annual conference that brings some of the best minds in the environmental and sustainability movement together every year. It takes place in California, so we don't expect everyone here in Chicago to make the trip! However, the organizers do their best to let people all over the world take advantage of the excellent presentations at the conference. We just got an email from Bioneers telling us about a few of the keynote presentations that will be available for viewing online live as they happen:

We know that not everyone could make it out to San Rafael or to one of our 19 Beaming Bioneers sites, so we've decided to do something unprecedented this year and bring part of the conference to you.

For the first time ever, we will be offering a live webcast for free of two of our keynote speakers on each day of the conference, this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

On Friday:
·      Sarah James will report from the Arctic on climate change and its impact on indigenous people.
·      Michael Pollan will speak on reforming our broken industrial food system and what it means to for our health.
This webcast will begin Friday, starting at 11:30 AM PST.

On Saturday:
·      Jason McLennan will talk about living buildings and the future of architecture.
·      Lily Yeh will recount her experiences with the Rwanda Healing Project.
This webcast will begin this Saturday, starting at 9:00 AM PST.

On Sunday:
·      Jerome Ringo will address the reality of green jobs in our re-made economy.
·      Annie Leonard will help us find our way beyond the Age of Stuff.
This webcast will begin this Sunday, starting at 11:30 AM PST.

In addition, on both Friday and Saturday at 4:30 PM PST, we will be webcasting a panel and workshop on sustainable social media, in partnership with InfluenceXchange.

To view these live streaming webcasts, just go to this web address:

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bioneers-conference-09

These amazing presentations will be live, so don't miss it!

What do you think about Bioneers and the Beaming Bioneers conferences? Let us know in the comments.

It's Bike to Campus Week!

2009-10-13T16:07:00.000-05:00

We're in the middle of Bike to Campus Week! It's being sponsored by the Chicago Department of Transportation, Active Transportation Alliance, and universities in Chicago.

Feel free to download a larger PDF version of the events taking place at UIC.

UI Hospital Prairie Garden Blossoms

2009-09-23T16:43:00.001-05:00

As summer turns to fall, the prairie garden planted last year blossoms. Some of the plants are three feet tall and looking good. Thanks to the Green Thumbs Taskforce organized by the Alumni Association, the plot is staying weed-free. Good news is we were the recipients of the plants used to "landscape" Park-ing day so those will be planted on campus soon.

Purple Spiderwort

Green Jobs & The Black Community

2009-08-16T15:54:00.001-05:00

In a recent speech to the National Association of Black Journalists, US EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson addresses the changing role of environmentalism in our country, and how it's everyone's responsibility to do their part.

One of my African American colleagues told me about how, every year as winter was coming, his grandmother would get up on a chair and put up plastic sheeting over the windows.

She didn’t say she was “greening her home.”

She didn’t say she was “weatherizing the house.”

She didn’t call herself an “environmentalist.”

From her perspective, she was just keeping out the cold and saving money on the oil bill.
But the issues that we label “environmentalism” were an important part of her life.

This disconnect is a significant challenge. But it’s also one of our greatest opportunities.

Read the entire speech.

IESP Summer 2009 Newsletter Now Available

2009-08-04T10:35:00.000-05:00

The Institute for Environmental Science and Policy recently published their Summer 2009 newsletter.

In it you'll find articles on:

David Wise, Ph.D., IESP's new Associate Director
UIC's new Energy Engineering Master's Program
The Sustainable Brownfields Grant recently awarded to IESP

and more. [Read]

Let's Debate Climate Policy

2009-07-23T10:36:00.000-05:00

We recently received an email from Eban Goodstein, Co-director of the National Teach-In on Global Warming Solutions, discussing the upcoming opportunities to debate potential solutions to global warming. We're posting it here - leave your thoughts and comments below!

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

This fall, a few US Senators will determine the fate of the earth. Should the Senate fail to pass global warming legislation, it will no longer be possible to hold global warming to the low end of 4 degrees F.

Not possible.

Please take a moment and pass this e-mail along to every faculty member, staff or student at a college, high-school or K-8 program who cares about climate change.

This fall, The National Teach-In on Global Warming Solutions is providing two ways to involve your class and campus in this critical debate: a bi-weekly national seminar on solutions, and a 90-minute International Teach-In (10/22) focused on “350”.

