G.E.A.R. Presentation

1. G.E.A.R. Presentation • New Student Orientation • Staff Training • Curriculum and faculty training • Bike and scooter rentals • Carpooling and ZipCar options • Sustainability Portal Website • Rainwater Collection • Passive conservation design @ the Sustainability Charrette

2. New Student Orientation • Directed towards Freshmen, Transfers, etc • NRB/SO • Seminar on sustainability within RPI • What is happening on campus, research, presentations from student groups (Ecologic etc.), how you can be sustainable • FYE start up kit • Contains -Mug – non-plastic -Cloth bag – replace all plastic bags on campus (aka in Union etc.) -Incentives for not using plastic bags (either charged less for not using one or charging more for using one)

3. New Student Orientation (cn’d) • Power Strip – guide to organization in order to eliminate phantom loads • Guide on how to be sustainable • Equate consumption to impact etc. -What a volt is etc. and how much you impact the environment personally (how much energy do you use per hour of video games etc. )  • Tray-less cafeteria • Go along with orientation in how much can be saved by eliminating food waste and how much can be saved by eliminating replacing china etc.

4. Impact • Environmental • Low • Cultural • Medium/High • Economic • Cost > Medium • Payback > N/A

5. New Student Orientation (cn’d) • Stakeholders • Student Life • New students • FYE (and others involved in implementation)

6. Implementation • FYE • Staff • Students • SO Program • Sustainability Central Resource, if available

7. RA Programs • Res Life • Refreshers on everything that was covered • Encouragement to live sustainability • Continuation of education started during orientation • Who is going to do this? • Office of sustainability • FYE • Environmental groups • Delivered by students

8. Staff Training Program • NEO (New Employee Orientation) • Begin at NEO • Steps being taken by the Rensselaer Community – energy, water and resource conservation • Point out relevance to Rensselaer Plan and Mission • Develop early good habits • Web –based Training • Traincaster program – develop a course around Sustainability (interactive quizzes etc.)

9. Staff Training Program (cn’d) • Seminars/Webinars • Free seminars and webinars that will provide usage and interactive information for faculty, staff and students • Record webinars for future viewings • Involve departments to keep seminars/webinars • Incorporate sustainability training into performance plan (HR) • Who is going to do this? • SSTF • Office of Sustainability /Task Force • Professional Development / Human Resources

10. Impact • Environmental • Low • Cultural • Medium/High • Economic • Cost > Low • Payback > N/A • Implementation > Short Term

11. Curriculum and Faculty Training • Workshops • Help instructors properly teach and incorporate sustainability into courses • Training and curriculum development workshops for instructors • Specific to the type of class • Interdisciplinary • Networking • Allow for communication with other instructors and students for sharing of ideas and feedback • Allows courses to compliment and build upon one another • Evolving methods and solutions

12. Goals • Incorporate sustainability into every student’s course of study (rather than just those who choose it as a major/minor) • Enable students to address the interdisciplinary and multifaceted issues facing our world • Incorporate sustainability into the mindsets of those at Rensselaer • Sustainability should be a basic element of design/evaluation/and decision-making processes

13. Implementation - What • Creation of workshops and related material • Establishment of network • Evaluation of effectiveness • Surveys • Feedback from students and instructors

14. Implementation – Who • Instructors, staff, students with knowledge in sustainability-related areas • If available, coordination from central sustainability resource.

15. Implementation – How long? • Short Term: Creation and implementation into some courses • Has already begun • Middle-term • Further development and implementation. • Long-term

16. Impact • Environmental > Low • Economic • Cost > Medium • Payback > N/A • Cultural > High • Implementation > Medium

17. Alternative Community Transportation (ACT) • Carpooling, taxi sharing • Google Map of people who want to carpool • Also includes the time they need to travel to RPI • creates easy visual to make it easier for people to carpool • Create incentives for the driver – free parking on campus? • Effects • Reduces carbon emissions • Encourages Networking • Promotes unification on campus • ACT map (bicycle racks, shuttle stops, etc.) – incorporate into RPI Map? • Shuttle, CDTA schedules (tie into displays at the bus stops)

18. ACT Continued • Zip car (long-term goal) • Apply for implementation online • have either a link or a sub interface in Sustainability website for the Zipcars in Troy • Work with Zipcar • to extend the life on its vehicles (2 years) • to use alternative energy vehicles (electric, CNG, biodiesel) • to provide feedback for vehicle performance • list data on sustainability website • Effects • Reduce carbon emissions • Save students/faculty/staff/administrators? Money • Aid in the culture shift to detract from consumption • Improvement of roads

19. Bike and Scooter Rentals • Coopering with Troy Bike Rescue for supplying bikes and performing repairs • Bike racks and shelters will need to be replaced in good areas on campus • Tire fill stations in high-traffic areas • Rent a bike using ID card; receive helmet and lock from assistant • Special pricing available for monthly rentals • Charged daily, with “late fees” for bikes not returned on time (inventory management)

20. Bike and Scooter Rentals (cn’d) • Bike-related equipment to be sold at the bookstore • Student Union to be the center “office” to initially pick-up and return bikes. • Potential for additional drop off/pick-up areas to be added • Scooters also available for rental in the same system, except locks are not provided since they fold for easy transportation.

21. Impact • Economic • Cost > High • Payback > Long • Cultural > Medium • Environmental > Low • Implementation time > Medium

22. Sustainability Portal Website • Will serve as a focal point for all sustainability-related web pages at Rensselaer • Links to both current pages (SSTF, Ecologic) and the up and coming (Institute-Wide, ACT, ect…) • Most recent updates/posts displayed live on the site’s main page

23. Impact • Economic • Cost > low • Payback > N/A • Cultural > Medium • Environmental > Low • Implementation > Short - Midterm

24. Sustainability Portal Website

25. Rainwater Collection • Research Project (Civil/structural Engineering) to design a scalable rainwater collection system • Use for local buildings, on roof or next to it • Can be scalable to use for different size buildings • Initially to be tested in house with the green house, and then upgraded to encompass all campus buildings

26. Passive Conservation Design • Schedule rooms to optimize sunlight • Shading with trees in the summer • Passive solar to heat rooms • Thermal mass