The title of this post might suggest I am going to write about General Lee, Bo and Luke today. But the crazy cooter I am actually writing about are turtles. Specifically, the northern red-bellied cooter. The northern red-bellied cooter is a turtle listed on the federal threatened species list and on the state endangered species list. The species once had a range along the east coast but now is confined to some ponds in Plymouth County, Massachusetts. Habitat loss from residential construction has been one of the major causes of the decline of this species. Herbicide that has runoff into the water has also been cited as an issue for this species.
The Massachusetts Heritage and Endangered Species Program has a novel program to help bring back populations of the northern red-bellied cooter. I saw this program in action this weekend when I went to the Green Briar Nature Center in Sandwich, MA. They run a program called Headstart and it is intended to give baby cooters a fighting chance to survive. Under this program, nature centers and schools volunteer to raise cooters from hatchling size starting in September and then release the developed turtles in the spring into natural habitats. Hatchlings start at the size of a quarter but soon grow so quickly they can consume a head of lettuce a day. Hatchlings are easy prey for predators such as skunks and raccoons and the probability of survival in nature is small. The Headstart program helps hatchlings grow in a safe environment and then releases them once they are large enough to avoid being easy prey.
I found this to be a tremendous idea and a great learning opportunity. As we are remodeling the environmental studies classroom for the new Environmental Studies Major, I thought raising an endangered turtle would be a much better addition to our classroom than raising tropical fish. Yesterday, I called the state coordinator of the program to ask if Lasell could participate in the program. I am anxious to hear his reply.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Sluggish Mornings
On Sunday morning we shifted into Daylight Savings Time. On Monday morning, we observed sluggish Lasell students trying to make it to their class. While the end of Daylight Savings Time is celebrated like a holiday by college students across the country, the spring forward event is greeted with resentment.
Daylight Savings Time is often cited as a policy to save energy. However, the data supporting this theory is inconclusive. It is interesting to learn why Daylight Savings Time was first proposed by William Willett in London. Willett's motivation was not to minimize candle use or increase retail sales. Rather, he was a golfer and annoyed that his afternoon round was cut short at dusk. This really gets students going when they discover they lose an hour of sleep because a guy wanted to play more golf.
But I am with Willett on this one. Living on the east side of a time zone and in the midlatitudes means the sunlight available in the early evening is limited. Compare Massachussetts to western Michigan. While the sun may set here at 8, a city in Michigan will get almost an hour more of evening because they are on the western side of the time zone. Similarly, we can compare Massachusetts to Florida in early April. Florida has much longer evenings of light during this time.
Personally, I love the adjustment of our time. It provides more opportunities to get outside. I can go for a walk safely after work. I can go running, ride my bike and even play golf. It definitely benefits Americans living in the northern parts of our country and on the eastern parts of time zones. Let's keep springing that clock forward and encourage Americans to get outdoors, exercise, and enjoy nature!
Daylight Savings Time is often cited as a policy to save energy. However, the data supporting this theory is inconclusive. It is interesting to learn why Daylight Savings Time was first proposed by William Willett in London. Willett's motivation was not to minimize candle use or increase retail sales. Rather, he was a golfer and annoyed that his afternoon round was cut short at dusk. This really gets students going when they discover they lose an hour of sleep because a guy wanted to play more golf.
But I am with Willett on this one. Living on the east side of a time zone and in the midlatitudes means the sunlight available in the early evening is limited. Compare Massachussetts to western Michigan. While the sun may set here at 8, a city in Michigan will get almost an hour more of evening because they are on the western side of the time zone. Similarly, we can compare Massachusetts to Florida in early April. Florida has much longer evenings of light during this time.
Personally, I love the adjustment of our time. It provides more opportunities to get outside. I can go for a walk safely after work. I can go running, ride my bike and even play golf. It definitely benefits Americans living in the northern parts of our country and on the eastern parts of time zones. Let's keep springing that clock forward and encourage Americans to get outdoors, exercise, and enjoy nature!
Monday, March 10, 2008
MBTA to Lasell
I took the bus to Lasell today. I bundled up my 8 month old son in the Babybjorn and we headed out for our commute. We started in Harvard Square in Cambridge. From the Harvard Square T stop we took the red line into Downtown Crossing. It was actually very pleasant. First, a woman gave me a seat as she saw I had my hands full with the baby. Maybe there is hope for humanity! I also saw a friend so I had the chance to catch up her until she hopped off at Park Street. At Downtown Crossing, we went to the street level and waited for the 505 Express Bus. The 505 is great and definitely underutilized by Lasell students. It stops right on Commonwealth Avenue outside of campus and goes straight downtown. Whereas the green line will take 40 minutes or more to get downtown plus the walk to the station, the 505 gets you there in about 10. Unfortunately, the bus was a little behind schedule today so we had to wait a bit in the cold for the bus. Even with the delay, the trip took about an hour and cost me $4.00.