The National Climate Seminar.

On September 9^th Dr. Dallas Burtraw of Resources for the Future will launch a bi-weekly, national phone conversation featuring top climate scientists, political leaders, and policy analysts. Burtraw will provide key insights into the House and Senate legislation. In later weeks, look to hear from Dr. Steve Schneider, Bill McKibben, the Honorable Edward Markey, Hunter Lovins, Andy Revkin and others.

Hosted by the Bard Center for Environmental Policy, the half-an-hour seminars will be available live to educators, students and citizens across the country. Questions for the presenters can be submitted on-line prior to the seminar, and all conversations will be available in podcast. Click here for seminar details, or see below.

International Teach-In (October 22^nd): “90 Minutes on 350”

The seminar will keep you informed. With The 350 Teach-In, engage your whole campus or community with a compelling educational event. Why 350? The Teach-In is being held in conjunction with the International Day of Action (10/24), organized by Bill McKibben’s 350.org group. Many scientists believe that we must get below a long run target of 350 ppm CO2 concentrations if we are to stabilize the climate at a point avoiding catastrophe, and already, more than a thousand groups across the world have signed up to get the 350 message out. Through the Teach-In , your school can be a part of this movement.

The current issue of Scientific American has a feature on our open-ended teach-in’s held in 2008 and 2009! But this academic year we are recommending single, campus-wide Interdisciplinary Plenary: one half hour of roundtable presentation followed by an hour of discussion, and action. Start with a five minute introduction, followed by eight faculty, staff and students. They talk for 3 minutes each about “350” as an over-arching goal for global human society: from the perspectives of chemistry, economics, law, politics, ethics, psychology, geophysics, public health, communication, engineering, art and religion.

After the speakers, reserve an hour for discussion and action. The Teach-In will provide background documents to help presenters lead this discussion, including a report being prepared on The Economics of 350 by the E3 Network. As always with our work, this model allows organizers to reach out beyond the usual suspects, and engage the whole campus. Look for more detail on The National Teach-In web site later this summer.

The moment has come. At colleges, universities, high schools and middle schools across the nation, we must engage our students, this critical term, with the work of the future.

One thing we all must do: call our US Senators, every week. Thanks for your efforts.

Professor Eban Goodstein, Co-Director

Peregrine Sighting!

2009-07-10T11:58:00.004-05:00

Have you walked under the shadow of the University Hall building lately? If so, look up! Rosie, UIC's resident Peregrine falcon is busy with her mate taking care of their chicks. Just this morning I was greeted at the Harrison and Morgan Streets bus stop with a number of repeated shrieks (hear a peregrine at http://www.hangingrocktower.org/calls/peregrine.htm) . As I looked up toward the top of UH I saw a Peregrine soaring around the building's exterior. After focusing my eyes on the upper floors of the building, I saw Rosie take a sharp dive, maybe toward some unsuspecting prey? Peregrines are known for their abilility to knock prey birds out of the air while diving at speeds up to 220 mph. It was quite a treat from the bus stop bird blind.

How Green Are You?

2009-06-30T10:21:00.006-05:00

Do you want to figure out what impact you have on the environment? The Office of Sustainability has compiled a short list of "footprint calculators", which are all very easy to use.

Not satisfied? Do you want a more individualized measure of impact? If you're a Mac user, try Ecobot, "a free, open-source Adobe AIR app that calculates your carbon footprint by measuring the fuel, power, and paper you use."

I've been using Ecobot for a little while now, and it works quite well. Not only does Ecobot keep track of how many pages you print from your laptop, but it also tracks the wireless networks to which you connect and works with you to figure out how you got from one to the other, and calculates the carbon emissions required to make the journey.

From The Open Road at CNET News.

UIC's Annual Sustainability Report Available

2009-06-25T15:21:00.001-05:00

UIC has been a part of the Sustainability Tracking and Rating System (STARS) pilot project, coordinated by the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). UIC has used the data collected for this pilot study, along with additonal data, to produce UIC's first Annual Sustainability Report. It is available on our website in the Reports section.

