Global warming isn’t a newly discovered topic. It’s been around for centuries but has lately been drastically increasing since the influence of the Industrial Revolution. “The Little Ice Age” accounts for the beginning of today’s global warming. The Little Ice Age spans from 1300-1850 AD which preceded the Industrial Revolution, which started late in the 18th C. Currently global warming is an issue that is highly publicized, and a lot of time and care has been put into its awareness. Global warming is a highly important topic because without any care or attention, the Earth could result in unlivable conditions for the future and possibly kill off all existence. Why should young adults care now, and why should college students, especially, pay attention to the topic? “…The average student is more concerned about the exam tomorrow than the temperature 100 years from now.”1 It may be correct to state that college students are more concerned about their personal welfare than the national and/or global welfare, but setting aside time and efforts can lead to a better future. The youth now are the next generation in control, and by raising awareness with students they will be more prone to making rational and educated decisions in the future. If college campuses become more eco-friendly and lessen their emissions, then future generations will have an example to base their own decisions. Some of these include: gas friendly or gas-free vehicles, low energy intake homes and an idealistic family size.
I currently attend Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and I know that it is a small campus set in a large country. I believe that IUP can contribute to lowering harmful emissions and making an impact on global warming. I have done some research about other campuses nation-wide that have helped in the war against global warming. Some campuses have dedicated millions of dollars in solar panels, more efficient energy systems, recycling, and an overall lowering of emissions that are contributing toward a warmer Earth. My research is intended to compare those colleges with my own. With my research, alongside of finding out IUP’s contribution to global warming, I also want to briefly discuss what global warming is and what factors play into it: What contributes to it? What started awareness of the climate change? What is causing the climate change? How has industrialization contributed to global warming? What will happen to the future if we don’t act now? Global warming is a worldwide issue that has provoked many American colleges and universities to act accordingly to the situation by lowering their impact on the environment. I intend to compare and contrast my university, IUP, to other schools nation-wide so that I can make recommendations to IUP as to how to better their efforts at reducing their carbon footprint and making a cleaner, more sustainable campus.
My hypothesis is that IUP does not compare to colleges like Penn State University and Carnegie Mellon – schools that have been ranked on Sierra magazine’s “Top 10 Coolest Schools” list. Both have greatly contributed to reducing their emissions and energy use.2 My expected results will be that IUP will have opportunities to become more eco-friendly. I plan to help spread awareness of my campus’s high impact on raising the climate temperature. I know there is a group on campus devoted to these issues and that IUP doesn’t recognize “Focus the Nation” as a legitimate school-sanctioned organization – a branch of a national organization developed by Eban Goodstein, an economics professor at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon.3
Global warming is important for many reasons. An example of how global warming could affect Indiana, PA is that in a few decades a normal sunny 80-degree day will turn into a hot and humid 120-degree Louisiana day. There will be severe changes in climate in places like the Polar Regions resulting in melting snow and ice and rising sea levels. With increasing sea levels, many coastal cities, like New York City, will be flooded and Manhattan will no longer be in existence. Aside from major cities disappearing, many islands will be gone as well as a part of history. Many fossil fuels will be depleted, and if we don’t act now, we will not have a solution for heating, cooling or transportation. Global warming is something that current generations need to act upon now and find solutions to our industrialized problems. We jump-started this phenomenon and now we need to find solutions. There are many things that one can do on a personal level, such as replacing high-energy light bulbs with low-energy ones and driving less or driving a hybrid car. Global warming is not just a myth but something that needs to be taken care of, and I feel that starting on a college level will help spread awareness and promote rational decisions for the future.
Global Warming: What is it?
I have heard the term “global warming” before, but others do not know what causes it. There are a few factors that contribute to global warming, such as greenhouse emissions, the oceans and industrialization.
The Earth has a natural greenhouse effect that controls the temperature of the atmosphere. It is controlled by a balance between the input of the sun’s rays and the loss of them back into space. There are some gases that are critical to this process that can make or break the temperature. Short-wave radiation is the form of measurement that the Earth receives from the sun, for example the visible spectrum and ultraviolet radiation. Approximately one-third of this radiation that the Earth receives is then reflected back into space. The remaining two-thirds is then kept within our atmosphere, but the majority is absorbed into the land or into the oceans. As a result, the Earth’s surface is then warmed and emits long-wave ‘infrared’ radiation. The rest of the radiation cannot escape and will then be trapped by the greenhouse gases to warm the atmosphere. The Earth is naturally warmed at thirty-five degrees Celsius by the greenhouse gases. These gases include: water vapor, carbon dioxide, ozone, methane and nitrous oxide, which create a blanket-effect in the atmosphere. These molecules are mixed throughout the atmosphere but are often shown in diagrams as one layer to create the blanket-effect.4
Another way to understand how the greenhouse effect is naturally occurring is to compare it to its two nearest neighbors, Mars and Venus. The climate of a planet is determined by a few factors: its mass, its distance from the sun and the composition of its atmosphere, but most importantly, its amount of greenhouse gases. Mars, as an example, is very weak which makes its gravity too small to retain a dense atmosphere. The atmosphere of Mars compared to Earth’s is about one hundred times more dense and consists mainly of carbon dioxide. The small amount of carbon dioxide, that exists, is frozen into the ground making the planet on average to be -50 degrees Celsius. Venus, which has about the same mass size as Earth but a much more dense atmosphere, is comprised of 96 percent carbon dioxide. This extreme amount of carbon dioxide creates a strong global warming and makes the average temperatures to be around 460 degrees Celsius.5
Seventy-eight percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen and one percent other gases is the main composition of the Earth’s atmosphere. The one percent of “other gases” is the main factor that scientists are interested in for global warming. Carbon dioxide and water vapor are the two main greenhouse gases, with carbon dioxide making up three-one hundredths to four one-hundredths of a percent of the atmosphere and water vapor varying from zero to two percent. Although these two small percentages make up a small portion of the atmosphere, without them the Earth’s temperature would be approximately -20 degrees Celsius. The comparison with the climates on Mars and Venus is very stark because of the different thicknesses of their atmospheres and the relative amount of greenhouse gases. Since the water vapor and carbon dioxide varies on Earth, it produces an unstable and unpredictable greenhouse effect in comparison to that of Mars and Venus.6
In order to figure out the importance of carbon dioxide, studying the past has given us a keen sense of how it plays an important role in our atmosphere and global climate. From great ice ages to milder conditions than today’s environment, we are able to understand the role of carbon dioxide. Over the past two and a half million years the Earth has gone through climate stages. But how do scientists know what the role of carbon dioxide has been and that we’ve had these ice ages? Because of present day technology, we are able to explore Antarctica and Greenland by drilling down many kilometers into the cores of ice. When snow falls, it contains a lot of air molecules and then is compacted into solid ice blocks for many centuries. Scientists are then able to extract these small air bubbles from the ancient ice and measure the greenhouse gases that were present in past atmospheres. Scientists have been able to measure down more than two miles into both Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, which has enabled them to reconstruct the amount of greenhouse gases that have occurred over the last half a million years. Scientists have also been able to determine the global temperatures by the levels of oxygen and hydrogen isotopes present in the ice cores. The results have been striking with such results from carbon dioxide and methane co-varying over the last 400,000 years. This information strongly supports the idea that carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and the global temperature are closely linked. It is shown that whenever carbon dioxide and methane increase, the temperature of the Earth also increases and vice-versa.
