MWCC Hailed for Climate Support in ACUPCC's Celebrating Sustainability Series

Mount Wachusett Community College was recognized today by the American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) as one of 15 top colleges and universities in the country for its cutting-edge work in promoting environmental sustainability.
The ACUPCC, now in its fifth year, is an initiative joined by nearly 700 colleges and universities to promote sustainability through teaching and action. MWCC's achievements in renewable energy and energy conservation were cited as part of the ACUPCC’s Celebrating Sustainability series, which identifies signatories that exemplify the initiative’s mission to re-stabilize the earth's climate through education, research and community engagement. Celebrating Sustainability is formally recognizing a different institution every business day in April leading up to Earth Day on April 22. MWCC is a charter signatory of the ACUPCC.

The ACUPCC praised the college for its outstanding work in successfully integrating wind power into its energy portfolio over the past year. Mount Wachusett’s program has been so successful since installing two 1.65 MW turbines in March 2011 that the college is now producing 100 percent of its own electricity while also returning energy back to the grid, the organization noted.

The 15 colleges and universities identified under the Celebrating Sustainability series cover a diverse spectrum of institutions in terms of size, geographic location and academic focus. MWCC is the only college in New England named in the series. The other campuses are: University of California - Irvine; Arizona State University; University of Louisville, Kentucky; University of Central Missouri; Weber State University in Utah; William Patterson University in New Jersey; SUNY Upstate Medical University and Pratt Institute in New York; Allegheny College and Montgomery County Community College in Pennsylvania; Austin Community College in Texas; Georgia Institute of Technology and Haywood Community College in Georgia; and Luther College in Iowa.

“These institutions differ in many ways, but they all have an unrelenting commitment to building a healthier environment by deploying cutting-edge practices and producing graduates that will integrate sustainability into their professional and personal lives for years to come,” said Dr. Anthony D. Cortese, president of Second Nature, the lead supporting organization of the ACUPCC. “These schools are also demonstrating academic leadership in this area, which is essential to address the profound threats climate change poses to society at large.”The ACUPCC launched its Celebrating Sustainability series in conjunction with Earth Day to demonstrate the importance of taking a holistic approach to reversing climate change that incorporates sustainable practices and solutions.

The organization commended the colleges wind energy initiative, which is now producing 100-percent of the Gardner campus' electricity while also returning energy back to the grid, as well as its biomass and solar technologies, conservation measures that have reduced energy consumption by nearly half, and efforts of the student sustainability club, The Green Society, and other campus organizations and clubs for their role in a number of campus green initiatives.

Student Clubs Host Visit From Local Activist

MWCC's 100 KW Photovoltaic Solar Array

The Art Club, together with the Math Club and the Green Society brought local activist Hattie Nestel to campus this week for a presentation on renewable energy and energy efficiency as alternatives to nuclear power.

As a member of the Shut It Down Affinity Group, the Athol resident is whole heartedly against nuclear power, and focused much of her Nov. 29 presentation about the potential dangers of nuclear power. The group's members, who range from a kindergarten teacher to a 92-year-old, have been arrested on several occasions for their protests at the Vermont Yankeee nuclear plant.

During her presentation, Nestel praised legislators such as Massachusetts Congressman Edward Markey, ranking member of the Natural Resources committee and senior member of the Energy and Commerce committee, for his work on energy and environmental issues. Nestel told students and faculty members gathered for the presentation that 20 percent of electricity in the U.S. is generated by nuclear power. Statistics show greater job growth in green energy, and with more effort placed on conservation, Americans could reduce electricity consumption by 25 to 30 percent, she added.

The student clubs banded together to bring Nestel to MWCC because they thought it would be a great opportunity for the campus to learn more about alternatives to nuclear power and the work advocates are doing to raise awareness, particularly in light of the  disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi plant following the March 11, 2011 earthquake in Japan, said Sarah Adams, secretary of the Art Club.

“We thought it was a great experience to partner up with the different clubs, and also a great experience to learn about this, considering that our college is so green already,” Adams said. Faculty advisors Tom Matsuda (Art Club) Tom Montagno (The  Green Society) and Yoav Elinevski (Math Club) supported the students' efforts to bring the presentation to campus.

Nestel, who is also a member of the Citizens Awareness Network (http://www.nukebusters.org/), gives several presentations a week throughout the area to interested organizations. "I feel people are lacking this information," she said.

In addition, she recommends a variety of resources to those interested in learning more. On her suggested reading list are two books by Hermann Scheer, a 30-year member of Germany's parliament who was instrumental in efforts to establish Germany as a world leader in renewable energy: The Solar Economy: Renewable Energy for a Sustainable Global Future and Energy Autonomy: The economic, social, and technological case for renewable energy. Among her recommended websites: http://www.beyondnuclear.org/ and http://www.nirs.org/.