STARS is

a voluntary, self‐reporting framework for recognizing and gauging relative progress toward sustainability for colleges and universities. It is designed to:
Provide a framework for understanding sustainability in all sectors of higher education.
Enable meaningful comparisons over time and across institutions using a common set of measurements developed with broad participation from the campus sustainability community.
Create incentives for continual improvement toward sustainability.
Facilitate information sharing about higher education sustainability practices and performance.
Build a stronger, more diverse campus sustainability community.

Visit the AASHE website for more detail about STARS and the overall pilot project results (PDF, 384 pages!).

Visions of the Future

2009-06-25T11:41:00.000-05:00

CMAP (Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning) has been working on a 2040 Regional Plan for Chicago.  Along with meetings and workshops throughout the region to engage the public, CMAP held a Community Design Workshop at UIC.

Recently, CMAP published renderings based on the workshop.  Take a look at the renderings:

http://www.goto2040.org/scenarios/designworkshops/uicgreektownwestloop/

As part of the public outreach for the comprehensive plan, there is an opportunity to provide comments on what you see on their website.  The Comments section is at the bottom of the main CDW page:

http://www.goto2040.org/scenarios/designworkshops/main/

Angela Larsen, a member of our Office, played a big role in bringing together everyone who participated in the workshop.  Thanks Angela!

One more thing...there will be many opportunities for you to have more of a say in how the 7-county region develops by 2040, through workshops held throughout the region this summer using scenario-building software and keypad polling for voting.  Please register for a workshop near you:

http://www.goto2040.org/getinvolved/inventworkshops/

As always, leave any questions or comments below!

Chancellor Signs Talloire's Declaration

2009-06-24T16:08:00.000-05:00

Surrounded by members of the Chancellor’s Committee on Sustainability and Energy, Chancellor Paula Allen-Meares commemorates Earth Day April 22 by signing the Talloires Declaration, the first official statement developed by university administrators committing to sustainability in higher education.
By signing this international declaration, UIC commits to implement a 10-point action plan to incorporate sustainability and environmental literacy into its teaching, research, operations and outreach.
The Talloires Declaration is the third commitment UIC has signed to demonstrate its commitment to sustainability.
UIC is an inaugural signatory of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment. The campus also signed the Illinois Sustainable University Compact.

Biodiesel From (Virgin) Vegetable Oil

2009-06-23T10:14:00.001-05:00

Editor's Note: Britt, our IEPA intern, is spending the summer examining both Biodiesel and Composting Issues at UIC. He will be reporting his progress on our blog.

Control Biodiesel Processing-
This will help with the WVO (Waste Vegetable Oil) biodiesel later in terms of comparing the final products.

Day 1- So the last two days I have been in the process of making our first control batch of virgin veggie biodiesel. It was surprisingly fun and easy. These are the ingredients I used.

1. Distilled water
2. Lye (NaOH)
3. HEET (methanol)
4. Pure Vegetable oil

I have about 3 hours into the entire process and that includes heating, mixing, and washing. Yesterday I mixed the methoxide (5 grams of NaOH/200 mL methanol) and heated the veggie oil (1 liter) to about 130 degrees. I then mixed the two liquids in a 2 liter pop bottle. This process took about an hour and a half. After 5 minutes of vigorously shaking the bottle the biodiesel was left to sit so the glycerin settled at the bottom. Below is the mixed veggie oil/methoxide.

Day 2- After settling for 24 hours, the biodiesel looked like so..

The bottom layer, where I am pointing to, is the glycerin. I then decanted the biodiesel since it is less dense and began the washing process. I heated ~300 mL of distilled water and gently poured the water into the washing tank with the biodiesel. I then SLOWLY rotated the washing tank so the water has enough movement to extract the excess catalyst and form "soap". Since the water is more dense the final product seperates like below.

After the washing was completed the soap had to be removed and we were left with biodiesel. Right now, the biodiesel is sitting in the fume hood evaporating to its final pure biodiesel state. Here is a comparison of the three stages. From right to left the fluids are 1.) Glycerin with a small layer of biodiesel, 2.) Soap from the washing process, 3.) Biodiesel ready to be evaporated or "dried".

For the record, when I started the lab smelled like chemicals, now it smells like cookies because of the heated cookie oil. The one problem I have found is that veggie oil gets on everything and it does NOT wash off because it is not soluable in water. So I think I will start washing with mineral oil.

That's all for now...

