ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES INSTITUTE...
EnviroNews V O L U M E
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Help Design SCU’s New Education and Community Garden this Fall! If you haven’t picked up your ESI T-Shirt yet, please stop by the ESI office and get one in your size for only $11!
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
New Bug Emerges at ESI
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GPS Data Collectors Needed
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Baja 2010 Expedition
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Office of Sustainability
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Study Abroad in 6 Costa Rica Recap: Summer 7 2009 in Costa Inside Story
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ESI, working in partnership with Campus Facilities is leading the effort to build a new education and community garden for SCU on the vacant lot at the corner of Benton and Sherman streets a block north of campus. The garden will serve both the campus and the community as an educational facility, a source of healthy food, and a beautiful place to come together. Students in ENVS 132 Agroecology dug the first garden beds and planted the first crops during the spring quarter. Currently, most of the lot is covered in wood chips that were diverted from the landfill (approximately 60, 15 cubic yard truckloads!). These wood chips are part of an organic soilbuilding program designed to
bring the soil back to life so that it can produce lots of food and a great diversity of beautiful plants.
Students in the Spring 2009 Agroecology class tending to first crops in garden. For the last year and a half, students in several ESI classes have participated in garden design workshops, working in small groups contributing their ideas for what they would like to have in the garden and how they would structure it.
On Friday October 23rd at 2:30 PM we are having a Garden Planning Party. Everyone is invited to come and share their ideas for what should be in the garden and what it should it look like. All the drawings that students have done will be on display. We’ll use them as a starting point to collectively come up with a design for the garden that afternoon. We’ll spend the rest of the year building out the garden according to our community design. There will be lots of work parties and workshops and tons of great food and good times. Hope to see you in the garden! For more information email bug@scu.edu.
Letter From the Director Dear Friends of ESI, We are thrilled to be starting another academic year at ESI. Last year we went through a process called program review. We had two
professors visit and review our program, one from Bucknell University and another from Dickinson College, each of which have state-of-the-art environmental studies programs. One message came through loud and clear: We have been very successful in merging our academics and
programmatic offerings to enhance the learning environment for the SCU campus community. At ESI, there are many opportunities for students to get involved in campus and community sustainability through our new campus garden, our See Letter, Page 2
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Letter Continued from Page 1
Look what I found!
“With Father
sustainability outreach program and other innovative programs such as SLURP (Sustainable Living Undergraduate Research Project). These are just a few examples of programs that provide internship and praxis opportunities for students to obtain skills and training in a wide variety of areas, many of which have helped our students find jobs after graduation and develop a life-long vocation.
Engh’s commitment to environmental justice and our new core curriculum, we feel that ESI will play a key role in making things
Corps”, that will engage Americorps volunteers to improve community health and environments through gardening. This fall and winter, ESI will welcome three full-time Americorps volunteers and six part-time volunteers. They will help build our new campus and community garden and start working with community partners around gardens. Great things are blooming at ESI and we look forward to your participation!
Volunteers Needed to Collect GPS Data “Want to learn more about the Santa Clara Valley?” “Interested in internship opportunities?”
lands. Faculty are developing research related to both
CONTACT: Dr. Iris Stewart-Frey
ESI is looking for volunteers to collect GPS data related to the Guadalupe River, green zones, quarries, floodzones, and wet-
ronmental conditions and land use practices. No experience required, but a short training session is.
“Have wheels?”
happen here.” Leslie Gray
These sorts of co-curricular opportunities are just going to increase here at SCU. With Father Engh’s commitment to environmental justice and our new core curriculum, we feel that ESI will play a key role in making things happen here. One example of this is going to be our new Americorps program that will begin this fall. We are part of a large collaborative, collectively entitled the “Silicon Valley Health
IStewartFrey@scu.edu or Dr. Lisa Kealhofer current and historical envi-
LKealhofer@scu.edu
New Bug Emerges at ESI Just another day planting in the garden
This fall ESI, with the support of the College of Arts and Sciences, the Ignatian Center and the Food and Agribusiness Institute, is launching the Bronco Urban Garden (BUG) program, a new environmental justice outreach initiative. BUG will work with several com-
ENVIRONEWS
munity-based organizations and schools to help build and nurture community and school gardens in San Jose, improving community food security and environmental literacy. BUG is hiring three fulltime and six part-time
AmeriCorps members and is part of a major new AmeriCorps hub in the south bay called the Health Corps. The Health Corps consists of eleven organizations and is hiring a total of 14 full-time and 28 partSee Bug, Page 3
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Bug BUG is tied to the Arrupe Partnerships for Community Based Learning. There will be multiple opportunities starting this fall for students to do Arrupe urban gardening placements with BUG partners. In the winter quarter ENVS 196 Environmental Education Praxis will be focused on school gardens. Students can earn academic credit working with BUG school garden partners by enrolling in the class.