- Angela Marini

The Green Society Helping Others Live Green, One Water Bottle at a Time

Green Society members Rosemary Mruk,
Jesse Roberts and Owen Despre

MWCC's Green Society is making another splash toward sustainability with a new addition to the Gardner campus. The new water cooler and bottle filling station, located in the Commons area near the financial aid office, is part of an outreach campaign to provide students, faculty, and staff with an alternative to plastic water bottles.

The water bottle station, which was funded jointly by The Green Society, the Student Government Association and a $1,000 grant from the United Way Youth Venture, is environmentally friendly because it allows people to refill reusable water bottles. In just a few weeks, it has already saved nearly 400 plastic water bottles from being used. "It's turning out to be a great compliment to other sustainability efforts at MWCC," said Rosemary Mruk, treasurer of the Green Society.

Students from The Green Society researched and presented an action plan and budget to the United Way Youth Venture and members of the college community last spring to receive funding for this project. The UWYV provides opportunities for young people throughout the region to create their own positive social change. The process is non-competitive and open to students ages 12 to 22, said Kumar Raj, United Way Youth Venture Coordinator.

Beginning this month The Green Society will sell reusable, stainless steel water bottles to help raise money for replacement filters for the water station. In the future, The Green Society would like to see a water bottle station on each floor of the Gardner Campus, as well as at the satellite campuses in Leominster and Devens.

"We are excited to see how the campus receives the new water cooler and bottle filling station, and we hope that this station can pave the way for more on campus," said Professor Tom Montagno, the club's advisor.

"At MWCC, we don't just want people to 'Go Green,' " said Owen Despre, president of The Green Society. "We want them to 'Live Green.' "

- Angela Marini

Green Tastes Good

If you’ve ever wondered who makes sure there is a bountiful breakfast buffet and hot coffee every morning on campus, you should meet Lynne Franciose, our dining services manager and green advocate extraordinaire.

Her day begins around 4 a.m. with checking email, reviewing menus, and taking time to make sure the cafeteria and campus catering services run smoothly. By 6 a.m., she is on campus, doing the morning set-up routine of filling ice buckets, preparing coffee, and baking breakfast goodies.

I recently sat down with Lynne to talk about the various ways the Green Street Café is environmentally responsible. From the coffee we drink to the vegetables in the soup, Lynne has made some progressive choices that place the Green Street Café at the forefront of environmentally responsible food service.

For the past two years, The Green Society student group on campus and their organic kitchen garden project has collaborated with the Green Street Café. This partnership not only collected food waste for compost, but it also produced vegetables, herbs, and flowers for use in the Café’s menus. The Green Society collects food waste in compost buckets and uses it to fertilize the club’s garden. This keeps all those food scraps out of the college’s waste stream and ultimately a landfill. Conversely, when the kitchen garden comes to harvest, the Café reaps the benefits. By working together to choose what is grown in some plots, the Café has not only created demand for the fresh local produce, but also saved the college money by choosing to grow pricey items such as herbs and edible flowers right here on campus!

The coffee station in the Café is a busy place any time of day. It’s good to know that even with this every day staple item, Lynne and the Green Street Café have made a conscious choice to use environmentally friendly options. By choosing Green Mountain Coffee as our vendor, we are supporting fair trade and organic coffee. Plus, all the “disposable” items such as cups and lids are made from biodegradable materials, meaning it can all be kept out of landfills!

Beverages make up approximately 15 percent of what is consumed through the Café, so Lynne partnered with Coca-Cola, our soft drink vendor, in an ongoing initiative they are developing to use plant-based and biodegradable bottles for their products. In addition, bottles that are not currently made from the new plant-based materials are still staying out of the landfill. Through a partnership with Gardner High School, students collect and recycle the traditional plastic bottles. Subsequently, they learn the importance of recycling and they also get to keep the money they earn from the redemption value.

One of the most visible and significant initiatives Lynne has implemented is the use of local farm produce. While it could have been a time consuming and expensive proposition to use organic vendors and farms across the Commonwealth, Lynne worked smarter, not harder.

Attending a Farm to School conference last year, Lynne realized that a particular food service wholesaler was already utilizing local farms and organic produce for their product line. By using this vendor, Lynne is able to serve fresh, local produce without the added work of dealing with numerous farms individually.

In addition to the on-campus efforts Lynne coordinates, the Green Street Café also has a larger green footprint that reaches across the globe. The Café has chosen Heifer International as its primary charity and work to collect donations and build awareness among students for the needs of hungry people around the world. Established in Rutland, Mass., Heifer International works with communities to end hunger through innovative programming. 