Britt

2009 National Dump the Pump Day June 18, 2009

2009-06-17T10:12:00.002-05:00

On June 18, the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA), along with
Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), Pace and Metra, will join with public
transportation systems nationwide to participate in the Fourth Annual
National Dump the Pump Day. Sponsored by the American Public
Transportation Association (APTA), the 2009 National Dump the Pump Day
encourages people to ride public transportation.

- Using public transportation saves 900,000 automobile fill-ups each day
— 4.2 billion gallons of gasoline per year.
- Switching to public transportation helps reduce individual carbon
emissions by 4,800 pounds per year.
- For every $1 invested in public transportation infrastructure, $6 is
generated in economic returns to communities.

Please invite people you know to use public transportation. Try CTA, Pace or Metra. To welcome new riders and thank our regular riders, Transit Ambassadors will be available at:

- 95th/Dan Ryan Red Line
- Rosemont Blue Line Station
- CTA Clark/Lake
- Union Station
- Route 59/Naperville-Aurora Metra Station

Join us on June 18 to take public transit and encourage everyone to join you.

Tour of Loyola Biodiesel Lab

2009-06-11T16:08:00.003-05:00

First off, hello all! My name is Britt and I am researching the potential for UIC to start processing their own waste vegetable oil into biodiesel. I found out that Loyola University is running their own biodiesel processing. What a great idea for an OS fieldtrip!

After a little under a 30 minute ride, I was impressed. It's one thing seeing biodiesel processing pictures and reading about it on the internet, but when you see them up close and personal...IMPRESSIVE! I was in awe of how orderly the entire set-up was and looked. So as promised I'll post some pictures below. Rich Anderson and Cindy Klein-Banai joined us and came out just as if not more excited than me about the biodiesel program. So far things are looking good in terms starting this program before the summer is over...I don't want to rush the program and come up empty handed but it would be nice to see an actual development from my research and a concrete solution. Anyways, here's some of the pictures I took today.

This is the tank that holds the WVO prior to processing. Before occupying the tank, the oil is filtered down to about 25 microns which is above and beyond what it really has to be for the purpose of making biodiesel. The WVO is heated to about 60 degrees celcius using the band heater attached to the 55-gallon stainless drum. To the right of the drum is the methoxide container where the lye and methanol are mixed together.

Here is the entire tank set up minus the WVO tank. From left to right we have the reaction tank where the methoxide is mixing in the the circulating WVO. The middle tank is the wash tank. The far right tank is the storage of the cleaned biodiesel. I'll explain what these all do in a little bit.

So how does this process work. EASY! Before anything is processed a sample of the 25 micron filtered WVO is taken. The WVO is titrated to see how much extra lye on top of the 3.5 grams should be added per liter of WVO to create the catalyst. Once the lye is prepared it is mixed with methanol. There should be anough methanol in the catalyst tankt o equal 20% of the WVO being used. For example, if 100 gallons of WVO is used, 20 gallons of methanol should be used. This amount is then added to the methoxide storage bin that is plumbed to the reaction tank via tubing and the "blue" pump.

Once the WVO isup to 60 degrees celsius in its storage tank,the sediments that drop down to the bottom of the bin are drained along with some water. Then it is pumped into the reactor tank. The WVO is maintained at 50 degree via a probe inserted into a t-fitting that contacts the WVO during the recirculation. See the picture below.

Once the WVO has been circulated enough the catalyst valve is opened and 80% of the methoxide to be pumped into the reaction tank still while the WVO is being circulated to completely mix the two liquids. This is the first reaction. Glycerin will begin to settle at the bottom of the tank. After about 2 hours the glycerin will be ready to empty. The WVO is then allowed to recirculated again where the other 20% of the methoxide is added. After completely mixing, the reactor is left to sit for 24 hours. The glycerin is then drained.

Once the operator is sure that all the glycerin is out of the crude biodiesel (CBD), the CBD is then pumped into the wash tank. Here tiny misters spray tap water into the tank where it will, because its dense, seep through the CBD grabbing contaminant on its way down. This process created waste water and soap. The water is left to settle and later drained. The drained water is tested and if it is basic, the biodiesel is washed again.

