Monga '11 Garners National Volunteer Award Orlane Monga '11 (at right), an international student from the Democratic Republic of Congo at Green Mountain College, has been named a Gold recipient of the 2010 President's Volunteer Service Award. This national honor is awarded in recognition of outstanding volunteer service and in conjunction with National Volunteer Week, April 19 - 25, 2010. The President's Volunteer Service Award is a nationwide award created in 2003 by President Bush's Council on Service and Civic Participation to recognize individuals throughout the United States who are engaged in volunteer service. Orlane is a senior majoring in environmental studies with a concentration in human sciences and public policy, and a minor in biology. She is the liaison of UNICEF in the International Awareness Club at Green Mountain College and serves as the representative for the North East Region for the Campus Initiative National Council at the U.S. Fund for UNICEF.
Letendre Contributes to V2G Grid Report From the GMC Journal Week of May 10, 2010 A report published by the University of Vermont's Transportation Research Center was recently published including Prof. Steven Letendre (management & environmental studies) as one of the main authors. The report, titled “Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle Research Project: Phase II,” was the result of a collaborative research project between Steve and several researchers at the UVM Transportation Research Center. Steve’s contribution to the report includes an assessment of the vehicle-to-grid (V2G) resources in Vermont based on projections to 2030 of the number of advanced electric drive vehicles in the state.
Green Mtn. Club Hosts Talk From Mittlefehldt From the GMC Journal Week of May 10, 2010 Prof. Sarah Mittlefehldt (environmental studies) hosted a talk titled “The Appalachian Trail: Blazing the 'People's Path'" on April 30 at the Green Mountain Club in Waterbury, Vt. Sarah talked about her research on the social and environmental history of the Appalachian Trail (AT). When Congress passed the National Trails Act of 1968, the AT shifted from primarily being a regional grassroots endeavor to being part of the national park system. As the National Park Service began to acquire land for the corridor, private citizens who once maintained the trail through informal, handshake agreements became directly involved in one of the most complex federal land acquisition programs in U.S. history. Sarah discussed the complicated political dynamics involved in creating the AT, and the impact that the AT project has had on environmental policy in the U.S.
Renewable Energy Publishes Article From the GMC Journal Week of May 3, 2010 Prof. Steven Letendre (management & environmental studies) and Prof. John Van Hoesen (geology) recently had an article published in Renewable Energy titled "Evaluating potential renewable energy resources in Poultney, Vermont: A GIS-based approach to supporting rural community energy planning. This research was supported by a GMC Trustee Research Award.
Authors of Carbon Free Home to Visit GMC From the GMC Journal Week of April 26, 2010 Stephen & Rebekah Hren, authors of The Carbon-Free Home, host a public presentation today at 7 p.m. in the Gorge. Their talk is titled "Carbon Costs for Construction: Technology Choices for the Homestead & Farm." The Hrens live in Durham, North Carolina, where they are both actively involved with renewable energy, natural building, and edible urban gardening. Rebekah works with Honey Electric Solar, Inc., as a professional designer/installer of photovoltaic systems and domestic solar hot-water systems. Stephen is a professional restoration carpenter, focusing on antebellum houses. He teaches natural-building classes and workshops at the local community college, and in any spare time works with Bountiful Backyards, an edible-landscaping cooperative. Having weaned themselves completely from fossil fuels in their conventional 1930s urban house, Rebekah and Stephen Hren will talk about how others may do the same thing.
GMC Features CarShare Vermont Presentation From the GMC Journal Week of April 12, 2010 Annie Bourdon, executive director of CarShare Vermont, hosts a public presentation on April 13 at 2:30 p.m. in Terrace 124. The talk is titled "Alternatives to Car Ownership: The Environmental, Economic and Social Impact." Founded in 2007 by a group of local people who share a common vision for our community, Carshare Vermont is a misson-driven nonprofit organization that recognizes car-sharing as a practical, easy, and fun way to reduce car dependence, increase mobility, and improve the health of our community and environment. The presentation is sponsored by the GMC Business and Environmental Studies Programs.
Van Hoesen Completes Maps for Vt. Geologic Survey From the GMC Journal Week of April 12, 2010 Prof. John Van Hoesen (geology) recently had a suite of maps published by the Vermont Geological Survey related to field mapping completed within the town of Rutland characterizing the surficial geology and groundwater resources. View the maps.
Van Hoesen Hosts Talk in Natural History Series From the GMC Journal Week of April 6, 2010 Long ago the Champlain Valley was covered in more than a mile of ice. As the glaciers moved south then north they deposited sediment and shaped the landscape we see today. In a talk on April 7 as part of The Nature Conservancy's 11th annual Vermont Natural History Series, Prof. John Van Hoesen (geology) plans to explore how glaciers affected the way valleys look today. His talk, titled "In the Footprints of Glaciers," begins at 6:30 p.m. at The Nature Conservancy's West Haven office.
