This year we have a bumper crop of dandelions at Goshen College! In fact, I think it is safe to say that in the 108 year history of our campus, dandelions have never been this abundant or healthy.
Members of the Sun Shower Collective, consisting of GC students, faculty and staff, planned and are building solar panels to heat the water in the RFC.
Most of us do not want to be a burden to those who come after us. We'd prefer to emit less carbon dioxide, have less stuff and demand less from our groaning planet. But how? What would environmentally sustainable living look like in the 21st century?
An "exciting new chapter" has begun at Goshen College, according to the college's President James E. Brenneman on March 24 as he launched three institutes, all focused on the college's distinctive academic strengths as they relate to faith.
Goshen College is announcing a new, unique opportunity for undergraduate students to earn a semester of college credit in a fairly unconventional way. Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center of Goshen College will offer (beginning in the fall of 2011) the Sustainability Semester in Residence for students to live and learn in Indiana's first platinum-rated LEED® facility located on a 1,189-acre nature preserve. A cohort of six to 15 students will engage complex problems related to the regional watershed.
College dining halls are known for large amounts of food thrown away by students, for grease-laden burgers and chicken nuggets and for preparing mass quantities of food straight from the freezer section that would never be considered "fresh." But something different is going on in the Goshen College Dining Hall, with the AVI Fresh food service provider leading the way in caring for the health and taste buds of each student and for the well-being of the earth. In 2009, when the college was choosing a new food service provider, these qualities were what set them apart.
A small corner of the campus has started to turn greener thanks to a student proposal and the care and involvement of a professor and a utilities manager.
Goshen College Sustainability Coordinator and Utilities Manager Glenn Gilbert and Vice President of McCormick Motors (Nappanee, Ind.) Gordon Moore will talk about the fascinating ways that saving energy is not only "green," but also makes sense for the fiscal bottom line of an institution and a business. This will be the Goshen College Afternoon Sabbatical presentation on Tuesday, March 9 at 1 p.m. in the Music Center's Sauder Concert Hall. The event is free and open to the public.
In these tough economic times, business owners are eager to save money. Members of the Sustainable Business Roundtable in Michiana want to save the planet too. Goshen College hosted the May meeting of the group to share some of the "green" practices of the college.
Bill McKibben hopes that the world is ready to act fast, and aim for 350- "the most important number in the world."