The greatest concern for the future is that if we keep increasing the levels of carbon dioxide and methane in our atmosphere, then the Earth’s temperature will also increase, resulting in a much hotter world. By studying the past, we are able to predict what could and will happen in the future. In studies of ice cores, lakes and deep-sea exploration, there have been worries that the temperature is unstable and unpredictable since it follows a non-linear path. This is why we should be worried about sudden and dramatic changes when the greenhouse gas levels reach an unknown trigger point in the future.7
The Industrial Revolution created a trigger that has been increasing the levels of greenhouse gases. The debate on industrialization has created a universally accepted idea that there is proof that industrialization has contributed to the dramatically sudden increases in greenhouse gases. Since 1958, greenhouse gases have been increasing in a study done in a remote area four thousand meters on the summit of Mauna Loa Mountain in Hawaii. This spot was chosen so that industrialization and pollution were not factors in the measurements. In 1958, the average parts per million by volume(ppmv) was at 316 and has risen to 369ppmv in 1998. The annual variations in Mauna Loa are most likely due to carbon dioxide uptake by growing plants. The highest uptake is in the Northern Hemisphere at springtime. Every spring there is a drop in atmospheric carbon dioxide, which unfortunately does nothing to the overall trend towards the higher values. With the Mauna Loa study combined with the ice core studies, we are able to record the levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. This shows that the atmospheric carbon dioxide has increased from the pre-industrialized globe with a concentration of 280ppmv to over 370ppmv in the present day, that’s a 30% increase and 160 billion tonnes. To put this drastic increase into perspective, we can look at the last ice age and the pre-industrialized age. With supporting evidence from ice cores, the level of carbon dioxide in the ice age was about 200ppmv and the levels in the pre-industrialized ages were at 280ppmv – an increase of over 160 billion tonnes – almost the same carbon dioxide pollution that we have put into the atmosphere during the last 100 years. From the last ice age, the world has gained six degrees Celsius in temperature. The ultimate reason to the end of the last ice age was due to the Earth finding a new circular orbit around the sun. Scientists that study the past climates have realized the central role atmospheric carbon dioxide has as a climate feedback translating these external variations into the coming and going of ice ages. In simpler terms, the pollution we have produced within the past one hundred years is equivalent to the natural patterns of thousands of years. In other words, we have drastically sped up the process of greenhouse gases collecting without giving them anytime to be released back into space. Our Earth and atmosphere is getting hotter more quickly than expected.8
Literature Review
There are many colleges across the nation that have decided to “go green” for the sake of the Earth and humankind. I found a lot of magazine articles and newspaper articles that address the efforts that some colleges have done to help lower emissions in the war against global warming.
As of June 13, 2007, a total of 284 colleges have signed on board and pledged to help lower emissions that contribute to global warming. Five of these colleges are from western Pennsylvania, including Chatham University, the University of Pittsburgh at Titusville and Allegheny, Juniata College and Washington and Jefferson College. With their commitment, they agree to inventory all greenhouse emission from the electricity, heating, commuting and air travel systems every other year. In addition to monitoring systems, the campuses also agree to set a date to become “climate neutral” which means to have a net impact of zero emissions from carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases. Ways their campuses plan to reduce their ecological impact are by constructing energy-efficient buildings and buying energy-efficient appliances, encouraging the use of public transportation instead of driving to school or producing at least 15 percent of their electricity from renewable sources. From the previously mentioned colleges, Chatham already gets 10 percent of its energy from wind sources. A college not listed on the above but is already well advanced in cutting greenhouse emissions is Carnegie Mellon, who is probably the most aggressive college to make an effort. There are a total of 22 buildings in downtown Pittsburgh that are certified by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program, six of which are on the campus at Carnegie Mellon. A nearby landfill in Johnstown is the main natural gas provider to Carnegie, and it plans to get 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources in 2008. Pittsburgh University has also embarked on a campaign towards energy conservation that has saved the school $21 million over the past 10 years. Since 1997, the cost of energy has gone from $12 million a year to $44 million. To combat the rising cost of energy the school has installed light sensors to detect motion to automatically shut off whenever there is no activity. It has also upgraded the chilled water plant at Posvar Hall. Duquesne University, also in Pittsburgh, generates 85 percent of its own electricity with a natural gas turbine and plans to get all of its buildings LEED-certified within five to ten years. Another two Pennsylvania schools, Slippery Rock University and St. Francis University of Loretto, operate their own wind turbines.9
On the opposite side of the state from Pittsburgh, Philadelphia-based schools are also cutting greenhouse gases. Philadelphia University’s biology professor, Anne Bower, has tried to convince her students that global warming is real and that it was hurting the planet at a fast speed. Bower states, “Global warming is resonating with students and they want to know what they can do to help.”10 Philadelphia University is a school that is involved with Focus the Nation, which is a grassroots effort that joins together teachers, students, scientists and legislators to come up with a solution for the biggest problem of our century. More than fifteen hundred schools signed up for the one-day event in February 2008. This day focused on teaching others and spreading awareness about global warming. “They get that global warming is bad is real,” Eban Goodstein, an author of several environmental books, “but they don’t realize how short the window for action is if we’re going to have a substantive impact. I have an 18-year-old daughter, and this is really her future we’re talking about.”11 Focus the Nation helps deliver to students concrete solutions. “Many, many people on campuses are sick of hearing that the world is coming to an end. They want to hear about solutions, and they want to hear from their political leaders.”12
At Ursinus College in Collegeville, a senior, Victoria Bisbing says, “Many people my age don’t even really think about the war in Iraq because it’s not happening here, but the environment is all around us, so they are more concerned with that.”13 More schools are working on limiting their dependence on energy sources that emit greenhouse gases. Swarthmore College plans to use 35 percent of its total energy needs from wind-powered sources. In a competition to reduce waste, the University of Pennsylvania has joined RecycleMania, which more than 100 colleges have joined. Other universities are upgrading their buildings by either building completely new ones or making improvements on currently existing ones. Some ways these schools are becoming more energy-efficient are by adding water-saving mechanisms, solar panels and plant-covered walls and rooftops. In a pledge for “climate neutrality,” more than 130 campuses have signed on. Rowan University has recently announced that it was moving towards single-stream recycling, which allows various types of recyclables going into one bin and will participate with lectures about global warming for Focus the Nation.14 “This is the greatest generation,” Goodstein says of today’s college students. “If you look at the work they’re going to have to do, they’ll have to rewire the entire planet with clean-energy technology. As educators, we need to get them ready to do that.”15
