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Project Updates

  1. SSC Semesterly Report: Joint Pollinator Garden and Composting Systems to Offset Environmental Impact and Reinforce Responsible Stewardship in Research

    Associated Project(s): 
    Increase Pollinator-Friendly Areas
    Student Sustainability Committee (SSC)

    SSC received semesterly report for Fall 2021 for Joint Pollinator Garden and Composting Systems to Offset Environmental Impact and Reinforce Responsible Stewardship in Research on 12/17/2021. Please see attached. 

    Attached Files: 

  3. Article Accepted in Groundwater

    Associated Project(s): 
    Illinois Geothermal Coalition

    From: cs-author@wiley.com <cs-author@wiley.com>
    Sent: Monday, December 27, 2021 6:15 PM
    To: Lin, Yu-Feng <yflin at illinois.edu>
    Subject: In Production: Your article accepted in Groundwater

     

    Dear YU-FENG F. LIN,

    Article ID: GWAT13159
    Article DOI: 10.1111/gwat.13159
    Internal Article ID: 17279842
    Article: Coupling a borehole thermal model and MT3DMS to simulate dynamic ground source heat pump efficiency
    Journal: Groundwater

    Congratulations on the acceptance of your article for publication in Groundwater.

    Your article has been received and the production process is now underway. We look forward to working with you and publishing your article. Using Wiley Author Services, you can track your article’s progress.


    Please click below to login - if you are using a different email address than this one, you will need to manually assign this article to your Dashboard (see How do I assign a missing article to My Dashboard?):

    Link to Author Services: https://authorservices.wiley.com/index.html#article/17279842?campaign=email_invitation-new

    If applicable, a list of available actions will appear below – check out your Author Services Dashboard for all actions related to your articles.

    Track your article's progress to publication
    Access your published article


    If you need any assistance, please click here to view our Help section.

    Sincerely,
    Wiley Author Services

  4. Geothermal @ CIF Inquiry

    Associated Project(s): 
    Geothermal at the Campus Instructional Facility (CIF)

    John Zhao, PhD. Candidate, reached out to Dr. Stumpf with a question regarding the CIF's geothermal capacity. Specifically, the question was, "The description of this project https://icap.sustainability.illinois.edu/project/geothermal-campus-instructional-facility-cif  says:'The optimized geothermal exchange system will supply the CIF building with approximately 135 tons of heating and cooling capacity, equivalent to almost 65% of the total building energy demand.' I am checking if the GSHP only covers the 65% of the building space conditioning, or the heating/cooling account for 65% of the total electricity consumption (considering lighting, and etc.)?"

    Dr Stumpf replied explaining that the 135 tons is 65% of the building's energy demand and the GSHPS (ground source heat pump) covers this portion. The GSHPS is primarily used to offset energy for making chilled water since the building is cooling dominated. The other 35% is for electricity (making hot water, running HVAC system, geothermal and water pumps, etc.)

    Zhao met with Eric Vetter (in charge of the CIF) and got the following heat pump capacity information:

    Manufacturer: ClimaCool Corporation

    Cooling Capacity: 141 Ton /  1,692 MBH

    Heating Capacity: 2,222 MBH

    Electricity Input: At full capacity rated 100.4 - 144.3 kW.

  6. LA537 Final Presentation

    Associated Project(s): 
    Green Infrastructure
    Independent Student Projects

    From: Hu, Jie
    Sent: Tuesday, December 21, 2021 11:27 AM
    To: Hays, David Lyle; Ruggles, D Fairchild; Sullivan, William C; White, Morgan; McGuire, Mary Patricia
    Subject: LA537 final presentation materials

    Dear All,


    Thanks for Dede, Bill and Morgan to be juries and participant to LA 537 final presentation, and thanks for all of you comments and suggestions!
    After the presentation, students has revised their final submission materials. I have put all of their final works here in the box. I hope you can give more comments, suggestions and ideas to help me further improve my studio teaching.


    Thank you for all of your support and help!