This commute really is eco-friendly thing for me to do. But it is really hard to justify when all the costs and benefits are analyzed. To get to Lasell and home on the bus costs me $8.00 per day. Currently, Lasell does not have a program to reimburse public transportation costs. The Green Campus Task Force and the Human Resources Office are working on addressing that problem. Besides the cost, it takes about an hour door to door on taking public transportation compared to about 20 minutes by car. I take the Mass Pike when I drive so there is a $1.00 toll each direction and then the cost of gas and wear on my vehicle (figure about $0.40 per mile so $6.40). Lasell offers free parking to faculty and staff so no cost there. Add in the tolls and driving costs me about $8.40 compared to $8.00 on the bus but driving saves me an hour and twenty minutes of time.
The big question really is if my time is worth the 10 pounds of CO2 my vehicle emits commuting to Lasell each day? I'm beginning to realize the answer may actually be that I need to carpool. I just discovered that another professor lives about 5 blocks away. If she doesn't mind riding with a crazy little boy, that might be my green solution.
This commute really is eco-friendly thing for me to do. But it is really hard to justify when all the costs and benefits are analyzed. To get to Lasell and home on the bus costs me $8.00 per day. Currently, Lasell does not have a program to reimburse public transportation costs. The Green Campus Task Force and the Human Resources Office are working on addressing that problem. Besides the cost, it takes about an hour door to door on taking public transportation compared to about 20 minutes by car. I take the Mass Pike when I drive so there is a $1.00 toll each direction and then the cost of gas and wear on my vehicle (figure about $0.40 per mile so $6.40). Lasell offers free parking to faculty and staff so no cost there. Add in the tolls and driving costs me about $8.40 compared to $8.00 on the bus but driving saves me an hour and twenty minutes of time.
The big question really is if my time is worth the 10 pounds of CO2 my vehicle emits commuting to Lasell each day? I'm beginning to realize the answer may actually be that I need to carpool. I just discovered that another professor lives about 5 blocks away. If she doesn't mind riding with a crazy little boy, that might be my green solution.
Friday, March 7, 2008
Greenhouse Gas Reduction
The Green Campus Task Force at Lasell College is currently sponsoring a contest that will award $750 to the student that proposes the best idea for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from campus. I have removed myself from the judging and volunteered to serve as the faculty mentor to students interested in participating in the contest. I have been helping students develop their plans and I have been really impressed with their ideas. Students bring a perspective that faculty and staff don't have. They see things through a different set of lenses. The ideas students are generating are really creative and I have been impressed with the amount of research students are doing. They have contacted campus offices for information and some have even sought out advice from governmental agencies and commercial vendors.
While the Green Campus Task Force can only award two prizes($250 to second place), I really think all of the plans have the potential to be implemented on campus. This contest was a great idea and student efforts are laying the foundation for future initiatives. Keep up the great work! Only 1 week left until proposals need to be submitted.
While the Green Campus Task Force can only award two prizes($250 to second place), I really think all of the plans have the potential to be implemented on campus. This contest was a great idea and student efforts are laying the foundation for future initiatives. Keep up the great work! Only 1 week left until proposals need to be submitted.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Driving on Campus
Lasell is a small campus. Despite our compactness, I frequently observe students driving from their residence halls to the dining hall or to class. I had to check this out further so I loaded up mapmyrun.com. Based on my quick estimate, the furthest any student has to walk to get to the dining hall is less than a third of a mile. Most live much closer.
Why do I bring up this point? It is exactly trips like these that need to stop. About 40% of all trips by automobile in America are under 2 miles. These are trips that could be done by walking or riding a bike. To the individual, it doesn't seem like a big deal. After all, it is only a third of a mile. However, when 100's of millions of Americans make this decision every day, it adds up.
Enjoy the campus and walk to dinner!
Why do I bring up this point? It is exactly trips like these that need to stop. About 40% of all trips by automobile in America are under 2 miles. These are trips that could be done by walking or riding a bike. To the individual, it doesn't seem like a big deal. After all, it is only a third of a mile. However, when 100's of millions of Americans make this decision every day, it adds up.
Enjoy the campus and walk to dinner!
