My Perspective on the Atlanta UNCF Building Green Learning Institute
by Ukeme Esiet, on behalf of Second Nature team
Photo Credit: Ukeme Esiet, Second Nature
From April 8-10, 2010, the UNCF Institute for Capacity Building hosted its first Building Green Learning Institute at the Georgia Tech Hotel and Conference Center in Atlanta, GA. This institute convened decision-makers from over 50 minority serving institutions, primarily historically black colleges and universities, to advance sustainability and green infrastructural practices on their campuses. This was the first Learning Institute in the series of 3, within UNCF’s newly launched Building Green at Minority Serving Institutions Initiative.
Promoting Sustainable Campus Infrastructure
As a member of Second Nature’s Advancing Green Building in Higher Education Initiative, I had the opportunity to meet with the vice presidents, facilities directors and sustainability coordinators who have taken on important work of making their campuses models of sustainability. During the course of the institute, these administrators engaged in working sessions on financing green building, preservation of historic green buildings, energy efficiency and building retrofits, and the role of audits, certifications and assessments in promoting campus sustainability.
You can view excerpts of one of the panel sessions below.
I got the sense that the participants in the institute appreciated the content of the working sessions and the opportunity to learn from other institutions’ campus sustainability efforts. One participant remarked that the Atlanta Learning Institute was an opportunity for him to meet other facilities directors from his state to discuss their successes and challenges.
Photo Credit: Ukeme Esiet, Second Nature
From the Campus and Into the Community
As a student who is beginning his career, the Building Green Learning Institute was a great opportunity to meet with the professionals involved in the important work of promoting sustainability in higher education. Students from local institutions, such as Morehouse College, Spelman College and Clark Atlanta University, also used the learning institute to explore future careers in the area of sustainability and higher education.
Young activists such as Illai Kenney, Tony Anderson, and Daniel Blackman were also in attendance. Ms. Kenney, a student at Howard University and Southeast Student Organizer at the Responsible Endowments Coalition, interviewed Majora Carter on the Green Carpet and promoted student involvement in campus sustainability efforts. Mr. Anderson, a graduate of Morehouse College and a lead coordinator of Let’s Raise A Million, served as one of the MCs during the Institute and introduced Majora Carter’s keynote presentation. Mr. Blackman of GeorgiaPlanet.com promoted the work that was already being done in the local community and helped to connect the UNCF’s efforts to larger movement of healthy and sustainable communities.
The Learning Institute also did a good job of connecting the work of minority serving institutions to the larger community. Community representatives such as Rev. Gerald Durley of Providence Missionary Baptist Church, Lynette Young of Sustainable Atlanta, and Ira Blumenthal of the Captain Planet Foundation asserted the importance of campus sustainability efforts and their potential to energize the larger community. During her keynote presentation, Majora Carter focused on the environmental issues affecting communities and the potential for sustainability efforts at higher education institutions to create green collar jobs and healthier communities.
Photo Credit: Ukeme Esiet, Second Nature
Representatives from the business sector were also involved in the conversation. HOK and Woodline Solutions showcased their sustainable infrastructure projects during the institute, and HOK gave a detailed presentation on King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. George Bandy, Jr., VP of Sustainable Strategy and Diversity of InterfaceFLOR participated in a panel discussion on green building at colleges and universities, and expressed his hope for the future of sustainability among minority serving higher education institutions.
The Atlanta UNCF Building Green Learning Institute made a strong case for minority serving institutions to embrace sustainability in their infrastructure and campus operations. The facilities directors, vice presidents, and administrators in attendance embraced the opportunity to learn from the programs and share their experiences. In the forthcoming Learning Institutes, UNCF and Second Nature will continue to increase the capacity of minority serving higher education institutions to build green and become models of sustainability.
I invite you to participate in the May 6-8 Minneapolis and June 10-12 San Antonio Institutes, and learn more about the Building Green at MSIs Initiative and other programs within Second Nature’s Advancing Green Building in Higher Education Initiative.
More articles on the Atlanta Green Learning Institute:
- uesiet's blog
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