In the 1960s, college students had a peace movement, but today in the 2000s, another movement is starting within the halls, towers and quads of higher education: an environmental movement. Students and professors alike are joining to combat global warming by trying to spread awareness to the public and make an impact on our government to cut their reliance on fossil fuels. Students and professor’s gathered in a two-day environmental awareness symposium at Lehigh University, Lafayette College and Moravian College, as well as other institutions nationwide, to state that their cause is extremely important, but perhaps, very hard to sell. “Global warming is not touching young people in the same explosive way as the draft was,” stated Seth Moglen, an English professor for Lehigh. “But young people in this country and around the world are beginning to look at environmental issues as their crisis. And global warming is a lot harder to stop than a war.”16 The president of Lafayette, Daniel Weiss, is the first head of a local higher education system to sign the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment. This is a pledge to help reduce greenhouse gases and energy use on campuses. Professors agree that change starts with individuals and not the government. Christopher Ruebeck, an assistant professor for economics and business at Lafayette, touched on a report from the National Bureau of Economic Research that suggested younger people, under 65, are willing to pay for keeping our environment safe. Diane Husic, chairwoman of Moravian’s Department of Biological Sciences, said, “I learned how engaged students are with respect to the topic of global climate change, and that they are optimistic that their generation will find solutions to the problem.”17 Students at Lehigh University have started a new club, Environment Coalition, in hopes to aspire other campuses to join in the efforts.18 “We want a change in [government] policy, a change in attitudes so we don’t have any more people who think global warming is a myth,” 21-year-old Lehigh student Elizabeth Swiatek. “We are here to stay and we are a model.”19
In New York, the state’s fight against global warming has now turned local. Steve Breyman, 47, is the new project coordinator for former Governor Eliot Spitzer’s Climate Neutral Government and Institutional Operations for the Climate Office. Breyman’s job will be to help mayors, supervisors and college presidents to find ways to reduce greenhouse gases from the main structures on campuses and the vehicles that provide transportation. Breyman states, “We are putting together a tool-kit to help them measure emissions, and then find ways to cut. We want to be able to offer solutions that have our seal of approval.”20 Albany, Schenectady, Oneota, Ithaca, Rochester, Syracuse and Buffalo, along with more than 500 other cities, have signed the mayors’ agreement. Within this agreement, these cities pledge to: strive to meet or beat the Kyoto Protocol- a seven percent reduction from 1990 levels by 2012, targets in their own communities, through actions ranging from anti-sprawl land-use policies to urban forest restoration projects to public information campaigns, to urge state and federal officials to meet greenhouse gas emission reduction targets suggested for the United States in the Kyoto Protocol and to urge Congress to pass greenhouse gas reduction legislation, which would establish a national emission trading system. Two schools within the Capital Region, The College of Saint Rose and Union College, are among 471 other colleges and universities that have signed the agreement to go “climate neutral” within two years. The arts center at Saint Rose has applied for the LEED Gold designation, which would make it amongst one of the greenest buildings in the Capital Region. This building’s innovations include geothermal heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system that will tap the natural temperature of Earth to heat and cool the building, eliminating the need to burn fossil fuel for heat or installing a cooling tower for the air conditioning system.21
Area universities are turning “green’ from everything to building construction to energy conservation to cage-free eggs and organic granola. Sierra Magazine named Carnegie Mellon University and Penn State University two of its “10 Coolest Schools” for their efforts to address global warming. Carnegie Mellon earned it’s rank by having student-designed roofs, coined “green”, on several of their buildings. The university is the first to have an eco-friendly dorm and a collaborative research center with a modular-raised floor system that doubles the amount of fresh air that circulates within the building. Sierra commended Penn State for committing to a system-wide goal of environmental building construction practices. Penn State spends about $10 million a year to make the existing buildings more energy efficient, and by 2012 they plan to have a 17.5 percent decrease in greenhouse emissions. The University of Pittsburgh also moved up on Sierra’s grading scale as it went from a “D” grade to a “C-”. Carnegie Mellon went from a “C+” to a “B-” and Penn State from a “C+” to a “B”. Penn State spokesman Geoffrey Rushton said, “We appreciate the recognition of Penn State as a leader in campus sustainability and our ongoing commitment to environmental initiatives.”22 The higher grades from these three schools reflect an overall nationwide trend of improvement, with two out of every three schools improving their environmental performance. Mark Orlowski, executive director of the Sustainable Endowments Institute, a Massachusetts-based nonprofit that assessed the sustainability of campus operations and endowment investment at the 200 public and private universities with the largest endowments, said, “The results clearly show a green groundswell on campuses, with nearly 45 percent of colleges committing to fight climate change through cutting carbon emissions.”23 Sierra Magazine grades the schools on eight different categories: administration, climate change and energy, food and recycling, green building, transportation, endowment transparency investment priorities and shareholder engagement. A majority of schools earned an “A” for food and recycling. The University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University earned a grade of “F” for shareholder engagement and for endowment transparency, for failing to make public their endowment holdings. A Carnegie spokeswoman, Teresa Thomas, stated that the university had received its failing grade, like many other universities, on endowment transparency, because of concerns about compromising its investment decision-making process, but the school has invested in renewable energy. On the contrary, Penn State received an “A” in the endowment transparency category for annually listing all its investment holdings publicly, but earned a “D” grade for shareholder engagement because it is in the process of implementing new proxy-voting guidelines for its investment managers.24
Al Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize in October 2007, but so did more than 2,000 climate change scientists around the world, five of which are scientists at Penn State University based at University Park. “I think it’s helpful,” associate professor Michael Mann said. “It helps the public understand that this is a real problem, that the science is quite solid and that this is something we need to think about as a society: How are we going to deal with this problem?”25 The faculty members that are on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which the United Nations started 20 years ago, are: Michael Mann, Richard Alley, Bill Easterling, Klaus Keller and Anne Thompson. The IPCC’s latest report states that the warming that is happening is likely to last for centuries and states that human activity is a key probable cause. The scientists that work with the IPCC are invited and unpaid. Richard Alley assess that the ice and snow build-up in the world is declining, including in the western U.S. “If the snow melts early in the spring, then reservoirs (aren’t) filled up anymore,”26 Alley stated. As a means of public service, he and the others commit their nighttime and weekend hours to their IPCC work. Assistant professor of geosciences, Keller, said, “I think it’s nice that people appreciate the work.”27 Thompson said, “All of us are, in our best and most objective way as scientists, very excited about contributing to something that has reached consensus and, I think, pretty much persuaded people around the world to treasure and protect our planet.”28 Mann estimated that at least a dozen other PSU-affiliated researchers have complete work that has been cited by the IPCC over the years.29
Methodology
My intentions for this paper are to educate my colleagues about global warming and its effects. A lot of people are aware of the term “global warming” but in actuality know very little about it and what causes it to happen. I e-mailed professors at IUP and got their viewpoints as to how much energy is used and how many emissions IUP gives. I e-mailed Dr. Hovan, a geosciences professor, to find out how I could get information and to see if he had any insight on the topic. I wanted to find out the facts about what energy source my university uses and what IUP’s policy is on recycling. I also contacted Bob Marx, the director of IUP’s Facilities Operations, Engineering, and Capital Planning Office. I asked him these questions:
- What source of energy does IUP have to provide effective lighting and heating on campus?
