Maybe it was An Inconvenient Truth or perhaps hurricane Katrina that has spawned our awareness on global warming and green initiatives, but whatever set off the alarm, it is an issue our generation is intently focused on. As the phrase goes, necessity is the mother of invention; we are in a time of need to build green enterprises, green communities, and green campuses.
Rensselaer has undertaken a number of initiatives to reduce our adverse environmental impact of which you should be aware. With the building of EMPAC, we may all be wondering if the glass wall that faces Troy is a source of tremendous energy loss, but despite your thoughts, it isn’t. The EMPAC building is being constructed under Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design silver certification. LEED is a nationally accepted certification for construction and operations of buildings. As found on the LEED webpage, there are five main performance areas: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality. Rensselaer is actively taking the approach to reduce our energy usage, and at the same time, improve the quality of life for all students. By aligning our new construction projects with certifications exceed the norm, we are taking a major step in transforming our campus.
Not only has administration supported these types of environmental goals, but many students have also. The Student Union will soon be undergoing a change on the third floor, where all the garbage receptacles will be removed and placed with multipurpose trash and recycling centers. The amount of garbage, from the Union, measured by weight, is approximately 50 percent paper, and we are looking to decrease that amount by as much as possible. Also, many off-campus groups and organizations including fraternities and sororities have begun to use fluorescent bulbs instead of the less energy-efficient incandescent bulbs. Many greek houses have also decided to use motion-activated light switches, further reducing our energy consumption. These changes, especially for the owners of these houses, have led to major decreases in operating costs and expenses.
With all the great achievements being made both within and outside of Rensselaer, our country still remains inextricably linked to oil, and we are the ones who can change that. Last week, oil prices forayed above $90 per barrel, an extremely high price, and made us think about the global impact our country has on the rest of the world. We drive millions of cars millions of miles every year, and are exhausting greenhouse gases like none other.
But opportunity exists for capitalists, environmentalists, and engineers alike. With the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol, many countries have pledged to reduce their emissions by five percent. The opportunity exists for us as engineers, to help create processes and inventions to help them do so. The ability of countries to buy and sell carbon credits on the global exchange is a corollary to the Kyoto Protocol. The ability now exists for global engineers to help developing countries and countries with extreme greenhouse gas production to improve, and concomitantly, sell those earned credits on the global exchange. As the world shrinks and the playing fields level out, we should make sure we remain a driving force in innovation. If there ever was a time to change the world, it is now!