These “living loan” programs provide families with livestock and education on how to raise and profit from the livestock. The families eat better and can generate income in sustainable ways from eggs, milk, and meat.  An important part of the program is that those same families then give one of its animal's offspring to another family and increase the program’s impact in the community.

The Green Street Café will be starting a new collection for Heifer International in November. Heifer International volunteers will be on campus. Stop by, have a snack, and learn more about this great part of the Green Street Café’s commitment to sustainability.

While MWCC continues to work to incorporate green initiatives to many aspects of operations across the Gardner campus, it is good to know that even the food we serve in the cafeteria is making a positive impact on our community and environment, rather than a negative one.  It’s all the small decisions, when taken together as a whole strategy, which add up to a big change and move in the right direction. Stop by the Green Street Café sometime and know that your delicious meal is supporting local farmers, a high school student recycling program, a student-run organic kitchen garden, and fair trade products.

MWCC Celebrates Earth Day!

MWCC commemorated the 41^st anniversary of Earth Day by emphasizing the many simple ways people can make a difference to the environment through recycling, energy conservation and choosing reusable products over disposable ones, coinciding with Earth Day 2011's theme of "A Billion Acts of Green."

Due to the college’s decision two years ago to switch to a Monday-through-Thursday class schedule to allow students and employees to conserve on gas, the activities took place today, a day in advance of Earth Day.

MWCC’s Student Life office, Campus Activities Team for Students (CATS), the student sustainability club The Green Society, and the Energy Management and Natural Resources academic programs sponsored activities in the South Café and Commons area.

Members of The Green Society sold CFL bulbs, LED nightlights and reusable bamboo utensils, and a number of organizations were on campus to promote their environmental initiatives. Presenters included MASSRides and Miller’s Watershed. The musical group The Hickory Strings provided entertainment.

In addition, students in the Health, Nutrition and Sustainability Honors Colloquium displayed information from research projects exploring the historical, cultural and political influences on our food, food sources and the provision of food, as well as the health implications of these influences. The students will present their research tomorrow on Earth Day during the 17th annual Undergraduate Research Conference at UMass, Amherst.

Through MWCC's renewable energy initiatives and the growing emphasis nationally on “going green,” students are now more aware than ever of the meaning of Earth Day. “Our students get to see the biomass plant, wind turbines and the work on campus and in the community conducted by The Green Society,” said Greg Clement, assistant dean of student services. “The college leads by example. What the college does influences everyone else.”

“Students are more aware today than 10 years ago about new initiatives and new ways to help protect the environment,” added Dr. Thomas Montagno, biology professor and advisor to The Green Society.

Pictured: Members of The Green Society helped celebrate Earth Day 2011. From left, Rosemary Mruk, Mike Crowley and Joe Berube.

- Guest post & photo by Kim Anderson, Marketing & Communications Department intern



The Green Society: Active on campus & in the community

The Green Society, MWCC's enterprising sustainability club for students, has not only left an indelible mark on campus, but has gained a name for itself in the community as well. For the past few years, club members have volunteered at the annual North Quabbin Garlic and Arts Festival in Orange and at the Thanksgiving Harvest Festival at Red Apple Farm in Phillipston.

On Saturday, Nov. 20, club members and their advisor, Professor Tom Montagno, will once again sponsor and oversee two of the popular "X-Games" at the harvest festival: the "Hay Bale Tossing"championship and the "World Wood Stacking Competition." Prizes go to the participants who can fling hay bales the farthest and stack a cord of wood faster and neater than others. The festival, now in its 8th year, promotes buying locally grown food and supports local farmers by providing an opportunity for people to purchase fresh produce, crafts and other goods in time for the holidays.

In October, club members again volunteered at the North Quabbin Garlic and Arts Festival, dubbed "the festival that stinks." Their task - recycling and composting trash - may not sound glamorous, but the results certainly are remarkable. More than 10,000 people attended this year, yet once the volunteers were done sorting biodegradable utensils, bottles, food scraps and other recyclables from the refuse, the trash was condensed to just two bags!

This fall, club members have been busy maintaining two ongoing projects on campus: the organic Kitchen Garden alongside the greenhouse, and composting kitchen scraps to reduce the amount of garbage going into the trash stream. The club rebuilt the garden beds, planted garlic for use next year, and planted alfalfa to feed more nitrogen into the soil. In the spring, vegetables and herbs will be planted for use in meals prepared by The Green Street Cafe. And, once this winter's snow has come and gone, watch for the club's annual "bulb sale" (energy-efficient light bulbs, that is), as well as continued participation in the Community Garden on campus.

Pictured: Several members of The Green Society with Professor Tom Montagno at the Kitchen Garden.