- How much energy does IUP use within a month and where does it stand compared to other schools?
- Is there anything that IUP does to help contribute to global warming, per-say use “global efficient” methods such as solar or wind energy?
- Does IUP have an automatic censor to know when to cut off energy supplies when daylight hits and do these lights turn back on automatically depending on the amount of sunlight hitting?
- Does IUP have anywhere on campus that has automatic lights that kick off whenever there is minimal activity in the building and/or rooms?
- Is IUP aware of how many emissions it is releasing in the course of a year?
- What steps are you taking to address global warming?
Aside from e-mailing Bob Marx, I also e-mailed Jack Makara and Lenny Kasubick, who which both are involved in the building of the new dorms on IUP’s campus.
Results
After e-mailing Dr Hovan, he responded with the following,
I think Bob Marx is the right person to ask about the universities efforts to reduce our carbon footprint. I don’t have the specific information you asked about but he should be able to provide it to you (or at least direct you to where it can be found). I can tell you that the Geoscience department has recently installed sensor lighting in our main office and I hope that trend continues throughout campus. I also know that many energy efficient efforts have been made while outfitting the new dorms… perhaps Jack Makara, one of the directors for the campus living/learning programs, can help you with information about the new dorm buildings.30
So I proceeded to e-mail Jack Makara to see what he would be able to contribute and he stated,
I did some checking and I have been informed that Mr. Bob Marx would be able to provide the most insight into the questions you have raised in your email below from a campus wide perspective. My understanding is that Mr. Marx is out of the office this week, but will return on Monday. If you need more immediate information, and specifically pertaining to the new residence halls, Mr. Lenny Kasubick could also provide you with some information.31
After not being able to get into contact with Bob Marx, I later found out that Ray Wygonik, the head of the Facility and Engineering Group at IUP, was giving a lecture on what IUP is doing to improve it’s impact on global warming. From his lecture I learned all of the key things I needed to know.
Wind turbines do not create and produce as much energy as IUP needs and solar paneling is not in IUP’s interest. IUP is a part of a government state program that receives money for state schools for energy savings. IUP is a part of a guaranteed energy savings project. IUP gets their funding through the state and the state doesn’t fund substantial amounts to major improvements. The state is giving bonds to the state schools, so every school is encouraged to do so. IUP is third in line in making improvements within the state. IUP’s contract with Penelec Energy has ended, so IUP has signed a new 15 year contract with Siemens Energy. Siemens has conducted a nine-month audit of the campus and found areas to save money. IUP has chosen a plan to have maximum savings with a payback within 10 years. IUP will save 5-6% in energy a year, which is enough to power 547 homes a year in electricity. Despite energy savings, our carbon footprint is still increasing. “Reducing our carbon footprint is not a high priority.”32
Since IUP is under construction to build new dorms, the size of the new dorms are doubling the room space and installing air conditioners. IUP is not directly involved in the planning of the new dorms, but approves of the location. Pennsylvania’s construction code requires that all business buildings to be LEED certified, but it costs extra to get the certificate for higher standards. For IUP’s new convention center, it will cost IUP $61,000 to get it LEED certified, at the minimum level. In a Siemens study, they went around to every building on campus and counted the number of lights in every room. IUP is bringing the light watts down from 2400 to 1100 to reduce the amount of energy being used. Sensor lights have been on campus for two months and by the fall of 2008, there will be a significant increase in motion lights.33
In the past, IUP was unaware of its energy usage due to not having meters on any of the buildings since the school generated its own electricity from a plant on campus; so with the contract with Siemens, IUP has to install meters on every building and will be aware of what specific buildings require more energy than others. In the past, IUP used the co-generation plant as its means for energy, but now it is a chilled water plant that creates steam. IUP does not actually heat or cool with natural gas but with steam. All of the buildings will get new controls to control the heating and cooling systems. There will be a new main building management control system to operate all of the buildings from one centralized location. With the new management control system, it will be able to put setbacks in place for lights, heating, and cooling. It will measure CO2 levels in the rooms, shut off lights at night and turn them back on at 7am and most importantly, heat and cool buildings when needed, rather than 24/7. The new control system will detect variable frequency data to manipulate energy use. IUP is spending $2 million just on controls.34
In the summer of 2008, IUP is changing all of the flushers on the toilets and urinals to change the amount of gallons flushed from 2.5 down to 1gallon a flush. The campus is planning to install pool covers on the swimming pools to keep heat in the water, which will pay itself off in 3 years. In 2011-2012, IUP is planning on eliminating its oldest building, Keith Hall, in plans to construct a more efficient building. Vending machines will also be operated on a system to automatically shut off after a period of non-activity. “Everything we do is geared toward energy saving use,” is a statement that Ray Wygonik stated at his presentation.35
Discussion
After learning what IUP is doing compared to other schools, I still feel that IUP isn’t making as great of an effort as it could. I feel that only saving five to six percent of energy is only the bare minimum that my school could do. I think that with the building of the new dorms, they should not be doubling the size of the living space with adding in air conditioners, but making it more environmentally efficient by making the living space only necessary to living habits rather than for a lot of comfort. I am glad, however, that IUP is making some effort because it is better than nothing. I’m also really shocked to find out that there is absolutely no history of IUP’s energy use, considering there were never any meters on the buildings. I feel that it is irresponsible that IUP never upgraded their systems within the past 20 years to know how much energy they were using. I feel that it will take time to learn just how much energy IUP really uses. In the next decade, the comparison of how much energy we use to how much we will save will flatten out due to the increasing demand. With the addition of the new convention center coming, I feel that IUP has taken the bare minimum route by not getting it LEED silver or gold certified. I think that the board that approved it was more concerned with its architectural looks rather than its environmental impact. I am glad that the campus is adding in a system that will control all energy operations within the buildings and rooms. I have found that the cold air is on while it is cold outside, which is a waste of energy. In the future with the new system it will monitor activity and temperatures to determine the rooms appropriate level of temperature needed. In addition to the new system for heating and cooling, I am proud of IUP for installing light monitoring systems that will shut off and turn on lights when needed. I have found that IUP’s lights presently stay on outside while it is daylight. Overall, I do feel that IUP could do better. At least the general plan for now is a good start, and hopefully, the campus will improve more in the future.
