MORAVIAN VISION - Moravian College

[MOVING TOWARD]
Moravian Green
Moravian blue has become a bit more green in
recent months. From a new “share the road” bike
lane along Main Street to biodegradable packaging
in the dining hall, sustainability is taking
root at Moravian College.
Partnering with the Coalition for Appropriate Transportation,
Moravian held its second annual Bike Day on
September 9 to encourage biking, instead of motoring,
between campuses. The HILL (Hurd Integrated Living
>
and Learning residence hall) on South Campus is being
constructed with many—though not all—environmentally
sound methods and materials, such as energy recovery
units, sensor faucets, and less-toxic paints and adhesives.
And the College’s Environmental Coalition, a grassroots
student organization, is working with Facilities
Management, Planning and Construction (FMPC) to add a
couple of new outdoor recycling bins by late November.
“Our biggest accomplishment, so far, was persuading
dining services to switch to biodegradable containers
and SpudWare—flatware made from potatoes—instead of
using petrochemical products,” says senior Samantha
Lukasiewicz, EnviroCo president and an environmental
science major. “Now they’re even beginning to make
changes on their own.”
Going green makes sense for a host of reasons—not
least of which is the growing acknowledgement of global
warming as a real and significant problem for current
and future generations. But there are other incentives for
colleges to embrace sustainability. A recent study commissioned
by the U.S. Conference of Mayors predicts that
4.2 million new “green jobs” will be created over the next
three decades. And both presidential candidates (as we
go to press) believe green technology will be vital to economic
recovery and energy independence, providing solid
rationale for a strong environmental studies program.
Green schools also offer an enhanced quality of life
that typically includes fresh, locally-grown organic food;
clean air and water; and a beautiful, walkable campus—
big extras that could be the difference for prospective
students choosing among similar colleges. In fact, many
students and their parents appear to care a lot about a
college’s green status. According to a recent Princeton
Review survey of 10,300 college applicants and their parents,
63 percent said they value having information
about a college’s commitment to the environment,
and 23 percent said that such information
would greatly affect their decision about which
school to attend.
At Moravian, commitment to environmental
sustainability has evolved slowly but surely,
beginning more than a decade ago. An environmental
science major has been an individually
designed option for many years, and a formal environmental
studies degree program was launched in 2004
under Frank Kuserk, professor of biology.
“There’s been increased interest in sustainability
and environmental issues across the country,” noted
Professor Kuserk. “And as a degree program, this area
of study has matured. It’s really an interdisciplinary
program that cuts across the traditional natural sciences
and social sciences, such as economics and political science,
and even humanities, such as philosophy.”
The program’s first four-year students—Samantha
Lukasiewicz and Chiu Cheng (environmental science
majors) and Erin Lubeck and Laura Smith (environmental
policy and economics majors)—will graduate this spring.
Field projects at Lake Lacawac and Lehigh Gap, and
learning opportunities with the Wildlands Conservancy,
Appalachian Mountain Club, and Alliance for Sustainable
Communities, are essential program elements.
The interdisciplinary class “Climate Crises: Past,
Present, and Future,” designed by Hilde Binford, assistant
professor of music, and co-taught by Professor
Binford and Diane Husic, chair and professor of biology,
aims to be carbon-neutral, supporting projects that reduce
College greenhouse emissions. The spring ’08 class
paid for the installation of programmable thermostats
14 MORAVIAN COLLEGE MAGAZINE FALL 2008