Three influential figures in the world of environmental issues spoke at the University on Thursday night as part of "campus sustainability month."
Will Toor, the mayor of Boulder, Colo., director of the University of Colorado Environmental Center and a doctor of physics, spoke about successes other colleges have had in reducing their environmental impact. He said there is a myth on some campuses that the sustainability movement is a "special interest" and not an interdisciplinary problem.
Toor said the vast majority of sustainability programs are generated at the local and state levels, and within communities themselves.
"Right now there is a leadership vacuum in the federal government. They are not paying attention to sustainability issues," he said.
Toor cited global climate change, the approaching end of the "oil age" and the decline of natural ecosystems as the main reasons why sustainability is a necessary concept.
Implementing these programs not only improves quality of life, it also makes a campus more attractive, more successful as a place of learning and more financially sound, he said.
He used examples of schools that have constructed buildings to optimize energy use and save money on heating and electricity costs. Some schools have added small student fees to generate money for wind and solar power. Others have increased parking fees while rewarding faculty members who don't buy parking passes, Toor said.
The University of Colorado at Boulder, the California university system, the New Jersey university system, Lewis and Clark College and Oberlin College have all made major changes to make their operating systems more sustainable, Toor said.
Associate Professor Bob Doppelt spoke about using a "systems approach" to sustainable thinking.
Using colorful illustrations and graphs, Doppelt said too often people employ a "quick fix" mentality on sustainability issues, thinking that scattered, small efforts are solving the problem.
Doppelt said the best way to deal with these issues is to consider the connections between issues across time and space.
"Martin Luther King said, 'I have a dream.' He didn't say 'I have a strategic plan.'" he said. Doppelt said incorporating sustainability into the curriculum, research and public service is the best way the way to address the issue at the University. He is teaching a course on systems thinking next semester.
Joshua Skov, the third and final speaker, is the research director at Good Company, a local firm that consults large institutions on sustainability issues.
He said society needs to shift away from antiquated "big ideas" and toward a new way of thinking.
He said citizens need to reclaim shared areas in the world, such as natural resources, the broadcast spectrum and scientific research -- that they need to address problems when there is a clear, if unproven, threat to humanity, and that they need to recognize the benefits of healthy ecosystems.
Skov cited a study that valued ecosystem-related services at $33 trillion in 1997.
"If something is irreplaceable, maybe (a dollar amount) doesn't have much meaning," he said. The three speakers took questions.
Heidi Richterich, an environmental studies major, said she was interested in the simple methods the speakers suggested to fund sustainability programs.
"It's remarkable how you can do little things, how Lewis and Clark raised fees a little bit to create programs that help in the long term," she said.
Jon Itkin is a freelance reporter for the Daily Emerald
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