When the biodiesel is cleaned it is then "dryed". This is the cool part. Zach said that a water pump was connected to a piece of wood where the air comes out of the wood as "micro" bubbles which grab the contaminants left over after washing and rise to the surface where they pop and travel back down to the bottom of the container. 24 hrs later the waste water can be drained and the cleaned and ready to use biodiesel can be pumped into the storage tank and used within its 6 month shelf life!

And some random pictures:

Filter that sits in between the WVO and the reactor tanks that filters down to about 25 microns.

This is the valve system that controls what liquid is being pumped where. On the vertical tubing attached to the pump is the temperature probe and heating element.

Methanol is highly flammable and when it burns it creates a clear flame so every metal valve that methanol touches is grounded.

The final filter that filters the cleaned biodiesel to about 5 microns.

That's all for now!

The Greentree Gazette Minute Interview

2009-06-04T16:45:00.002-05:00

Cindy Klein-Banai, Associate Chancellor for Sustainability, was interviewed recently by the Greentree Gazette for its "Minute Interviews." Check it out!

Do you know the Story of Stuff?

2009-05-13T09:28:00.000-05:00

If you keep up with the front page news, you might have noticed that Annie Leonard's "Story of Stuff" was featured in the New York Times on Monday, May 11. Many of us in the OS think this is a good tool that can be used to explain the complex relationship between consumerism, waste, and climate change - sometimes good, sometimes bad.

The video is about 20 minutes long. Take a look, if you haven't seen it already. Pass it on to your friends and family, if you'd like. Of course, this video isn't without controversy - while it's being viewed in classrooms around the country, one school board banned it because it was "anticapitalism." So, what do you think, UIC? Is it one-sided? Is it spot-on?

UIC Climate Action Plan - how do you engage the public?

2009-05-11T17:01:00.004-05:00

The UIC Office of Sustainability is creating a campus Climate Action Plan. One of my jobs for the office was to get the public involved with the Climate Action Plan - my job was to "engage the public." My first question was, how do you engage the public, especially around a document as technical as a Climate Action Plan? I started to try and refine the question by doing some brainstorming sessions with my colleagues. After a couple of these sessions, I saw an idea emerge: why not ask the public how to engage the public?

Now this might seem tautological but there was a point. The point is that any Climate Action Plan requires people to change their behavior. This is a tall order - it is hard to get people to change, but people do change. The questions is, what are those motivating factors - what are the things that get people to change? So, it was around this new idea of getting people to change their behavior that I designed the public engagement event.

The event was at the Jane Addams Hull-House museum during their Re-Thinking Soup Program and the participants were asked to brainstorm around this central question and related topics (see pictures above). It was a great event and thanks to everyone who participated! There were some really good ideas that emerged that the Office of Sustainability will use in the UIC Climate Action Plan.

Who rules at UIC?

2009-05-09T16:51:00.000-05:00

Rosie, the peregrine falcon, has returned to roost on the 28th floor of UH right near the offices of the highest campus leadership. Which brings us to the question "Is it humankind or nature who rules?"

Maybe Rosie is here to remind us that we are not the owners of this planet - let's remember that Earth belongs to all of nature and we must share its resources with all living creatures.

UIC Wins Chill Out Competition!

2009-04-24T16:05:00.002-05:00

Good news everyone!

Earlier this month the National Wildlife Foundation was promoting their webcast for Chillout: Campus Solutions to Global Warming. To promote the webcast, NWF was asking everyone to register for the webcast:

The campus that registers the most people by April 5 will win a FREE CONCERT! That is HUGE and fun and awesome! The Steps are an up-and-coming band from Austin, Texas, that just had a huge premier at South by Southwest music festival. Right now the leading campus has just a handful of people registered. If you are interested in having The Steps play at your campus, get your student group, friends, coworkers, colleagues, roommates, department or anyone else from campus to register for the webcast today. The winning campus will be announced during the webcast!

If you haven't viewed the webcast already, check it out, and if you're really itching to hear the news, jump to about 31:53 in the video to hear the who won.

Actually, if you read the title of this posting you should know who won - we did! Thanks to everyone who signed up to view the webcast - let us know if you helped us win in the comments so you can get the credit you deserve! We'll be working with NWF and the Steps to organize their visit for Fall 2009.

