College Committee on Sustainability: Projects/title> <link rel="stylesheet" href="ccsstyle.css" type="text/css"> </head> <body> <div id="contents"><div id="banner"> <h2>College Committee on Sustainability: Projects</h2> <a href="index.html">home</a> | <a href="aboutus.html">about us</a> | <a href="meetings.html">meetings</a> | <span style="color: rgb(133, 164, 88);">projects</span> | <a href="resources.html">resources</a> </div> <br> The College Committee on Sustainability (CCS) has several main projects. Our work relates to finding ways to make the campus more environmentally and socially sustainable (see our <a href="aboutus.html">Mission Satement</a>). Below, descriptions of our projects are listed with contact information for the interns assigned to each project. <br> <br> <ul> <li> <a href="#Energy_ConservationRenewable_Energy"> Energy Conservation/Renewable Energy Purchasing</a> <li> <a href="#Local_Foods">Local Foods</a> <li> <a href="#Waste_Mangangement:_RecyclingComposting"> Waste Management: Recycling/Composting</a> <li> <a href="#Freshmen_Orientation">Freshmen Orientation</a> <li> <a href="#Herbicide_Use_on_Lawns">Herbicide Use on Lawns</a> <li> <a href="#SWAPR">SWAPR</a> <li> <a href="#LightBulbSwap">Vassar Light Bulb Swap</a> <li> <a href="#Talloires">The Talloires Declaration</a>  </ul> <h3><a name="Energy_ConservationRenewable_Energy"></a> Energy Conservation/Renewable Energy Purchasing</h3> As the United States and the world finds itself in the midst of an energy crisis, the CCS is ever more conscious of reducing the college's consumption of energy and increasing the percentage of non-fossil fuel produced energy we use. Currently the CCS is looking into maximizing the efficiency of the heating system on campus and to the possibility of purchasing Wind Power. Contact Purchasing Intern <a href="mailto:rokeough@vassar.edu">Ross Keogh</a> for more information.<br> <p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#">top</a></div> <h3><a name="Local_Foods"></a>Local Foods</h3> With much of the food in grocery stores these days shipped thousands of miles in fossil fuel burning trucks, and engineered for longetivity rather than taste or nutrition, buying and eating locally grown food is a way to support the people who live in your community and to enjoy higher quality food. As an institution with large buying power, Vassar has the opportunity to provide better food for its community and to set an example for others. The CCS has been working with dining directors Ken Oldehoff and Maureen King to steadily increase the amount and awareness of local foods on campus. Harvest Dinners made with fresh local foods have become regular and well received events and the Retreat, a campus dining location carries many local products. Recently Ken Oldehoff has added a campus job titled "Forager". This student makes trips to pick up food from farmers who can't otherwise deliver it. For more information contact Local Foods intern <a href="mailto:kaolla@vassar.edu">Katharine Olla</a>.<br> <p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#">top</a><br> </div> <h3><a name="Waste_Mangangement:_RecyclingComposting"></a>Waste Mangangement: Recycling/Composting</h3> At Vassar our goal is to reduce the amount of non-reusable waste produced by the college and to handle the waste we do generate in an environmentally conscious way. One approach is to increase amounts of recycled and recyclable products as well as educate the campus on how to reduce consumption of products such as paper. This also includes recycling of the usual comingled bottles, paper, etc., as well as paperboard, batteries, printer cartridges, and CFLs. It also has resulted in a burgeoning comprehensive composting program with systems running in Senior Housing, Ferry, and the DC and Retreat kitchens. Greenway Environmental Services, Campus Dining, and Buildings and Grounds' members are all part of these initiatives. Contact Recycling/Composting Intern <a href="mailto:meocana@vassar.edu"> Melissa Ocana </a> for more information.<br> <p> Here are some recent composting numbers. <center><table cellpadding=3 border=3> <tr> <td align=right> 8,025 lbs. </td> <td align=center>Feb. 9 - Mar. 11, 2006</td></tr> <tr> <td align=right> 14,262 lbs. </td> <td align=center> Apr. 11 - May 30, 2006 </td></tr> <tr> <td align=right> 11,590 lbs. </td> <td align=center> Aug. 31 - Sep. 30, 2006 </td></tr> <tr> <td align=right> 10,440 lbs. </td> <td align=center> Oct. 2 - Oct. 31, 2006 </td></tr> <tr> <td align=right> 10,780 lbs. </td> <td align=center> Nov. 1 - Nov. 30, 2006 </td></tr> <tr> <td align=right> 7,415 lbs. </td> <td align=center> Dec. 1 - Dec. 22, 2006 </td></tr> <tr> <td align=right bgcolor="#aaffaa"> 62,512 lbs. </td> <td align=center bgcolor="#aaffaa"> TOTAL </td></tr> </table></center> <p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#">top</a><br> </div> <h3><a name="Freshmen_Orientation"></a>Freshmen Orientation</h3> Headed up by the Education Intern, this project seeks to educate new Vassar students about the parts of Vassar life that contribute to environmental well being. Examples include composting in the dinning faciilites, energy and water conservation in the dorms and recycling (everything from paper to ink cartridges).  <br> <p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#">top</a><br> </div> <h3><a name="Herbicide_Use_on_Lawns"></a>Herbicide Use on Lawns</h3> In order to maintain aesthetically pleasing lawns, Vassar College uses broad leaf herbicides. Due to the dangers associated with these chemicals, the CCS, with Associate Director of B&G Jeff Horst, is looking at how to reduce and ultimately eliminate herbicide use on campus. For the 2005-2006 school year, Horst has reduced the sprayed area by 50%. Further research is going into organic turf management and the possibility of shifting the asethetic desired by the campus community. Contact <a href="mailto:redunlea@vassar.edu">Reed Dunlea</a> for more information.<br> <p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#">top</a><br> </div> <h3><a name="SWAPR"></a>SWAPR</h3> Len Angelli created SWAPR in 2001 to make use of the enormous amount of stuff thrown out by Vassar students at the end of each school year and to give back to the local community. While everybody is busy moving out after exams in May, a dedicated team of volunteers (we had more than 30 this year) help collect and organize furniture (over 50 couches!), clothing, kitchen items and whatever else comes out of students' houses under the SWAPR tents. Then local community organizations, such as Hudson River Housing, the Anderson School, several local churches and others are invited to take any items they can use. The remaining items are loaded into trailers for storage over the summer. In the fall SWAPR holds a sale for returning students in order to make enough money to cover the costs of the program. The sale is also a great way for students to get quality furniture for reasonable prices. SWAPR provides an important social and environmental service to Vassar and the Poughkeepsie community.<br> <br> SWAPR was led by Ben Van Vliet in 2005; and by Cat Foley in 2006. In 2007 it is being led by Nate Kimball. If you have questions, suggestions, or would like to volunteer please contact <a href="mailto:nakimball@vassar.edu">Nate Kimball</a>. Also, <a target="_blank" href="http://outreach.vassar.edu/swapr/">here is the official College Relations website for SWAPR</a>.<br> <p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#">top</a></div> <h3><a name="LightBulbSwap"></a>Vassar Light Bulb Swap</h3> The committee is working to replace incandescent bulbs with compact flourescent (CFL) bulbs across campus. CFLs use about one-third of the energy of incandescent bulbs and last for about seven times as long. The committee is working with Buildings and Grounds to provide CFL bulbs free of charge to students and faculty living in campus housing. So far, about two thousand bulbs have been swapped with the help of about thirty student volunteers. To swap your bulbs, stop by the Residential Operations Center or email <a href="mailto:rokeogh@vassar.edu">Ross Keogh</a>. <p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#">top</a></div> <h3><a name="Talloires"></a>The Talloires Declaration</h3> The <a href="http://www.iisd.org/educate/declarat/talloire.htm"> Talloires Declaration</a> is a ten-point action plan for incorporating sustainability and environmental literacy in teaching, research, operations and outreach at colleges and universities. The action plan is specified at a high level; thus, signing onto the Talloires Declaration, which over 300 university presidents and chancellors in over 40 countries have done, still leaves colleges and universities with a lot of individual flexibility in terms of implementing the plan. Here at Vassar, the Talloires project group consists of about 30 faculty, students and staff. We are drafting a proposal for implementing the Talloires action plan at Vassar. For more information, or to get involved, contact <a href="mailto:nakimball@vassar.edu">Nate Kimball</a>. <p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="#">top</a></div>  <hr style="width: 100%; height: 2px;"> <div style="text-align: center; font-size: small;">Vassar College Committee on Sustainability<br> 124 Raymond Ave. Box 3725<br> Poughkeepsie, NY 12604<br> sustainability@vassar.edu</div> </div> </body> </html>