Conclusion
“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) this year [2001] confirmed a global mean warming of 0.6 ± 0.2°C during the 20th century and cited anthropogenic increases in greenhouse gases as the likely cause.”36 The Earth is getting warmer and global warming is the cause. Global warming is due to the Earth’s natural greenhouse effect that controls the temperature of the atmosphere, which is a balance between the input of the sun’s rays and the loss of them back into space. One third of the sun’s rays are reflected back into space while the remaining two thirds are kept within the atmosphere, which are mainly absorbed into the land or into the oceans. The natural greenhouse gases include: water vapor, carbon dioxide, ozone, methane and nitrous oxide, which create a blanket effect in the atmosphere.37
Because of modern inventions and technology, we are able to explore areas such as Greenland and Antarctica by drilling down into ice cores to collect samples to measure the greenhouse gases and determine past levels of carbon dioxide and methane at different times in history. The greatest concern for the future is a rise in the Earth’s temperature if we keep increasing the levels of carbon dioxide and methane.38 “As the effects of global warming become more pronounced, the world community will have to cope with a wide range of extreme environmental perils: prolonged droughts, intense storms, extensive coastal flooding, and so on.”39 If the levels of methane and carbon dioxide increase to a point where the Earth can no longer release these gases in efficient times, the Earth will succumb to the pressure and the global temperature will rise resulting in unlivable conditions.40
For the sake of the Earth and humankind, many colleges have decided to “go green” to help contribute. Two hundred and eighty four colleges have signed on to help lower emissions that contribute to global warming. Five of these colleges are from western Pennsylvania and include: Chatham University, the University of Pittsburgh at Titusville and Allegheny, Juniata College and Washington and Jefferson College. These colleges agree to inventory all greenhouse emissions from electricity, heating, commuting and air travel systems every other year. They also agree to set a date to become “climate neutral” which is to have a net impact of zero emissions.41
Carnegie Mellon is probably the most aggressive college in making an effort. Six of the 22 buildings in Pittsburgh that are LEED certified are at Carnegie. The college also gets its gas from a nearby landfill in Johnstown and plans to get 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources this year [2008]. The University of Pittsburgh has also gone towards energy conservation and has saved the school $21 million over the last 10 years. Pitt has installed light sensors to detect activity and has upgraded the chilled water plant at Posvar Hall. Duquesne generates 85 percent of its own electricity with a natural gas turbine and plans to get all of the buildings LEED certified within five to ten years. Slippery Rock University and St. Francis University of Loretto also operate their own wind turbines.42
I currently attend Indiana University of Pennsylvania and was interested in what my school was doing to help combat global warming. After e-mailing various people and attending a lecture at a Focus the Nation meeting, I found out what the details for IUP were. IUP has signed a new 15-year contract with Siemens Energy to gain a maximum payback within 10 years for energy conservation. The campus is saving five to six percent in energy a year, which is enough to power 547 homes for a year. Siemens surveyed IUP and counted all of the lights in every building in every room and has reduced the amount of watts being used. IUP is also installing light sensors to detect activity and set other lights to timers to shut off at night and turn on in the morning, same with the heating and cooling system. The heating and cooling system will soon be upgraded to be controlled from a centralized location to measure CO2 levels and movement to determine the appropriate temperature, with regards to the exterior temperature. Meters are also being installed on every building to determine the amount of energy that each building uses. Since IUP ran on its own co-generation plant in the past, IUP is unaware of its current usage. Water usage will also be lessened by installing new flush handles on toilets to decrease the amount of gallons used in one flush by 1.5 gallons. Pool covers are also being installed to trap heat within the water to limit energy use.43
“The best global solution would be to decrease the production of CO2, methane, unburned hydrocarbon fuel, freons, and nitrogen oxides. CO2, for example, might be reduced by conserving fossil fuels and substituting alternative energy sources. Such measures would also improve air quality and prolong the lifetime of present energy supplies. Individuals could help by decreasing personal energy consumption or by community action.”44 Aside from colleges fighting to stop global warming, it can also be done on a local level too. Light bulbs in homes can be replaced with energy saving ones and hot water heaters can be kept warm by putting a jacket around it to keep in the warmth. Walking or biking can be done instead of driving to work or school or by taking public transportation to help lower car emissions. Replacing old appliances with newer, energy saving ones can help and lower energy bills. Buying recyclable nylon bags for groceries instead of using paper or plastic bags can help lower the levels in landfills. Recycling and reusing products can also lower landfill sizes. Spreading awareness and educating others is also a great start for taking on the cause. Such sites as The Global Challenge website is a place to start at www.globalchallengeaward.org..45 Other websites to get involved with are www.stopglobalwarming.org, www.focusthenation.org and www.grist.org. “In a sense, our job is to get people to plan, to think ahead … and that’s happening right now.”46
Notes
1. Eric Berger, “Stars are on board for a college tour on global warming,” Houston Chronicle, 10 April 2007.
2. Don Hopey, “Carnegie Mellon, Penn State score well on Sierra magazine’s ‘green’ ranking,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 26 October 2007.