Spring Cleaning: How to Get Rid of Your Hazardous Household Waste

2009-04-24T15:02:00.001-05:00

We're posting (and slightly editing) this message that has been circulating through some UIC email lists:City of Chicago Hazardous Waste Drop-offDo you have old or unused prescription and non-prescription medications, computers, cell phones, fax machines, scanners, keyboards, hazardous household chemicals and lead or oil-based paints, old gas cans and/or gas powered lawn mowers?  Drop them off at:Saturday, May 9, 9:00 a.m.  3:00 p.m.DeVry University, 3401 North Rockwell Ave.While at the event, you can pick up the following items to help makerecycling easier at home:

A compost bin. $35 payable by check or money order only. Available to Chicago residents only, while supplies last.
A rain barrel. $45 payable by check or money order only.
Available to Chicago residents only, while supplies last.
A FREE compact fluorescent light bulb while supplies last.
A $100 rebate towards a push or electric mower when you drop off your gas powered mower.
A FREE environmentally-friendly gas can when you trade in your old one.

For more information, view the full flier.Suburbs:  West Cook County Solid Waste AgencyHave you ever wondered where you could recycle certain materials?  From #1 plastics to yard waste and everything in between, this website will tell you where in Cook County you can recycle all types of household items.http://www.westcook.org/wccswa/recycling.aspSpring 2009 Household Hazardous Waste Collection Schedulehttp://www.westcook.org/wccswa/articleDetail.asp?objectID=979  In addition, the following long-term facilities are available for disposal of household waste.  Please phone ahead to determine availability and open hours. Naperville:

1971 Brookdale Road
Fire Station No. 4
Phone 630/420-4190

Rockford:

3333 Kishwaukee
Rock River Reclamation District
Phone 815/967-6737

City of Chicago:

1150 N. North Branch on Goose Island
Visit the City's web site at www.cityofchicago.org.

Phone:  311 or for general info:  312-744-7672

Lake County:

The Solid Waste Agency of Lake County (SWALCO) currently operates a long-term household chemical waste collection program. Information and a collection schedule can be found on the SWALCO Website, or by calling (847)336-9340.

HHW Collection schedule can also be found on the Agency's web page:www.epa.state.il.us.
For questions concerning the IEPA's one day or long-term collections, please call the Waste Reduction Unit of the IEPA at (217) 785-8604.

Old TVs:

Trying to dispose of an old TV?  Please don't put it in a trash can or leave it in your alley as the TV will end up in a landfill.  Check out this website to see where to recycle your old set.

Announcing the UIC IESP 2009 Doctoral Fellowship Competition

2009-04-18T13:55:00.000-05:00

The mission of IESP is to advance collaborative inquiry among the environmental sciences, engineering, economics, social thought, and policy among UIC’s faculty and students, transmit workable solutions for environmental problem to the public sector, and prepare the next generation
of environmental decision-makers. These guidelines set forth the procedures for applying for doctoral student fellowships within the Institute for the 2009-2010 academic year.

Background

Exciting thinking often lies at the borders of academic disciplines, including the many that have contributed to advances in environmental scholarship. For IESP fellowships, the program of study, theme of the proposed research, and methodologies to be used should be interdisciplinary. Interdisciplinary study is integrative in nature, seeking to forge new models of scholarship that build upon traditional disciplines. Interdisciplinary scholarship is a moving target; what was once considered an interdiscipline may over time evolve into a traditional discipline. For example, the integration of concepts from chemistry, microbiology, and sanitary engineering resulted in the creation of environmental engineering a mature body of knowledge today. The synthesis of concepts from various disciplines of engineering and science, economics, planning, architecture, and ethics has created the newly formed interdiscipline of industrial ecology. Many more examples exist.

Research topics within the IESP doctoral fellowship program are highly varied. Topical areas have included, but are not limited to, the following:

The development of metrics for assessing sustainability
Novel technologies for limiting waste emissions during manufacturing
Toxicology of nanoparticles
New methods for enhancing material recovery and/or recycling
Applications of total cost accounting for assessment of environmental costs
Material substitution for improved waste management
Sustainability theory
Applications of life cycle analysis
Aspects and impacts of local, regional, and global material, energy, or information flows through an economy
The role of market forces in carrying out environmental regulatory policy
Valuation of ecosystem services
The interface of social and environmental policies
Systems approaches for environmental management
New methods for energy generation that minimize waste production
Energy efficiency
Biomarkers in sediments and soils

The UIC IESP Doctoral Fellowship Program

The IESP doctoral fellowship program is open to any doctoral student at UIC whose research is related to interdisciplinary environmental scholarship. All applicants must be accepted into an existing doctoral program. Successful applicants will be appointed as Doctoral Fellows of IESP. Each
fellowship carries with it a $12,000 stipend; however, the fellowship does not cover tuition and fees.

