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April 23, 2019
Students, faculty and researchers at ASU will soon have access to an unprecedented stream of daily high-resolution images covering Earth’s entire landmass and coral reefs.
ASU has partnered with Planet, a San Francisco-based Earth-imaging company, as their first institutional data partner for higher education. Planet operates the largest constellation of satellites in orbit today.
ASU Now | April 23, 2019
As part of Arizona State University’s efforts to advance sustainability education for K–12 students, a faculty-led student group created a suite of Kahoot! games to teach sustainability concepts. Kahoot! is a widely used platform to play fun, educational games called “kahoots” that are popular in classrooms and other group settings.
Through a new capstone workshop called “Innovation in Science Communication,” three undergraduate School of Sustainability students created nine quizzes for a new Kahoot! campaign, ASU Sustainable Futures. Topics include designing for our future, environment, sustainable food, social justice and energy. The students were responsible for developing the content and then demoing the kahoots in several middle school classes.
April 23, 2019
The Global Locust Initiative recently made a new addition to its team: Alana Burnham, the program’s Community Outreach Specialist. In this position, she is responsible for many logistical and programmatic aspects of GLI’s new pilot project in the Kaffrine region of Senegal, funded by USAID’s Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance. This project will test whether soil amendments to millet fields in Kaffrine, Senegal, decrease locust outbreaks, improve millet yields and increase farmer livelihoods. Burnham will spend part of her time on the ground in Senegal, recruiting project participants, sourcing and managing materials, organizing trainings, and networking with beneficiaries and stakeholders.
April 23, 2019
On Earth Day 2019 (April 22), Arizona State University partnered with Wells Fargo to stream 24 hours of continuous Facebook Live broadcasts focused on sustainability issues, research, outreach, K-16 education, including contests and even certification courses to enhance your resume.
The full-day streaming featured ASU Center for Biodiversity Outcomes affiliated projects, such as the plastics pollution and sustainable fisheries initiative spearheaded by Associate Director of Biodiversity Valuation and Assessments Beth Polidoro.
Click here to learn more and watch all the videos!
April 22, 2019
The work of the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability at Arizona State University often extends across the sea — in this case, to Hawai’i. Hawai’i is setting examples for sustainable development in many ways, and was recognized in late 2018 by the United Nations as a Local2030 hub — the first island and first place in Asia Pacific to be named a hub. Hawai’i Green Growth (HGG) coordinates the hub activities and the ASU Wrigley Institute serves on the hub’s board, drawing on ASU expertise to help support practical implementation of U.N. Sustainable Development Goals.
April 22, 2019
ASU faculty helps establish research organization to strengthen the Environmental Protection Agency's ability to assess social benefits and costs of environmental policies
Policies on air pollution, climate change and water have far-reaching effects on millions of Americans and businesses. Is the Environmental Protection Agency ─ the federal agency whose mission is to protect public health and the environment ─ using the best available economic science when designing and proposing such policy? The newly created External Environmental Economics Advisory Committee (E-EEAC) will convene nationally recognized environmental economists to ensure that it does.
View Source | April 22, 2019
Nancy Grimm, an Arizona State University professor in the the School of Life Sciences and a senior sustainability scientist, won an award for being part of a team that created an international consensus on how to approach urban ecology.
Along with nine co-authors, Grimm won the 2019 Sustainability Science Award from the Ecological Society of America. Grimm and her colleagues provided “an international perspective on how ecological research focused on urban areas can improve sustainability,” according to the society’s citation. “Urban areas are expected to be highly at risk from global environmental changes and this article highlights the need for a conceptual synthesis that allows urban residents to make better decisions concerning their environment and the social relations within it.”
April 20, 2019
A group of three ASU honors students successfully defended their conservation-themed thesis at the end of spring 2019. Below is a summary of each of their research topics and highlights from their presentations:
Attitudes of Lobstermen in Maine Regarding the Conservation of Right Whales [Madison Bolduc]
North Atlantic right whale populations are rapidly declining, with only around 450 individuals left in the world. There have been many instances of right whales getting caught in the vertical line lobstermen use to connect the lobster trap at the bottom of the ocean to a buoy at the surface.
ASU Now | April 19, 2019
Arizona State University and Valley of the Sun United Way joined together in the spirit of philanthropy, education and service during Sun Devils Unite from April 6 to 14.
Devils in Disguise, ASU’s largest student-led day of service, took place on April 6. Presented by Changemaker Central, the event featured 939 volunteers contributing more than 3,000 combined hours to more that 30 community partners. The participating organizations included food banks, assisted living facilities, parks, schools, homeless shelters and community centers. The value of their combined volunteer hours was equivalent to $76,290, representing a significant community impact within the span of a single day.
Greek Week 2019, which promotes pride and service within ASU’s Greek community, was also part of Sun Devils Unite. Over 40 of ASU’s fraternity and sorority chapters worked as teams to organize events focused on raising money and awareness for United Way. In total, Sun Devils raised more than $40,000 for the United Way, according to Gary Ballinger, director of Fraternity and Sorority Life at ASU.