3. Kathy Boccella, “Campuses focus on climate change,” Philadelphia Inquirer, 31 January 2008.
4. Mark Maslin, Global Warming: A Very Short Introduction (New York: Oxford, 2004)
5. Maslin, Global Warming: A Very Short Introduction
6. Maslin, Global Warming: A Very Short Introduction
7. Maslin, Global Warming: A Very Short Introduction
8. Maslin, Global Warming: A Very Short Introduction
9. Bill Zlatos, “Colleges pledge to cut emissions,” Pittsburgh Tribune Review, 13 June 2007.
10. Quoted in Boccella, “Campuses focus on climate change.”
11. Quoted in Boccella, “Campuses focus on climate change.”
12. Quoted in Boccella, “Campuses focus on climate change.”
13. Quoted in Boccella, “Campuses focus on climate change.”
14. Boccella, “Campuses focus on climate change.”
15. Quoted in Boccella, “Campuses focus on climate change.”
16. Quoted in Steve Ford and William J. Esack, “‘Young people in this country and around the world are beginning to look at environmental issues as their crisis.’ SETH MOGLEN Lehigh English professor Symposium turns up heat on global warming: Local colleges join those across the nation in raising awareness,” Morning Call, 1 February 2008.
17. Quoted in Ford and Esack, “‘Young people in this country and around the world are beginning to look at environmental issues as their crisis.’ SETH MOGLEN Lehigh English professor Symposium turns up heat on global warming: Local colleges join those across the nation in raising awareness.”
18. Ford and Esack, “‘Young people in this country and around the world are beginning to look at environmental issues as their crisis.’ SETH MOGLEN Lehigh English professor Symposium turns up heat on global warming: Local colleges join those across the nation in raising awareness.”
19. Quoted in Ford and Esack, “‘Young people in this country and around the world are beginning to look at environmental issues as their crisis.’ SETH MOGLEN Lehigh English professor Symposium turns up heat on global warming: Local colleges join those across the nation in raising awareness.”
20. Quoted in Brian Nearing, “Coordinator to guide emissions cuts: State taps environmentalist to help governments and institutions reduce carbon dioxide output,” Times Union, 21 January 2008.
21. Brian Nearing, “Coordinator to guide emissions cuts: State taps environmentalist to help governments and institutions reduce carbon dioxide output.”
22. Quoted in Hopey, “Carnegie Mellon, Penn State score well on Sierra magazine’s ‘green’ ranking,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 26 October 2007.
23. Quoted in Hopey, “Carnegie Mellon, Penn State score well on Sierra magazine’s ‘green’ ranking,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 26 October 2007.
24. Hopey, “Carnegie Mellon, Penn State score well on Sierra magazine’s ‘green’ ranking.”
25. Quoted in Adam Smeltz, “PSU scientists part of panel that won Nobel,” Centre Daily Times, 16 October 2007.
26. Quoted in Smeltz, “PSU scientists part of panel that won Nobel.”
27. Quoted in Smeltz, “PSU scientists part of panel that won Nobel.”
28. Quoted in Smeltz, “PSU scientists part of panel that won Nobel.”
29. Smeltz, “PSU scientists part of panel that won Nobel.”
30. Dr. Hovan, e-mail message to author, March 17, 2008.
31. Jack Makara, e-mail message to author, March 18, 2008.
32. Ray Wygonik, lecture to author, April 2, 2008.
33. Wygonik, lecture to author.
34. Wygonik, lecture to author.
35. Wygonik, lecture to author.
36. David G. Vaughan, “Devil in the Detail,” Science 293, no. 5536(2001): 1777-1779.
37. Maslin, Global Warming: A Very Short Introduction
38. Maslin, Global Warming: A Very Short Introduction
39. Michael T. Klare, “Global Warming Battlefields: How Climate Change Threatens Security,” Current History 106, no. 703(2007): 355-361.
40. Klare, “Global Warming Battlefields: How Climate Change Threatens Security.”
41. Zlatos, “Colleges pledge to cut emissions.”
42. Zlatos, “Colleges pledge to cut emissions.”
43. Wygonik, lecture to author.
44. Steven J. Peterson, “Can We Slow Global Warming?” BioScience 36, no. 3(1986): 140.
45. David Gibson and Susan Hull Grasso, “Save the World on Your Way to College,” Learning and Leading with Technology 35, no. 3(2007): 12-18.
46. Kathryn S Brown, “Taking Global Warming to The People,” Science 283, no. 5407(1999): 1440-1441.
Bibliography
Berger, Eric. “Stars are on board for a college tour on global warming.” Houston Chronicle, 10 April 2007.
Boccella, Kathy. “Campuses focus on climate change.” Philadelphia Inquirer, 31 January 2008.
Brown, Kathryn S. “Taking Global Warming to The People.” Science 283, no. 5407(1999): 1440-1441.
Ford, Steve, and William J. Esack. “‘Young people in this country and around the world are beginning to look at environmental issues as their crisis.’ SETH MOGLEN Lehigh English professor Symposium turns up heat on global warming: Local colleges join those across the nation in raising awareness.” Morning Call, 1 February 2008.
Gibson, David and Susan Hull Grasso. “Save the World on Your Way to College.” Learning and Leading with Technology 35, no. 3(2007): 12-18.
Hopey, Don. “Carnegie Mellon, Penn State score well on Sierra magazine’s ‘green’ ranking.” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 26 October 2007.
Klare, Michael T. “Global Warming Battlefields: How Climate Change Threatens Security.” Current History 106, no. 703(2007): 355-361.
Maslin, Mark. Global Warming: A Very Short Introduction. New York: Oxford, 2004.
Nearing, Brian. “Coordinator to guide emissions cuts: State taps environmentalist to help governments and institutions reduce carbon dioxide output.” Times Union, 21 January 2008.
Peterson, Steven J. “Can We Slow Global Warming?” BioScience 36, no. 3(1986): 140.
Smeltz, Adam. “PSU scientists part of panel that won Nobel.” Centre Daily Times, 16 October 2007.
Vaughan, David G. “Devil in the Detail.” Science 293, no. 5536(2001): 1777-1779.
Zlatos, Bill. “Colleges pledge to cut emissions.” Pittsburgh Tribune Review, 13 June 2007.
Newspaper Articles:
Berger, Eric, “Stars are on board for a college tour on global warming,” Houston Chronicle, 10 April 2007.
Popular singer, Sheryl Crow, and environmental activist Laurie David went on a 13-day tour to college campuses to raise awareness of global warming to students. They stopped at College Station on the campus of Texas A&M University to advise students that Texas is the number one emitter of carbon dioxide. Other stars such as Leonardo DiCaprio and John Travolta have called for regulatory action to limit the human production of greenhouse gases. Some students protested the event. It gives an overview of what students really think.