Mulder Article Published in Corporate Examiner From the GMC Journal Week of April 6, 2010 GMC Farm Manager Kenneth Mulder (environmental studies) is coauthor of an article titled: “Energy and Water: The Real Blue Chips" published in the current issue of The Corporate Examiner, a publication of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility.
Van Hoesen a Finalist for Teaching Award From the GMC Journal Week of March 29, 2010 Prof. John Van Hoesen (geology) was recently selected as a finalist for the Vermont Campus Compact statewide Excellence in Community-Based Teaching Award. This award recognizes innovative teaching and curriculum employing service-learning or community-based research that develops student voice, civic agency, and critical thinking using real-life application and relevance, and that includes community voice, partnership, and impact to inform the academic objectives and outcomes.
Alum Authors Story for National Magazine on Off-Grid Systems From the GMC Journal Week of March 22, 2010 The cover of the April/May issue of Home Power Magazine, the most widely circulated renewable energy magazine in the country, features the familiar visage of Prof. Philip Ackerman-Leist (environmental studies), his wife Erin, and the couple's children, Asa, Ethan, and baby Addie (Margaret Adelaide). The photo was taken by Khanti Munro '04, who wrote the accompanying cover story "Design Your Own Off Grid System." Khanti installed the Ackerman-Leist’s solar electric system before he graduated from GMC, and used his handiwork as a case study for the article.
Mulder Lead Author of Ambio Article From the GMC Journal Week of March 15, 2010 GMC Farm Manager Kenneth Mulder is lead author of an article titled “Burning Water: A Comparative Analysis of the Energy Return on Water Invested” which will be published in the upcoming issue of Ambio. The article compares the energy and water demands of various renewable and non-renewable energy technologies.
Van Hoesen Hosts Talk in Montpelier From the GMC Journal Week of February 22, 2010 Prof. John Van Hoesen (geology) presented a talk titled "Open-Source GIS: A Shopping List For Beginners" at the Society of American Foresters, Green Mountain Division Meeting January 29 in Montpelier, Vt.
Environmental Activist to Discuss Coal Mining From the GMC Journal Week of February 15, 2010 Environmental activist Dave Cooper visits GMC today for a talk titled “Mountaintop Coal Mining in Appalachia.” The talk begins at 7 p.m. in the East Room. In Virginia, West Virginia and eastern Kentucky, coal companies blast as much as 600 feet off the top of the mountains, then dump the rock and debris into mountain streams. Over 300,000 acres of the most beautiful and productive hardwood forests in America have been turned into barren grasslands. Mountaintop removal mining increases flooding, contaminates drinking water supplies, cracks foundations of nearby homes, and showers towns with dust and noise from blasting. Cooper, from Lexington, Kentucky, will explain human rights issues associated with this controversial practice. His visit is sponsored by the GMC Environmental Studies Program and the pre-law program.
Van Hoesen & Garrard Publish Article From the GMC Journal Week of February 8, 2010 Prof. John Van Hoesen (geology) and Amber Garrard, GMC Sustainability Coordinator, had an article published in GIS Educator and ESRI's ArcUser Magazine. The article highlights two natural resource management majors, Jane Day and Kyla Jaquish, for the community project they worked on in the spring 2009 Introduction to Geographic Information Course. Jane and Kyla worked with Amber to begin estimating the amount of carbon consumed as a result of faculty and staff commuting to campus.
Van Hoesen Awarded Fulbright Grant to Study in Chile From the GMC Journal Week of February 1, 2010 Prof. John Van Hoesen (geology & environmental studies) has been awarded a Fulbright grant to conduct research in Chile. His work may answer questions about the behavior and migration patterns of the Chinchorro people who developed mummification techniques about 3,000 years before the Egyptians. Van Hoesen will collaborate with Dr. Bernardo Arriaza, the Instituto de Alta Investigación, Universidad de Tarapacá and the San Miguel de Azapa Archaeological Museum. During his stay in Chile scheduled for the spring of 2011, Van Housen will teach a course on GIS and involve students in his field research. He will also hold skill-based workshops.
Ackerman-Leist Participates in Panel Discussion From the GMC Journal Week of January 25, 2010 Prof. Philip Ackerman-Leist (environmental studies) participated in a panel discussion January 7 as part of the Sustainable Agriculture Panel Series at the Franklin Environmental Center at Hillcrest. Philip’s topic was “Sustainability & Sustenance: A Vision for Sustainable Agriculture in the Liberal Arts.” Other panelists included Melina Shannon-DiPietro, a director of the Yale Sustainable Food Project, Ben Waterman from the UVM Center for Sustainable Agriculture and Gregory Peck, a pomologist and scientist. The Middlebury College Organic Garden sponsored the series.
