Energy conservation and reducing heat loss in buildings is a very powerful way to lower energy costs. Sometimes great savings can be realized with simple measures. This subject provides a great vehicle for teaching science content that is very relevant to everyone's daily life--and financial well-being. In this article, the author first discusses…

Equipment for demonstrating Newton's third law and the energy conservation law in mechanics have successfully been constructed utilizing fine spherical plastic beads in place of metal ball bearings. To demonstrate Newton's third law, special magnetized Petri dishes were employed as objects, while to examine the energy conservation law, a…

This article talks about how the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) embraced a precedent-setting green policy that would forever change its approach to education. The "greenprint" for how environmental design and construction could be done mandates that all new buildings funded with at least half of the funds from its $2.2…

The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, an African-American think tank based in Washington, D.C., convenes a commission to focus on the disparate impact of climate change on minority communities and help involve historically Black institutions in clean energy projects. Launched formally in July 2008, the Commission to Engage…

This article reports that with fuel prices soaring nationwide, reaching more than $4 for each gallon of gas or diesel, school districts are struggling to supplement transportation-budget shortfalls and find ways to offset the increasing costs as a new school year approaches. Now districts--most of whose buses run on diesel fuel--are scrambling to…

Sustainability is one of the leading issues of this time. Climate change is real, and widespread commitment and creativity are needed to combat its negative effects. Higher education is the seedbed of the sustainability movement. Much climate research and environmental science takes place on college and university campuses, which are, by their…

As a follow-up to the release of its "Guide to Financing EnergySmart Schools", the U.S. Department of Energy's EnergySmart Schools program hosted the National Financing Roundtable on February 5, 2009. This event was held prior to the seventh Annual High Performance Schools Symposium, hosted by the Council of Educational Facility Planners…

Emerging in recent years from the need for increased energy efficiency and conservation, greater reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, and stepped-up action to clean the environment, green jobs have arisen as a distinct employment sector within the U.S. and around the world. While social and political activists have taken the lead to make sure…

This article discusses why building commissioning for education institutions is needed. School facilities owners and operators should confirm whether their building systems are performing as expected. The more comprehensive the confirmation process, the greater opportunity there is for reducing operations and maintenance costs, and improving…

Since 2006, the APPA (Association of Higher Education Facilities Officers) Thought Leaders Series has brought together experts in higher education for two days of discussion about the challenges facing colleges and universities in North America. Energy and the environment were the focal points for the 2009 Thought Leaders Symposium, and the result…

Like homeowners with limited budgets and a long list of repairs, school districts often must make tough choices when it comes to deciding what building systems to modernize, renovate, or repair--or when to build new facilities. With $44 billion now available for states and schools under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, stimulus…

Through innovative teaching and technology, industry and educational institution partnerships, Cloud County Community College is preparing a qualified workforce for the emerging wind industry estimated to create 80,000 jobs by 2020. The curriculum blends on-campus, on-line and distance learning, land-lab, and field training opportunities for…

Service-learning is an instructional methodology teachers can use to foster student engagement in rigorous curricula. Through service-learning, middle level students see that what they are learning in school is real and important, and that they can be valued, contributing members of society. In this article, the Titans team at Remington Middle…

This article describes how the green phenomenon is spreading, especially among schools, which have found that not only are they being environmentally friendly, they are also saving big money. Green buildings focus on efficiency and renewable energy, water stewardship, environmentally preferable building materials and specifications, waste…

Greece's School Buildings Organisation (SBO) is developing bioclimatic pilot schemes which are yielding positive results. Bioclimatic action has been one of the principal priorities of Greek school infrastructure planning since 2004. Among the activities undertaken by SBO to use renewable energy sources in school buildings is a pilot project to…