Continued from Page 2 time AmeriCorps positions for school garden, community garden, urban farm, and farm to school programs. (see http://www.healthtrust.org/ svhealthcorps/apply.php for more information) BUG Americorps members will help build new gardens (including SCU’s garden) and will provide teacher training, garden assistance, gardening resources and educational program support for our community partners. We will be working in the Gardner, Washington, Alma, and Alviso neighbor
For more information email bug@scu.edu
hoods this year.
Be Part of the Baja 2010 Experience... Download a Baja 2010 Application Here: http://www.scu.edu/cas/environmentalstudies/undergraduateinfo/coursedescriptions.cfm
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From the Office of Sustainability: New Student Interns
Hannah Slocum
“I help create and facilitate
My name is Hannah Slocum and I am a Junior Environmental Studies and History major. I started working with the Office of Sustainability as the Student Initiatives intern in October of 2008. When I get back from studying abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina, I will continue working on the Student Sustainability Convergence (SSC) and I will try to expand our school’s participation in the Graduation Pledge for Social and Environmental Responsibility. I’ll also be looking for new ways to increase students’ awareness of and involvement in SCU’s efforts to be more sustainable. I love traveling, going to the beach, and just being outdoors in my free time.
awareness, education, and sustainability promotion projects for student residence life.” Cara Uy
Cara Uy Hi, my name is Cara and I am a junior studying Communications & Environmental Studies. I became an intern at the Office of Sustainability this past August
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and am so happy to be a part of the ESI family. As the Sustainability Intern for Residence Life, I help create and facilitate awareness, education, and sustainability promotion projects for student residence life. Throughout the year, I will be developing conservationbased programming for Residential Learning Communities (RLC’s) and overseeing wastediversion programs associated with campus move-out. I enjoy being with friends and family, playing volleyball, and going on outdoor adventures. Aside from nature, I am also passionate about art and love traveling to new places.
Kaelin Holland Kaelin became the Recycling Intern for the Office of Sustainability in June 2009. She is a junior and is studying English & Environmental Studies. Kaelin is currently studying abroad in Cork, Ireland and will be back next quarter to fulfill her duties, which include engaging the campus community in fun recycling-related events such as the national competition of RecycleMania.
Kristin Sterling Kristin is a senior double majoring in Accounting and Environmental Studies. This year she is interning with the Office of Sustainability and will act as a resource for the staff and faculty on campus. Some of the projects she’s excited about include creating a Sustainable Event Planning Guide, as well as a Sustainable Office Award. Outside of school, she loves to relax with friends and family, eat, be outdoors, sleep, watch good movies, travel, and run. After graduation, she will be starting a full time position with Ernst & Young LLP in their Fraud Investigation and Dispute Services practice.
Chris Woodhouse Chris Woodhouse is a senior studying political science, environmental studies and economics. His internship this year will include updating the Web site and blog for the Office of Sustainability, in addition to following the LEED certification of the new student activities building. He likes to go running in his free time and loves hiking trails in his native state of Arizona.
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From the Office of Sustainability Cara Uy and other RecycleManiacs show the results of a trash audit in 2008.
Hannah Slocum leads a recycling toss game for students during Campus Sustainability Day 2008.
Broncos Can Compost New this Fall, the SCU community can compost their food waste! Deposit your compostable waste in the bright green bins in Market Square (Benson) or in the green bins in every residence hall’s exterior waste areas.
What can be composted: (anything that was once alive or is made of plant products!): food scraps, fruits, vegetables, bread, meat, fish, dairy, coffee grounds & filters, tea bags, Bon Appétit to go containers, utensils, napkins, plates, cups, pizza boxes!
Campus Sustainability Week October 19-23 Sustainability Fair Wednesday 10/21 (10am2pm in front of the Learning Commons) Stop by and visit to learn more about SCU’s sustainability initiatives and how to get involved!
The Forge Community Garden Design Party Friday 10/23 (2:30-4:30) Check out the Sustainability Calendar for more events! http://www.scu.edu/ sustainability/calendar.cfm
Mixed RecyclingNew! The program will rollout campus wide over the year, so keep a look out for new compost containers!
You can now recycle plastic (#1-7), aluminum, glass, tin and paper all in one container! Any container labeled “recycling” can accept those items.
