Resources : News

Got news?

Send your news items to sustainability@usf.edu.

The Oracle features information on the annual "Take a Hike" day, and hiking and camping sites near the USF campus.

USF College of Engineering announces the Multi-Disciplinary Doctoral Engineering Graduate Fellowship Program at the Water-Energy-Materials-Human-Nexus, a multidisciplinary fellowship program focused on training engineers to understand and solve problems at the water-energy-materials-human nexus aligning strategically with national goals that have documented the rapid social, political, economic, and environmental changes occurring in the world and associated implications for engineering education, research, practice, and importantly, the economic competitiveness of our Nation.

Renowned artists Diana Al-Hadid, Iva Gueorguieva and Robyn O’Neil are taking their views on the earth’s climate issues to the canvas in the “New Weather” exhibit at the USF Contemporary Art Museum (CAM). The exhibition brings work together from the U.S. and as far away as Berlin and Paris. David Norr, the exhibition’s chief curator, said in a pamphlet that the exhibit “connotes the changing conditions and atmospheres, which intersect in the artist’s studios.” “New Weather” will be on display at the museum until March 6, 2010. Visit cam.usf.edu for more information.

Members of the Faculty Senate’s Executive Committee (SEC) reviewed the revised draft for the School of Global Sustainability (SGS) at a meeting on November 4, 2009. SGS will be a graduate school offering a Master of Arts degree in global sustainability. The program would target working professionals in positions that already focus on sustainability issues, according to USF’s request to offer a new degree program that will be sent to the Florida Board of Governors.

COB Ranks #36 of Top 100 Schools for Social Responsibility. The college earned the rank of 36 among the global top 100 schools for integrating issues of social and environmental stewardship into the MBA program and is the only Florida institution on the list.

WeCar program reduces prices, hopes for more members. On Oct. 1, the rate for the Prius models was lowered from $10 per hour to $7.50 per hour, while the Escape rate dropped from $12 per hour to $9 per hour, a savings of 25 percent in both instances, according to the WeCar Web site. CUTR’s goal is to increase rental usage to cover the program’s expenses of roughly $6,000 per month.

Thirty-one USF students will compete against 20 other schools from around the country to impress executives at the car company Honda. Three schools will be selected as finalists and flown to California to present their marketing strategies to Honda executives. The first place team receives $5,000, second place gets $3,000 and third place receives $1,000.

Aramark unveils a poster highlighting their sustainability practices and progress with USF Dining.

Ed Begley speaks at USF. Begley’s talk came on the final day of USF hosting the Campus & Community Sustainability Conference and at the opening of the Going Green Tampa Bay Expo. The events drew advocates, students, and industry and government leaders interested in exploring new policies, programs, and practices for creating sustainable communities.

FESC USF Seed Grants. The Florida Energy Systems Consortium (FESC) is a state resource that performs research and development on innovative energy systems that lead to alternative energy strategies, improved energy efficiencies, and expanded economic development for the state. The Consortium supports the Florida Energy and Climate Commission in developing and implementing the State’s energy and climate agenda. This call for proposals is intended to provide seed funding for energy research at USF that will lead to establishing the strength of our energy research and expertise. The goal is to allow the researchers to start or continue important energy research which will eventually lead to additional research funding from the Federal Government, State Government, private corporations or other sources.

University of South Florida Postdoctoral Scholars: Sustainable Societies. The University of South Florida is pleased to announce the second year of its Postdoctoral Scholars program in the social sciences and humanities. The over-arching theme for this year’s scholars is Sustainable Societies: Building social, cultural, and environmental capital in a globalized world. Potential themes include (but are not limited to) population movements; communication, technology, and information issues; cultural diasporas; health, economic, educational, and environmental disparities; ethnicity, gender, aging; cultural heritage and identity; sustainable development; ethics; or security issues. Specific research and geographical areas are open, and applicants may be considering both past and contemporary questions. Application review will begin on November 15. Final application submission deadline November 30.

USF Students Earn EPA Sustainability Award. “A team of USF students and their faculty advisor recently received a competitive Phase II Grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The $75,000 award was part of the EPA’s prestigious People, Prosperity, and Planet (P3) Competition. The USF team was one of six selected nationally to receive the annual award.”

USF's Presidents Climate Commitment report is now available online! The report was created in response to the signing of the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment by USF President Judy Genshaft in 2008. Read the full press release here.

The USF Climate Steering Committee was recently featured on the evening news of local radio station WMNF, 88.5 FM. To read or listen to the broadcast, visit the article on WMNF’s website.

Physical Plant lowers campus water usage by reducing watering duration times, installing low-volume units and not watering certain areas of the Tampa campus. Physical Plant expects to use about 30 percent to 40 percent less water with these methods; read the Oracle article here.

Lyndsey Scofield, a senior environmental science and policy major at the University of South Florida and President of the Student Environmental Association, encourages today’s youth to be tomorrow’s green leaders in her commentary in the April 9, 2009 edition of the Tampa Tribune.

The Internet uses too much energy and costs too much according to Francisco Blanquicet, a graduate student in the University of South Florida’s Department of Computer Science and Engineering. His suggestions for making the Internet greener and more cost-efficient have earned him an award from the Ethernet Alliance University Program. Read the full press release or see Francisco's paper in the Highlights section of the Ethernet Alliance website.

The February 2009 ACUPCC Implementer newsletter is now available on the AASHE website.

America's colleges and universities are going green and Solutions for Our Future is celebrating those efforts on its new web site, Higher Education Goes Green.

Read an Oracle commentary about the proposed "green fee" for students here.

Going green means going trayless for USF; read the Oracle article here.

“Going green,” or becoming ecologically conscious, has gained popularity in the past few years and the Tampa Museum of Art (TMA) has wasted no time in becoming part of this effort. The result was It’s Not Easy Being Green, which showed at the TMA’s interim location in September 2008. Read more about the exhibit here.

Since 1994, the New North Transportation Alliance (NNTA) has been uniting government, businesses, and the community to address transportation needs in the New North area of Tampa, Florida. The NNTA offers free services that can help employers, property managers, & individual commuters save money, enhance benefits and improve their situations through simple solutions. Visit the NNTA website or view the June 2008 Transportation Information Service newsletter.