View Source | April 19, 2019
There have been five mass extinctions in the history of the Earth. But in the 21st century, scientists now estimate that society must urgently come to grips this coming decade to stop the very first human-made biodiversity catastrophe.
“The sixth extinction is on our societyʻs shoulders; it really is,” said ecologist Greg Asner, who serves on the faculty of the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning and the School of Earth and Space Exploration and came to Arizona State University this past January to lead the new Center for Global Discovery and Conservation Science.
View Source | April 18, 2019
Arizona State University President Michael M. Crow and Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability Board Member William McDonough have been named to the World's Greatest Leaders list by Fortune. The list honors 50 men and women worldwide in business, government, philanthropy and the arts who are transforming the world and inspiring others to do the same.
April 17, 2019
By Kathleen Merrigan, executive director of the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems at Arizona State University, and professor with appointments in the School of Sustainability, College of Health Solutions, and School of Public Affairs
Good news! I’ve just received word that we have the go-ahead to offer two new ASU Sustainable Food Systems (SFS) courses that will be listed under the School of Sustainability and co-listed with the ASU Morrison School of Agribusiness.
View Source | April 16, 2019
Climate change is an ever-present and ever-pressing issue that has the attention of national and world leaders. On Nov. 23, 2018, the United States federal climate report was released. Several days later, U.N. world leaders met in Poland for two weeks of climate change negotiations. Scientists and researchers remain committed to finding solutions to one of the world’s greatest challenges.
Among them is Senior Sustainability Scientist Mark Roseland, professor and director of the School of Community Resources and Development. Roseland’s research article with colleagues Robert Newell and Ann Dale, both professors in the School of Environment and Sustainability at Royal Roads University in Canada, was recently recognized with the International Award for Excellence by the International Journal of Climate Change: Impacts and Responses.
View Source | April 16, 2019
Easing the problem of homelessness will require communities to build more affordable housing, and that will require creating a new narrative with people who oppose it, according to two Arizona State University experts.
“We need to get businesses, public safety, education and neighborhood groups on board,” said Senior Sustainability Scientist Joanna Lucio, associate dean of academic affairs and an associate professor in the School of Public Affairs.
April 16, 2019
The Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems focuses on innovative ideas and solutions to the many challenges of current food systems. In this series, we’re sitting down with the Swette Center affiliated faculty to catch up on food systems, innovation and what makes a good meal. See the rest of the series on our Food Systems Profiles page.
Read on for an interview with Clark Miller, associate director of ASU's Consortium for Science, Policy & Outcomes.
April 16, 2019
Throughout the spring 2019 semester, Arizona State University Center for Biodiversity Outcomes Founding Director and Professor Leah Gerber mentored Annelyse Basha, an eighth-grade student from Summit School of Ahwatukee.
Annelyse hopes to become a marine biologist and wanted to learn more about marine conservation, plastic pollution and educational outreach for her eight grade culminating project.
View Source | April 16, 2019
Maryam Abdul Rashid took a big risk enrolling in the School of Sustainability at Arizona State University. Coming from Malaysia, she said sustainability was a foreign concept and people back home questioned what her future might be. But she took the leap anyway — with a big payoff.
"I forever feel blessed to have been given the chance to travel 9,021 miles just to come to school here," Rashid said, adding that her favorite part of being an ASU student is the diversity she is able to experience at a school that values different people and their cultures.
April 16, 2019
Arizona State University's Sustainable Phosphorus Alliance hosted its third annual Phosphorus Forum at the ASU Barrett and O'Connor Center in Washington, D.C., on April 5. A packed room brought together 60 participants from industry, government, academia and civil society to network and share knowledge about sustainability issues spanning the entire phosphorus value chain.
Phosphorus is an essential nutrient required by global agriculture, but as a key driver of freshwater eutrophication and algal blooms and of coastal dead zones, it is also among the most damaging water pollutants. Participants shared information about policies, tools and technologies aimed at promoting more sustainable use of this finite natural resource.
View Source | April 15, 2019
The Arizona Humanities council has named Arizona State University professors Joan McGregor and Natalie Diaz as recipients of the Dan Shilling Public Humanities Scholars Awards. McGregor is a senior sustainability scientist and a professor in the School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies. A ceremony to celebrate the honor took place April 14 at the Mesa Arts Center.
McGregor began her career as an academic with a focus on legal philosophy and applied ethics, frequently teaching courses on bioethics and environmental ethics. From there, she became interested in climate justice, which eventually segued into a focus on food systems.
April 15, 2019
At Arizona State University, students are presented with many opportunities to gain hands-on experience in their field by learning outside of the classroom. One of these is our relatively young Project Cities (PC) program. PC helps students develop professional skills, apply classroom knowledge to real-world projects, and build networks with other students and professionals with local municipalities. A total of 21 classes and 329 students have participated in Project Cities over the course of four semesters since the program started in fall 2017.
PC staff interviewed two ASU students who had been involved in our program multiple times about their experiences with Project Cities. The first of these was Zhihao Chen, an entrepreneur and recent graduate from ASU’s Environmental Resource Management (ERM) program. The other was Saskia Kemp, a senior, also in the ERM program with a minor in Sustainability.