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Ban on Plastic Bags
On March 1st, Whole Foods moved to remove plastic bags from check-out lines. Customers have the option of a paper bag made of recycled material, purchasing a reusable bag for $0.99 or a more expensive canvas bag. This is a bold move by Whole Foods that will likely impact their bottom line. Executives hope they will set a trend in the grocery industry helping to keep millions of plastic bags out of the waste stream.
At first glance this seems like a great move for the environment. Banning plastic as Whole Foods and some cities have would benefit the environment. Plastic bags certainly contribute to our waste and they frequently fly away and end up in streams and rivers. However, I recently read a publication by the American Chemistry Council that made me rethink this move to ban plastic. The publication cited how much more energy is used in producing paper bags compared to plastic (40%). To deliver the same number of bags, seven trucks are needed to transport paper compared to one for plastic. Both paper and plastic bags can be recycled. Recycling paper uses much more energy and there are more chemical waste products that end up in our watersheds.
Waste is certainly an issue, but so is energy. This is a big move by Whole Foods but it still is not achieving a sustainable solution. The best solution to the grocery bag debate would be to force every customer to reuse their own bags. I don't know how that could be done though. Most customers don't think to bring their own bags. A truly bold move would be to stop supplying bags at the register altogether. Is that possible? People flock to Sam's Club and this store does not provide bags. Maybe it can be done.
At Lasell, we have a similar issue we have been debating. How can we get students to use refillable coffee mugs at the campus coffee shops? We would love to see paper cups eliminated from campus. We have talked about banning them for a day but fear a student revolt. Our current plan is to flood the campus with reusable mugs and promote awareness. If we can get a reusable mug in the hands of every student and make them aware of the environmental consequence of using paper cups every day, maybe it will make a difference. Changing behavior is certainly a challenge.
At first glance this seems like a great move for the environment. Banning plastic as Whole Foods and some cities have would benefit the environment. Plastic bags certainly contribute to our waste and they frequently fly away and end up in streams and rivers. However, I recently read a publication by the American Chemistry Council that made me rethink this move to ban plastic. The publication cited how much more energy is used in producing paper bags compared to plastic (40%). To deliver the same number of bags, seven trucks are needed to transport paper compared to one for plastic. Both paper and plastic bags can be recycled. Recycling paper uses much more energy and there are more chemical waste products that end up in our watersheds.
Waste is certainly an issue, but so is energy. This is a big move by Whole Foods but it still is not achieving a sustainable solution. The best solution to the grocery bag debate would be to force every customer to reuse their own bags. I don't know how that could be done though. Most customers don't think to bring their own bags. A truly bold move would be to stop supplying bags at the register altogether. Is that possible? People flock to Sam's Club and this store does not provide bags. Maybe it can be done.
At Lasell, we have a similar issue we have been debating. How can we get students to use refillable coffee mugs at the campus coffee shops? We would love to see paper cups eliminated from campus. We have talked about banning them for a day but fear a student revolt. Our current plan is to flood the campus with reusable mugs and promote awareness. If we can get a reusable mug in the hands of every student and make them aware of the environmental consequence of using paper cups every day, maybe it will make a difference. Changing behavior is certainly a challenge.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
New Classroom Space
I met with a student from the fashion department today to discuss plans for the new environmental studies classroom. The classroom has brand new furniture and will be getting new casework over spring break. It is a great space as it has windows on two sides and our choice of furniture will make it very flexible.
The student I met with is from an Interior Design class. We talked about what we could do in the environmental classroom to give it the feel of environmental studies. Immediately, she had great ideas! Plants, bamboo shades, frames for student work, were just a few of her initial ideas. She is drafting up a plan and we will complete the project in the next few weeks.
We also talked about ways to make the hallway more welcoming. Again, plants seemed to be the focus of her attention for this area. We may put up maps or remotely sensed images in the hallway also.
I'm really excited to see the draft of her ideas for the classroom and hallway. I love that it is a student doing the design work. Interior design certainly is not part of my skill set. It also gives this student to apply what she is learning in class.
The student I met with is from an Interior Design class. We talked about what we could do in the environmental classroom to give it the feel of environmental studies. Immediately, she had great ideas! Plants, bamboo shades, frames for student work, were just a few of her initial ideas. She is drafting up a plan and we will complete the project in the next few weeks.
We also talked about ways to make the hallway more welcoming. Again, plants seemed to be the focus of her attention for this area. We may put up maps or remotely sensed images in the hallway also.
I'm really excited to see the draft of her ideas for the classroom and hallway. I love that it is a student doing the design work. Interior design certainly is not part of my skill set. It also gives this student to apply what she is learning in class.
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