Boccella, Kathy, “Campuses focus on climate change,” Philadelphia Inquirer, 31 January 2008.
Many colleges around the nation have joined “Focus the Nation” and had a daylong awareness to help advocate global warming. Students want to know how to help, they’re sick of hearing about how global warming is killing the planet, but want to know what to do to stop it. One student said that more students are concerned about the climate rather than the war in Iraq. It briefly discusses what schools are doing to prevent emissions and which schools are involved in Eastern PA.
Burk, Jennifer, “Middle Georgia colleges taking initiatives to go green,” Macon Telegraph, 25 September 2007.
Many Middle Georgia colleges are looking at going green. They feel it necessary to have an increased awareness about global warming and a sense of duty and a way to save money. At Mercer University, professors and students are planning on presenting their president with a plan to make the campus more energy efficient and environmentally friendly. They feel that as an institution of learning, they should be teaching their students to be good citizens. In Milledgeville, Georgia College and State University have joined the Campus Climate Challenge. The students have conducted studies and have show that recycling can save money and the planet.
Cole, Cyndy, “Northern Arizona University plans to identify ways to reduce carbon footprint,” Arizona Daily Sun, 27 November 2007.
Northern Arizona University students and faculty are going to have to make tough decisions to reduce emissions by the year 2020. Travel accounts for a quarter of their emissions. The school has received a grant to become a national institute studying climate change.
Ford, Steve, and William J. Esack, “‘Young people in this country and around the world are beginning to look at environmental issues as their crisis.’ SETH MOGLEN Lehigh English professor Symposium turns up heat on global warming: Local colleges join those across the nation in raising awareness,” Morning Call, 1 February 2008.
This article addresses how students and the youth are less active about global warming than they were in the 60′s about the draft and wars. Lafayette is a campus that has signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment; which is a pledge to reduce greenhouse gases and energy use on campuses. Suggestions are given to help reduce trash. At Lehigh University, students have started a new club, Environment Coalition, to help with awareness.
Harper, Scott, “As alternative fuel, soybean biodiesel has come a long way,” Virginian-Pilot, 9 September 2007.
The college town of Blacksburg, VA has converted a large portion of their fuel to biodiesel. It addresses the positives and negatives of converting. A few local schools, such as the Virginia Beach school division, has started to power with a biodiesel blend. Virginia is a leading consumer of biodiesel. Some local companies, such as VDot, are unwilling to convert and have found complications with using the substitute. The Virginia Tech campus has about 33% of their vehicles running off of biodiesel and is planning to convert the rest.
Harper, Scott, “At NSU, tour urges environment action,” Virginian-Pilot, 27 September 2006.
College campuses, cities, and states such as: Norfolk State University, Christopher Newport University, Ashland, Lynchburg, New Mexico, Texas, Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Illinois were visited by John Grant to give informational lectures about global warming. The tour, entitled “Securing the Future,” is organized by the Natural Resources Defense Council and Americans for Informed Democracy, which gives an overview of USA oil consumption and changes in climate. Grant encouraged students to take action.
Hopey, Don, “Carnegie Mellon, Penn State score well on Sierra magazine’s ‘green’ ranking,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 26 October 2007.
Sierra magazine released their “Top 10 coolest schools” in 2007 for their efforts on global warming. Penn State and Carnegie Mellon are on that list and have found efficient ways to reduce greenhouse emissions. Nearly 45% of college campuses are in a fight to reduce carbon emissions. The survey graded the schools on eight categories.
Mast, George, “Wesley College vows to cut emissions, joins 400 others in pledge to save energy,” Delaware State News, 7 October 2007.
Wesley College in Dover, Delaware has signed an agreement to make the campus more eco-friendly. It has a plan to reduce emissions, find alternative energy sources, and more practical heating and cooling agents. The school is also interested in finding alternative transportation methods for the sports teams and the campus transportation system.
Nearing, Brian, “Coordinator to guide emissions cuts: State taps environmentalist to help governments and institutions reduce carbon dioxide output,” Times Union, 21 January 2008.
Steve Breyman is the new project coordinator for climate neutral government and institutional operations for the climate office. His job helps mayors supervisors and college presidents to help find ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from buildings and vehicles. They are putting together a tool kit to help measure and then reduce the emissions. Since 2005, 500+ cities have signed onto the mayors’ agreement.
Simpson, Susan, “OU agrees to fight global warming,” Daily Oklahoman, 13 June 2007.
The University of Oklahoma plans to cut greenhouse emissions and be climate neutral by 2050. It states that OU was pressured by student groups to take action against global warming. OU is focusing on using wind power and University of Central Oklahoma is 100% dependent on wind power. The campus is aware of recycling and uses only vehicles that rely on natural gas, ethanol and electricity.
Smeltz, Adam, “PSU scientists part of panel that won Nobel,” Centre Daily Times, 16 October 2007.
At least five scientists from Penn State University at University Park have been recognized with their work for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which split the Nobel Prize with Al Gore. The scientists who are invited are unpaid. The Penn Staters commit nighttime and weekends to their IPCC work as a public service.
Waters, Ed Jr., “Lecturer paints view of future, beginning with shift away from oil,” Frederick News-Post, 19 October 2007.
Jeremy Rifkin, president of the Foundation on Economic Trends, visited Frederick Community College. He addressed the crowd in a fashion that warned of a devastation that could occur soon if no action is taken on global warming. He concentrates on people joining together, instead of being solitary, to help eliminate the elite resources and use renewable energy sources.
Zlatos, Bill, “Colleges pledge to cut emissions,” Pittsburgh Tribune Review, 13 June 2007.
This is an overview of a few Pennsylvania Colleges that plan to or have already “gone green”. The colleges plan to reduce emissions and conserve energy. It focuses mainly on colleges in Pittsburgh such as Carnegie Mellon, Duquesne, and Pitt. Two other colleges it mentions are Slipper Rock University and Saint Francis University of Loretto.
Journal Articles:
Baker, Linda. “Coming to a Campus Near You.” E Magazine: The Environmental Magazine 18, no. 5 (2007): 16-18.
“It report that LuAnne Thompson is one of hundres of faculty members participating in “Focus the Nation”. Coordinating teams of teachers and students at more than 1,000 educational instutions are likely to engage in a collaborative discussion about solutions to global warming. Thomson says that universities have a huge role to play in raising public awareness about climate change. Focus the Nation will allow universities across the U.S. to pool resources to inspire students and the public at large to take direct political action.”