Criteria for Selection:

Relevance of the research theme to the mission of IESP
Extent to which the research plan draws upon and synthesizes knowledge from more than one disciplinary area
Likelihood that the research will lead to new modes of environmental scholarship
Interdisciplinary nature of coursework, advising strategy, and plans for publication of results
Willingness of faculty mentors to support, both financially and intellectually, the research described

Application, Schedule, and Deadlines

Applications must be made directly by the student and must include a statement of approval by the student’s advisor. Applications must indicate a willingness to participate, by both student and advisor, in the core functions of IESP, and must credit the support of IESP in any publications that result from the research effort.

Regardless of the topical area, applicants must address how the research is congruent with the aims of the fellowship program. All applications must include UIC and/or prior college transcripts, a brief (one page) curriculum vita, and three letters of reference from UIC faculty members or others who
are familiar with the student’s record of achievement, including a letter/statement of approval from the students’ advisor. The IESP doctoral fellowship program is intended to augment other sources of student support, thus the type and anticipated amounts of such support should be explicitly stated.

Completed applications should be no more than five pages in length, excluding transcripts, letters of reference, and bibliography. Applications are due Monday, May 11, 2009 by 3PM. All application materials must be sent electronically as a single PDF file to Ms. Maggie Jameson. Fellowship awardees will be notified by July 1, 2009. Funded fellowships will be available August 16, 2009 and must be used during the 2009-2010 academic year. Questions regarding the application procedure or the administration of fellowships should be directed to Professor Thomas L. Theis, (312)
996-1081.

RecycleMania is Over!

2009-03-30T16:16:00.004-05:00

Last Saturday, the 2009 edition of RecycleMania came to an end. For the past ten weeks, 512 schools have worked hard to boost their recycling numbers and rates to record levels in order to claim the victory in a handful categories such as the "Per Capita Classic," "Waste Minimization," or "Gorilla Prize."

UIC participated in the benchmark category, and while we have not reported any results on the website, we will use the experience gained this year to come back with full force for next year's competition! We are currently working to summarize all our numbers, and hope to present the results in a few weeks. We will also be sure to provide comparisons to similiar universities, to better gauge our performance, but we have continuously throughout the competition received feedback from our vendors reporting increased recycling volumes. We are very happy and proud of you!

The competition is over, but the recycling efforts continue! We will not scale back on anything, all recycling stations will remain, including the temporary bins setup in SEO, SPHPI, and DHSP.

Keep on recycling!

Could UIC beat Harvard in Recyclemania?

2009-03-09T15:11:00.014-05:00

These were the recycling rates for some of the Ivy Leagues schools competing in Recyclemania at the beginning of March:

1st	Harvard	28.45%
2nd	Princeton	28.41%
3rd	Yale	24.01%
4th	UPenn	22.31%
5th	Brown	19.37%

While its takes some time to get UIC's recycling data from its vendors, if we used UIC's current recycling rate from last fall - 35.4% - we would be leading the Ivy League schools in this competition! I know many people on campus think that there isn't any recycling on campus but there is AND we're doing well!

Looking to buy a new printer?

2009-03-05T12:23:00.006-06:00

... why not stop by the warehouse first? This past Monday, a Hewlett-Packard Color LaserJet 4650 network printer was available! The surplus warehouse is open to any Illinois state agency (including UIC departments or units), and requestors must provide university and state ID.

While this particular piece of equipment may or may not still be available, it is not uncommon for the warehouse to have similar items in stock. For available items, procedure, or general questions, contact the warehouse directly by calling (312) 996-2877. The warehouse is located on 1515 W. 15th St., a block east of Ashland.

There is usually also a wide selection of used (but useful) surplus furniture available, click here for more information!

Transportation Information Available

2009-02-23T12:17:00.001-06:00

Information on Office of Sustainability Transportation Initiatives are now available on our website.

Please post any questions or comments regarding the new information here!