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Study Abroad in Costa Rica Summer 2010 Field Course in Plant Ecology & Primate Behavior Second Summer Session (July 26-September 1, 2010) tion. Contact: Santa Clara Study Abroad: http://www.scu.edu/ studyabroad/
ANTH 197: Field Course: Primate Behavioral Ecology (Michelle Bridge over Rio La Suerte, LSFS, Costa Rica, Aug 2009
2009 Behavioral & Plant Ecology Class at La Suerte Field Station, Costa Rica
The Costa Rica summer program offers a small cohort of students the opportunity to experience the biodiversity of a Costa Rica tropical rainforest. All students in the Costa Rica study abroad program will enroll in two 5-unit courses: 1) ANTH 197: Field Course: Primate Behavioral Ecology; and, 2) ENVS 134: Plant Ecology in the Tropics. Students have two weeks of field instruction at Santa Clara, followed by two weeks at a La Suerte Biological Field Station in Costa Rica gaining hands-on experience in community ecology and animal behavior. Typical days will involve fieldwork (e.g. hiking, data collection) and afternoon lectures/ discussions. The final week of the course will take place at SCU and emphasizes data interpretation and presenta-
Bezanson: MBezanson@scu.edu) In this course we emphasize on-site anthropological field research with practical experience in the basic techniques of observation and field data analysis. Lectures emphasize core theoretical concepts in primatological research with examples from field studies of New World primates. Each student conducts independent data collection to produce a completed scientific paper where they are the sole author. They can use these results to present in classes, at a conference or research symposium, or to develop future projects. Great projects can be developed into publications to submit to peer-reviewed journals. Students also learn about the importance of the local community and how our role in research is not restricted to the academic community or our study subjects.
ENVS 134: Plant Ecology in the ENVIRONEWS
Tropics (Sean Watts: SWatts@scu.edu) This course is primarily focused on plant community ecology; including instruction in evolution, systematics, biogeography, plant defense, and pollination/dispersal syndromes‌ it just happens to incorporate some field work in tropical rainforest. Because the course has both a Californian (mediterranean-type climate) and Costa Rican (pre-montane rainforest) component, labs will compare the community ecology and diversity of similar
landscapes in each region. Extensive training in field methods will prepare students for these labs and the development of each student’s proposal for final projects. After this course students should have a basic ability to distinguish members of major plant families, an understanding of the biogeographic and ecological forcs that influence plant communities and practical experience in plant field ecological methods and the development of testable hypotheses.
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Summer in Costa Rica 2009 pendent projects and will present their results at the thirdDuring the summer of 2009, eight Santa Clara students atannual USES (Undergraduate Science and Engineering Symtended the second annual ten-unit field course in primate beposium). havioral ecology (Michelle Bezanson, Anthropology) and tropical plant ecology (Sean Watts, Environmental Studies Institute). We began the Student projects during summer 2009 include: course with a transect through the California Sierra 1) Bohner, Michelle (major: Bioengineering): The trend to measure plant communibetween fungal diversity, density, and forest ties for comparison to the development. site in Costa Rica. Students 2) McNamara, Christopher (major: Anthropology): Mon enjoyed excellent scenery, keying around: play behavior in Cebus capucinus and food (prepared by the foodie Alouatta palliata. instructors), and better un3) Morabito, Christian (major: Environmental Studies): derstood the role of acaThe ecological role of native and introduced palms demic-based research sta(Arecaceae). tions in science, conserva4) Rieke, Kristen (major: Studio Art): Seed dispersal in a tion, and surrounding com- Owl butterfly (Caligo sp.) resting under neotropical lowland wet forest. munities. We then traveled cabin at LSFS, Aug 2009. 5) Ruiz, Brendan (major: Anthropology): Diet and foragsouth to Costa Rica to exing strategies of juvenile Cebus capucinus and perience a slightly different climate. While preparing their Alouatta palliata. research projects, students learned about varying ecological 6) Salinas, Lily (major: Sociology): Environmental edufield methods, behavioral observation techniques, and about cation: promoting intergenerational learning. the field research process. When not working rigorously on 7) Wallis, Marianne (major: Biochemistry): A multifactheir projects students had opportunities to view nesting green eted look at pesticide use in Primavera, Limon, Costa sea turtles, enjoy a canopy tour (i.e., zipline) and view many Rica diverse forest creatures. Students completed exciting inde8) Watson, Owen (major: Environmental Studies): The intricacies and efficiency of foraging strategy of two carnivorous ant species. This year was especially exciting as we began several long-term projects at the field site in Costa Rica (thanks to partial support by URI). Four recent Santa Clara graduates arrived on September 3 to collect data on rain forest ecology, howler monkey vocalizations, primate gait sequences, and primate-tree interactions. Tracey Mangin (ENVS 09) and Miranda Melen (ENVS 09) are collecting data on forest structure and howler calls until November 2009. Tinah Barnett (ANTH 09) and Shawn Hanna (COMM 08) are studying primate gait, prehensile-tail use, and tree pruning until December 2009. Chris Melisi, who participated in the field course during summer 2008, returned to collect additional data on poisondart frog density and diversity. 2009 Behavioral & Plant Ecology Class near Sonora Pass, Sierra Nevada, California.
Environmental Studies Institute
Phone: (408) 551-7086
874 Lafayette St. Santa Clara, CA 95050
Fax: (408) 554-2312
www.scu.edu/envs
E-mail: esi@scu.edu