Brown, Kathryn S. “Taking Global Warming to The People.” Science 283, no. 5407(1999): 1440-1441.
This article addresses the risks that people aren’t aware of global warming and the upcoming disasters that will strike. Mick Kelly, an atmospheric scientist at the University of East Anglia, United Kingdom, went to Vietnam and was alarmed by the dangers of the South China Sea that could creep to tens of centimeters higher over the next century. It is alarming locals to be aware of the effects and to plan ahead.
Byrne, Richard, and Richard Monastersky. “Gore’s Nobel May Bring Even More Attention on Campuses to Environmental Issues.” Chronicle of Higher Education 54, no. 9 (2007): 13.
“The article discusses how the awarding of the Nobel Prize to former U.S. vice president Albert Gore and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) could inspire universities to take action to counter global warming. The author suggests that the recognition given to the IPCC brings attention to university professors who contributed to IPCC work and reports. The American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment is an environmental organization comprised of university presidents attempting to convince colleges to lower their carbon emissions. Clark A. Miller, an assistant professor at Arizona State University, comments on how Gore has raised awareness about climate change for the public.”
Gibson, David and Susan Hull Grasso. “Save the World on Your Way to College.” Learning and Leading with Technology 35, no. 3(2007): 12-18.
“The article discusses the involvement of Indian students to start a global challenge business plan to work on the idea of saving the world from global warming and energy crisis. The students were meeting online for months using Skype and electronic portfolio application to create asynchronous collaborative artifacts. As such, the explorations were supporting students’ plan in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) content addressing global problems. Furthermore, the Web site resources and mentors were helping students to develop understanding on the problem, research the history of the solution attempts by others, analyze effects on industry and environment and estimate how potential customers value and use their product or service.”
Klare, Michael T. “Global Warming Battlefields: How Climate Change Threatens Security.” Current History 106, no. 703(2007): 355-361.
“The article discusses the effect of global warming on international security. According to the author, global warming may endanger world food supply, which may lead to mass starvation and other humanitarian crises such as war. The author presents a history of conflict over natural resources such as gold and oil.”
Monastersky, Richard. “Colleges Strain to Reach Climate-Friendly Future.” Chronicle of Higher Education 54, no. 16(2007): A1-A23.
“The article focuses on the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, which has been signed by over 400 college presidents who pledge to make their campuses “climate neutral,” thereby reducing global warming. It is noted that colleges in the U.S. have purchased over 1 billion kilowatt hours of green electricity. David W. Oxtoby of Pomona College is skeptical about how colleges will be able to maintain sustainable living practices without making some sacrifice. Edward R. Terceiro Jr. of Mount Wachusett Community College discusses the measures that his school has taken to reduce its carbon footprint including using a biomass plant to produce heat. The school also uses a performance contract with its energy provider to cut costs.”
Peterson, Steven J. “Can We Slow Global Warming?” BioScience 36, no. 3(1986): 140.
This is a short response that explains what is happening with global warming. It states that the best global solution would be to decrease the production of CO2, methane, unburned hydrocarbon fuel, freons, and nitrogen oxides. Conservation is a key in solving global warming. Some countries could benefit from global warming. Africa may become less arid, and the growing season in some grain-growing regions of Russia may lengthen.
Vaughan, David G. “Devil in the Detail.” Science 293, no. 5536(2001): 1777-1779.
This article discusses how the polar ice caps are slowly melting and how natural habitat is changing. It explains how more evidence is needed to show that global warming is a factor in the sea levels rising and that the emissions are causing the ice to melt.
Books:
Fagan, Brian. The Little Ice Age. New York: Basic Books, 2000.
This is a detailed analysis of how climate has changed within the past hundred years. It focuses on the time period called “The Little Ice Age”. It shows how people in Europe and abroad have had to adapt to weather patterns. This book focuses on the historical perspective towards global warming.
Gore, Al. An Inconvenient Truth. New York: Rodale, 2006.
This book, originally a movie, has been transformed into a very powerful message to give awareness of global warming. It gives statistical standpoints and provides information about the research on global warming. It provides data that is useful that can be given to help alarm people of what is happening to the earth.
Hillman, Mayer, and Tina Fawcett. The Suicidal Planet. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2007.
This book focuses on global warming and the future. It discusses: the climate change, energy use (past, present, future), response of the general public, role of technology, what the government is doing to reduce fossil fuel dependence, international negotiations on climate change, and solutions.
Maslin, Mark. Global Warming: A Very Short Introduction. New York: Oxford, 2004.
“This Very Short Introduction is an up-to-date and readable book about the predicted impacts of global warming and the surprises that could be in store for us in the near future. It unpacks the controversies that surround global warming, drawing on material from the recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a huge collaborative study that has gathered current thinking on the subject from experts in a range of disciplines. Mark Maslin presents the findings of the Panel for the first time to general readership and discusses the potential climate surprises which the IPCC has not yet had time to assimilate. He ends by discussing the politics of global warming, and looks at what we can do now to adapt to climate change and mitigate its worst effects.”
Romm, Joseph J. Hell and High Water. New York: HarperCollins, 2007.
Hell and High Water is a book dedicated to global warming and the solution to what we can do and also covers the political side. It predicts the future up to the year 2100. It discusses the political and economical approach to helping in reducing emissions.
Schellnhuber, Hans Joachim. Avoiding Dangerous Climate Change. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006.
Everyone wants to know how to eliminate global warming and what some solutions are. In this book, it discusses how to avoid dangerous climate change and gives an overview of what climate change is. It also discusses how the oceans are reacting and why rising sea levels are dangerous to land. It also has a lot of information on emissions and how to handle them.
Singer, Fred S., and Dennis T. Avery. Unstoppable Global Warming: Every 1,500 Years. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2007.
Every 1,500 years there is a new pattern in the temperature, or so this book describes what happens in those times. The earth has patterns and seasons that provide us with information about climate change. It gives us an insight as to what will happen soon if we don’t start to help the earth by lessening emissions and burning very rare fossil fuels.
Abstract
Global warming is a world-wide issue that has provoked many American colleges and universities to act accordingly to the situation to help lower their impact on it’s harmful effects; I intend to compare and contrast my university, Indiana University of PA, to other schools nation-wide to see where it stands to others that are well on their way to combat global warming. Global warming is a distinct process that takes years to take effect on the Earth. Colleges are taking a standpoint to contribute to the cause and many are doing more than others. Indiana University of PA is in competition with other Pennsylvania schools and this paper is intended to show that IUP is lacking their efforts to make a difference.