    Enjoy your winter break! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
    Jie

  7. Invitation to work in LA537-Fall, 2021 Final Presentation" folder on Box

    Associated Project(s): 
    Independent Student Projects
    Green Infrastructure

    From: Jie Hu <noreply@box.com>
    Sent: Tuesday, December 21, 2021 11:12 AM
    To: White, Morgan
    Subject: Jie Hu has invited you to work together in "LA537-Fall, 2021 Final Presentation" folder on Box


    Jie Hu wants to work with you on LA537-Fall, 2021 Final Presentation


    "I'd like to share my files with you on Box."

     

    Attached Files: 

  8. Archived Info - Project Description

    Associated Project(s): 
    EPA Green Power Partner

    The Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that encourages organizations to use green power as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity use. The Partnership has more than 1,700 Partner organizations voluntarily using billions of kilowatt-hours of green power annually. Partners include a wide variety of leading organizations such as Fortune 500® companies, small and medium sized businesses, local, state, and federal governments, and colleges and universities.

    In May 2015, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign was officially recognized as a Green Power Partner for its purchase of electricity from clean, renewable sources. This designation has been renewed annually, through the continued dedication to a clean energy future for the Urbana-Champaign campus.  In the early years of this designation, our campus needed 3% of the power to be coming from renewable sources, and starting in 2020 the requirement was increased to 7%.

    As a Green Power Partner, Illinois joins seven other Big Ten universities in winning the EPA’s Collective Conference Champion Award for the last four years in a row (as of 2019). This award recognizes the collegiate athletic conference, and its member schools, with the highest combined green power use in the nation. The Big Ten’s collective green power use of more than 516 million kWh is equivalent to the electricity use of nearly 47,000 US homes.

  9. A Visual Story of Illinois' New Champion Carolina Silverbell

    Associated Project(s): 
    Tree Campus Higher Education

    From: Hayek, Jay C <jhayek at illinois.edu>
    To: White, Morgan <mbwhite at illinois.edu>; Lewis, Brent C <bcl at illinois.edu>; McSweeney, Kevin <mcsween at illinois.edu>; Soltis, Sinead (FandS) <fandsssolti2 at mx.uillinois.edu>
    Subject: A Visual Story of Illinois' New Champion Carolina Silverbell (Not for Public Consumption Yet)

     

    Morning Everyone:

     

    Below is an ArcGIS StoryMap project that I’ve been working on recently.  I haven’t made it totally “public” yet as I’m asking for feedback on how it loads and looks on your computers/devices.

     

    Title: A Visual Story of Illinois' New Champion Carolina Silverbell

     

    URL: https://go.illinois.edu/presidents-silverbell

     

    Best regards,

    Jay C. Hayek, Extension Forestry Specialist

    SAWW Certified Chainsaw Safety Trainer

    Chairman; IL Forestry Development Council

    Dept. of Natural Resources & Env. Sciences

    University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

    Office: (217) 244-0534

    Email: jhayek at illinois.edu

    Web: https://extension.illinois.edu/forestry

      

     instagram    linkedin   facebook  

    signature_1239093234

     

    Standard US Mailing Address

    W-521 Turner Hall (MC-047)

    1102 S. Goodwin Ave.

    Urbana, IL 61801

     

    Packages: UPS, USPS, FedEx, DHL

    W-512A Turner Hall (MC-047)

    1102 S. Goodwin Ave.

    Urbana, IL 61801

     

  11. New iSEE Green Chapter Certification

    Associated Project(s): 
    Certified Greener Campus Programs
    Certified Green Chapter Program

    Congratulations to our newest Green Chapter Certification! Alpha Kappa Psi Professional Business Fraternity received gold certification status as of December 2021. They committed to twenty-one actions that further their sustainability initiatives. They notably had forty-nine chapter members commit to using reusable water bottles instead of drinking bottled water. Twenty-four members also pledged to use active transportation for local travel. 

    Keep up the great work!

  13. Funding Approval for Grind2Energy

    Associated Project(s): 
    Grind2Energy
    Utilize Carbon Credits
    Carbon Credit Purchasing Program (C2P2) with Second Nature

    Ehab Kamarah and Madhu Khanna approved $135,000 of funding from the Carbon Credit Sales Fund for the Grind2Energy system.

    "This project will install the Grind2Energy system for food waste at the Lincoln Avenue
    Dining Hall on campus... Housing has successfully installed the Grind2Enery system as a sustainable solution for dining hall pre-consumer and post-consumer food waste in four of the five dining halls. This funding would allow them to complete the final installation before the student body returns in fall 2022." -Morgan White (12/14/2021)

     

    An email of approval is attached below.

