News
Listen: Stay green over the holidays
Dec. 21, 2011—by Ann Marie Deer Owens Many folks look forward to holiday traditions like decorating, shopping and entertaining this time of year. The Sustainability and Environmental Management Office (SEMO) has put together a list of 15 actions that can tweak your traditions to make them a little greener. Listen to an interview with SEMO staff to...
Power down before leaving for the holidays
Dec. 11, 2011—If you are going to be away from your office or home for an extended period of time over the holidays, remember to power down before you leave. This is a great opportunity to reduce your energy consumption and environmental impact. If permitted in your area, turn off and unplug your computer, monitor, printer, microwaves,...
Fauchet named dean at Vanderbilt School of Engineering
Dec. 8, 2011—by Jim Patterson, Vanderbilt News and Communications Philippe Fauchet (University of Rochester) Philippe Fauchet will be the new dean of the school of engineering at Vanderbilt University. Fauchet, currently chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Rochester, begins work at Vanderbilt July 1, pending approval by the Vanderbilt Board...
Buy holiday gifts from local artists at Sarratt Holiday Arts Festival
Nov. 29, 2011—by Vanderbilt News and Communications The 21st Annual Sarratt Holiday Arts Festival will open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Dec. 1-10 and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 11, at Sarratt Gallery. The festival will feature handmade items for purchase as well as festive daily events. It benefits the Vanderbilt...
WeCar vehicle sharing program comes to campus
Nov. 26, 2011—by Vanderbilt News and Communications The Office of Traffic & Parking announced the addition of a new car sharing program to Vanderbilt’s campus as of Nov. 22, 2011. In order to give faculty, staff and students more choices, WeCar, a division of Enterprise, now has five vehicles on campus. One vehicle each is located in...
Dec. 7 Green Bag Luncheon to focus utility savings at work and at home
Nov. 23, 2011—The Sustainability and Environmental Management Office (SEMO) and the American Studies Sustainability Project will sponsor the fourth installment of the Green Bag Luncheon Series on Wednesday, December 7 from noon to 1 pm in Sarratt 189. Join Dave Parker, green building consultant and LEED AP, for a presentation and discussion on easy and efficient ways...
Law professor sees progress where environmental and economic good meets
Nov. 18, 2011—by Amy Wolf [Article originally published in Vanderbilt View] Environmental law and property law expert J.B. Ruhl said he considers himself part of the “radical middle” when it comes to helping craft solutions to controversial environmental issues. “Sometimes you need to take an environmental good and pair it up with an economic good to get...
Fifteen ways to go green this holiday season
Nov. 17, 2011—by Liz Entman, Vanderbilt University News and Communications The holiday season is traditionally a time of plenty, but it can also be a time of excess. The average American household generates 25 percent more trash during the holiday season. And who has never thrown away freezer-burnt leftovers because nobody got around to eating them? Add...
Feedback wanted on proposed additional bus route from Williamson County
Nov. 17, 2011—The Nashville Metropolitan Transit Authority and Regional Transportation Authority are considering the proposed addition of a morning bus route from Williamson County to the Vanderbilt/Midtown area. The addition to Route 91X (Franklin/Brentwood Express) would travel each morning from Williamson County direct to Vanderbilt/Midtown then downtown. The return trip each evening would be from downtown to...
Engineering seniors design a bio-inspired solar cell with EPA funding
Nov. 11, 2011—[Originally published by Vanderbilt School of Engineering] A team of Vanderbilt engineering seniors has been awarded $15,000 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to design a nature inspired large-scale solar cell. The students, under the guidance of Kane Jennings, associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and Amrutur Anilkumar, professor of the practice of...
Seeking game-changing energy technologies
Nov. 11, 2011—by David Salisbury “Gentlemen, we have run out of money. It’s time to start thinking.” This quote, attributed to the New Zealand physicist Ernest Rutherford, summarizes the main point of the presentation that the director of the newest federal research agency, the Department of Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (DARPA-e), gave on campus this week. The...
Smaller footprint leads to great strides in going green
Nov. 10, 2011—By Lauren Koenig [Article originally published on InsideVandy] Vanderbilt’s plant operations have set some big shoes to fill by substantially reducing the university’s carbon footprint this past year. According to a report released by Vanderbilt’s Sustainability and Management Office, overall emissions have been reduced by 10 percent since 2008. Meanwhile, greenhouse gas emissions per square...
VSG takes a stand on sustainability
Nov. 3, 2011—by Katie Krog [Article originally featured on InsideVandy] Vanderbilt Student Government Wednesday passed a resolution to “actively support the highest level of sustainable building practices in all future building and renovation projects it (VSG) has a voice in.” The resolution, presented by VSG Environmental Affairs Committee Chair Matt Brennan, calls for a commitment to Silver...
Raiding the Medicine Cabinet
Nov. 2, 2011—by Carole Bartoo [Originally published in the Fall 2011 issue of Vanderbilt Nurse] America has a drug problem. But it’s not what you think; in fact this drug problem is probably happening in your community – even in your own home. The problem is the accumulation of prescription drugs with no good plan for disposing...
Nov. 16 Green Bag Luncheon to focus on celebrating the holidays sustainably
Nov. 2, 2011—The Sustainability and Environmental Management Office (SEMO) and the American Studies Sustainability Project will sponsor the third installment of the Green Bag Luncheon Series on Wednesday, November 16 from noon to 1 pm in Sarratt 189. Join SEMO staff for a presentation and discussion on unique and creative ways you can reduce the environmental impact...