The Implementer
Higher Education Leading on Climate
Produced by Second Nature
September 2017
In this issue…
LEAD

Welcome, Brevard College!

Major Solar Projects at Virginia Private Colleges

Get Your Early Registration Discount

LEAD
Welcome Brevard College!

Let us welcome Brevard College to the Climate Leadership Network. Congratulations on signing the Climate Commitment. We are a network of more than 600 higher education institutions spread across 50 States, and we are happy to welcome you to our ranks. Mark your calendar for our 2018 Summit in Arizona on Feb.4-6 and meet the rest of the Network!

Governor McAuliffe Announces Major Solar Projects at Virginia Private Colleges
U.S. Department of Energy Program Supports VA Private Colleges Advancing Solar Energy

During August, the Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia (CICV) member schools signed multi large-scale energy contracts. CICV received funding from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Sunshot Initiative for a Solar Market Pathways Grant, which will help support bringing solar energy to CICV member schools. Lynchburg College, Randolph-Macon College and Washington and Lee University, Climate Leadership Network Signatories, along with Virginia Union University have signed contracts with the selected vendor. Twelve additional schools are participating in the DOE grant project and will sign contracts in the coming months.

These solar programs will provide CICV member schools with state-of-the-art solar technology and educational opportunities for students to learn more about renewable energy.

Get Your Early Registration Discount
2018 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit

 

Second Nature and the Intentional Endowments Network, will host the 2018 Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit focused on cross-sectoral collaboration, and grand solutions to the climate challenge, from February 4-6 in Tempe Arizona. Early registration for the 2018 Summit will open the week of September 18. 

 

We have reserved rooms for you at DoubleTree Hotel. To book your room for the summit, visit the hotel site or contact DoubleTree Hotel at 1.800.528.6481 and mention Second Nature Higher Education Climate Leadership Summit to receive the discounted rate of $169.00 for your stay at the hotel.

Learn More

LEARN
Sep 22
Campus Energy Infrastructure: Challenges, Solutions & Financing
SEP 26
Solar Carports: Turning University Parking Facilities into Renewable Electricity Plants
Oct 3
Greenhouse Webinar: Gas Inventories: SIMAP a new Partnership with UNH
Oct 18
AASHE Post-Conference Workshop
Nov 3
Bring Your Own Problem (BYOP): a green campus co-laboratory
FEB 4-6
Save the Date! 2018 Climate Leadership Summit
RESOURCES
Register for AASHE Post-Conference Workshop

Will you be attending the AASHE Conference in October? If so, join us for our post-conference Climate Action (re) Boot Camp Wednesday, October 18, 8:30 am to 12:00 pm. This ½ day post-conference workshop will provide a refresher on the basic components of climate action planning, and bring you up to date on reporting requirements for each Climate Leadership Commitment.

Register Now

U.S. Solar Photovoltaic System Cost Benchmark: Q1 2017

The reductions in installed cost, along with improvements in operation, system design, and technology have resulted in significant reduction in the cost of electricity. U.S. residential and commercial Photovolatic systems are 86% and 89% toward achieving SunShot’s 2020 electricity price targets, and U.S. utility-scale PV systems have achieved their 2020 SunShot target three years early.

Read NREL Report

Campus Energy and Sustainability Podcast

The Campus Energy and Sustainability Podcast is a project created by Dave Karlsgodt, a Principal at Fovea, LLC, based in Seattle, WA. Some of the podcasts highlight the efforts of our signatories.

Listen to Episodes

Open Now, Energy to Lead 2017 Competition

The REV Campus Challenge is administering the Energy to Lead Competition 2017, which will span the 2017-2018 academic year. NYSERDA will award up to $3 million in this round of the Energy to Lead competition, ranging from $250,000 to $1 million per award, to the colleges or universities with the leading solutions for implementing replicable clean energy projects that significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Proposals must be submitted by a REV Campus Challenge member institution. Proposals are due by January 29, 2018 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Learn more

FROM THE SECOND NATURE BLOG
Doom and Gloom versus Hope and Light- The Messaging Around Climate Change
This post was written by Climate Programs Intern Aviva Gersovitch

I came to the environmental movement from a cognitive science, psychology, and biology background.Something I’ve noticed recently during my time at Second Nature is the various ways that people talk about future climate change scenario predictions. There have been two camps that have stood out to me-  those who post eye-catching, sensational headline articles that propagate that humans have passed the point of no return, vs those who focus on the more positive messaging and movement building around the message that we have the power to take the future back into our own hands. So what is the value of alarmist publications such as these vs the more hopeful climate related movements?

Read more

CONNECT
New Partnership Profile

Creative partnerships allow Second Nature to introduce and disseminate solutions to the Network widely and effectively. Open Road Renewables is a utility-scale renewable energy project development company focused on the Mid-Atlantic (PJM region) and Texas (ERCOT region).  Open Road’s founders have decades of experience developing renewable energy projects that bring both savings and environmental benefits to customers like the signatory institutions within the Second Nature community. We hope to work together to demonstrate just how competitive off-site renewable energy has become.

Read more

Follow us on Instagram

We are officially on Instagram! Follow us and get a peek into what Second Nature is doing. Take a look, your institution may be featured there already.

TWEET
LIKE
FORWARD
Second Nature
18 Tremont Street, Suite 608
Boston, Massachusetts 02108
You are receiving this email because you subscribed to updates from Second Nature
Preferences  |  Unsubscribe