    Attached Files: 

  15. UPD Climate Change Event Planning - Aug 2022

    Associated Project(s): 
    Urbana Park District (UPD) Climate Action, Resilience, Education and Sustainability (CARES) Plan

    Hello, friends!

    I am planning a large climate-change-focused community event for August 22-29, 2022, to take place at Crystal Lake Park in Urbana. We are seeking community partners to get involved in planning (especially partners who reflect the wide diversity of our community). I am reaching out here just as a feeler to start…

    ·Would you or someone from your workplace like to be invited to a planning meeting in the coming month?

    ·Is there anyone you recommend I reach out to?

    ·Do any of you know who used to plan the Green Fair-type events that were at Research Park several years ago?

     

    Thanks in advance for any suggestions you might have for me!

     

    A very rough draft of a schedule and activities is included below, so you can get an idea about what we’re thinking. This is all subject to change, of course!

     

    Sat, Aug 20

    Candlelight Symphony Boat Event (Janet)

    Climate Fresk workshop(s) for youth and/or adults (Savannah) (David?)

    Mon, Aug 22

    Talk: Climate Change in Champaign County (Savannah; Climate Reality)

     

    Tues, Aug 23

    Talk: IL State Climatologist Trent Ford (or Jim Angel?)

     

    Wed, Aug 24

    Program: sustainable cooking / food

     

    Th, Aug 25

    Talk: IL Clinicians for Climate Action

     

    Fri, Aug 26

    Movie Screening (w/ free food?)

    C4 Green Drinks

    ·Involve Riggs / “uncorked” / craft beer

    Sat, Aug 27

    Main Event:

    ·Green Vehicles “Touch a Truck”

    ·Live Music

    ·Tree planting / care (Ryan Pankau?)

    ·Community Bike Rodeo / other biking component (Open Road @ CLP)

    ·Public Input opportunities

    ·Create community art piece (something to leave behind after the event)

    ·End with nighttime luminaire “reflection” event on the lake

     

    Sun, Aug 28

    Rain Date: Main Event

     

     

    To add to draft schedule??:

    • “Run for the Sun” fun run?
    • KRT bike ride?
    • Recycling component/collection
    • Community art display
    • TickTock contest?

     

     

    Thanks again, and Happy Holidays!

    Savannah

     

    UPD Logo 2020

    Savannah Donovan (she/her)
    Environmental Program Manager

    President-Elect, Environmental Education Assoc. of IL

    p: 217-384-4062 ext. 359 | f: 217-384-1052
    Anita Purves Nature Center | Urbana Park District

    1505 N. Broadway Ave. Urbana, IL 61801

    Read our Strategic Plan

    Read our COVID-19 Facility Guidelines

    www.urbanaparks.org

    You belong

  17. Weekly Update: Kids' Bike Giveaway event; Outdoor bike pump; CBC closing for winter break

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, The Kid’s Bike Giveaway event was held on Saturday afternoon. We gave away 60 bikes and still have 20 left. Ideally, we would’ve given them all away, but no one left disappointed, which is very much worth the extra time and effort of moving 20 bikes back into the shop. We had 7 people volunteering, so it was quick work. We’ll put the word out this week that anyone who didn’t get a bike is welcome to stop by the Urbana Bike Project during open hours (Wed/Thurs 6:30 – 9; Sat/Sun by appointment) to pick out a bike from our leftovers. Depending on volunteer availability off-hours pick-ups might be doable, too.

    Thanks to everyone who helped with the event and helped spread the word! We were able to give away 15 more bikes than we did last year.

    Last week I was finally able to fully rebuild the outdoor bike pump with new and heavier duty parts that should last the winter. So far no one’s tried to drive their car up to the pump and air their car tires like they did when the station was by the curb on Pennsylvania. 

    This week I’ll turn our attentions to refurbishing. We should have a half dozen bikes on the sales floor by Friday. We’ve worked through the easy fixes and are left with the fun stuff: dusty, old 3 speeds, 10 speed Schwinns and the like. Now we can start in earnest building up our stock for the spring rush—although, with the unseasonably warm temps this week, we may be too busy to make much headway. A good problem to have.

