Read interviews with NiSP faculty Neal Blair, Aaron Packman and new affiliate Bruce Carruthers discussing sustainability. For more faculty profiles, see here.
Welcome to the Northwestern Institute for Sustainable Practices. NiSP promotes interdisciplinary education and research into economically, environmentally, and socially sound policies and practices that will help secure the earth's natural resources for use now and far into the future. By convening experts from many disciplines, NiSP works to develop the integrated approaches that are essential for a swift transition to sustainable practices, in sectors ranging from energy to transportation to urban planning and ecological restoration.
Spring Highlights
Rosina Bierbaum, professor and Dean at the University of Michigan's School of Natural Resources, discussed how climate change affects development concerns on June 1. Read more.
On April 27th Kimberly Gray presented "The Debate on the Scientific Evidence of Climate Change” at the Judicial Symposium on Public Nuisance Litigation sponsored by the Northwestern Law Judicial Education Program, Searle Center on Law, Regulation, and Economic Growth, Northwestern University School of Law; she was paired with Professor Jason Johnston of the University of Pennsylvania School of Law, who is a climate skeptic.
CONGRATULATIONS!
NiSP is pleased to announce the Dow Sustainability Innovation Student Challenge Winners:
Jonathan Servaites, advised by Tobin Marks and Mark Ratner: Thin Film Solar Cells for Cost-Effective Electricity Generation
Antoine Aubeneau, in partnership with Jennifer Drummond, Junzi Shi, Jonathan Lamano, Joseph Park, and Shiyuan Zhou, advised by Aaron Packman: Hydraulic Ram Pumps for Clean Water Delivery
Philip Brunner, advised by John Torkelson: Novel Green Hybrids of Polylactic Acid
Honorable mention:
Scott Aikin, Lenore Kaplan, Zeke Markhausen and Akshay Thakker, advised by Ed Colgate: Helios Photovoltaic Battery System
Kimberly Huang, William Fan, Mert Iseri, Alexandra Letuchy, Kaycee Overcash and Alejandro Sklar, advised by Bruce Ankenman: Tiny House Project
These students will be honored at a reception on May 11 in the Cohen Commons. To learn more, read the press release.
Sustainable Development Project
NiSP provided support for the International Students Association to build a community center in Chincha, Peru, which will be used as a nursery school by day and a womens' workshop by afternoon/night, where women of the community will learn to make household trade crafts to improve their financial self-sustainability capacity. To learn more, read the report.
NISP Co-Director David Dana discusses court action on Asian carp in the Great Lakes. Read more here.
NISP Faculty Kimberly Gray, Adilson Motter and Klaus Weber were featured in the fall 2009 issue of Northwestern's research quarterly, Centerpiece. The Superficial Illusion of the Green Revolution discusses the real changes needed to achieve sustainability, and can be read here.
Inspired by NiSP's Research Roundtable, Regulating Nanotechnology: Creating Laws and Legal Institutions for Uncertain Risks will be published by Cambridge University Press. With insights from the sciences, law, economics, psychology and philosophy, this book discusses the sustainable development of new technologies.
Kimberly Gray is the 2008-2010 Sigma Xi Distinguished Lecturer on Energy and Sustainability.
Ecological Restoration of Northwestern Lagoon - As part of an environmental policy class taught by Stephen Packard, director of the Audubon Society for the Chicago region, students Stephen Lanus, Allegra Mount, and Sasha Speare have developed an educational brochure to raise awareness on campus about the potential of the lakefill lagoon to be a haven for migratory birds. See it here.
Challenges and Opportunities in Converting CO2 to Fuels, presented by Olga Lyandres at the E3 - Energy, Economic and Environmental Conference held at the University of Minnesota in November 2009. Olga is a Ph.D. student in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Northwestern.
See archived Research Highlights here.