    We’re closing for Winter Break after Friday. Reopening date is TBD.

    The numbers:

    Visitors:
    Sales: $71*
    Memberships: 1 for $30
    Tires/tubes: 3 for $13

    *We’ve reinstated the First Visit Free policy which deflates our sales numbers compared to our mandated memberships for the summer/fall.

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Campus Bike Center Coordinator

  19. Request for Meeting

    Associated Project(s): 
    iSEE funding for Campus as a Living Lab (CALL)
    iSEE Campus as a Living Lab (CALL) Projects

    From: Guest, Jeremy S <jsguest at illinois.edu>
    Sent: Saturday, November 20, 2021 8:07 AM
    To: Verma, Vishal <vverma at illinois.edu>; Cusick, Roland <rcusick at illinois.edu>; Geiger, Sarah Dee <smurphy7 at illinois.edu>
    Cc: Rosenbery, Amy Nichole <husted at illinois.edu>; Khanna, Madhu <khanna1 at illinois.edu>; Cai, Ximing <xmcai at illinois.edu>; White, Morgan <mbwhite at illinois.edu>; Kokini, Eugenie Jenny <jkokini at illinois.edu>
    Subject: iSEE Campus as a Living Lab Proposal - Request for Meeting

     

    Vishal, Roland, and Sarah,

     

    Thank you for submitting a proposal for Campus as a Living Lab funding from the Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE). I am pleased to share with you that your proposal was well reviewed. In particular, it was noted that the focus engaging with the 5th and Hill neighborhood is directly in-line with campus goals to address local sustainability challenges, as highlighted in the Illinois Climate Action Plan (https://icap.sustainability.illinois.edu/files/project/5293/iCAP-2020-FINAL-WEB.pdf; https://icap.sustainability.illinois.edu/). 

     

    At this time, we would like to move to the next step the proposal review process and meet with you and your team to learn more about your plans, discuss iSEE expectations for funded teams, and answer any questions you may have. I am copying Amy Rosenbery, who will help coordinate scheduling for a meeting some time between November 29-December 3 or December 6-10. For the meeting we will try to include (if possible) your full team, Madhu Khanna, Jenny Kokini, and me, as well as Ximing Cai and Morgan White who lead our Campus as a Living Lab efforts.

     

    One additional items is that we noted that CVs and Current & Pending documents were not included in the original submittal. Please submit these documents in advance of our meeting. Templates (if you require them) can be found on the seed funding website: https://sustainability.illinois.edu/research/campus-as-a-living-laboratory-research-campus-sustainability-working-together/. Any similar format is acceptable, however.

     

    We look forward to discussing your proposed project in more detail. Amy will be in touch in the coming week to help find a time for us to meet.

     

    Have a wonderful weekend!


    - Jeremy

     

    -------------------------------------------------
    Jeremy S. Guest, Ph.D.

    Pronouns: he, him, his
    Associate Professor

        Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering

    Acting Associate Director for Research

        Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (iSEE)

    University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
    3221 Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory, MC-250
    205 North Mathews Avenue
    Urbana, IL 61801-2352
    Phone:  (217) 244-9247
    E-Mail:  jsguest at illinois.edu 
    Guest Group Website:  http://engineeringforsustainability.com/
    iSEE Website: https://sustainability.illinois.edu/

    IBM-Illinois DAI Website: https://discoveryacceleratorinstitute.grainger.illinois.edu/

    Google Scholar Profile

     

    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Eugenie Kokini replied saying that there is approved funding available and is expecting the budget to be released.

  20. Acknowledgement and Confirmation

    Associated Project(s): 
    Solar Farm 1.0

    Anthony Spurlock wants to discuss the buyout options after 7 or 10 years, the determination of fair market value, and the ongoing maintenance requirements for Solar Farm 1.0 by the end of the year with Rockwell Finance. 

    Allen Wilson from Rockwell Finance sent an Acknowledgement and Confirmation with respect to Solar Farm 1.0 for the University's Board of Trustees' review and signature. The original financial partner (MB Bank) was acquired by Fifth Third Bank. The asset is being discussed with Fifth Third and being moved to Fifth Third's solar financing program and Wilmington Trust is being incorporated as a trustee for the project. 

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