News
Balancing Act: Ithaca Juggles Environmental Progress, Citizen Needs
|
The City of Ithaca announced its first “Bloc” of electrification projects for non-residential buildings to the dismay of local renters.
Science
Cornell Grad Student Promotes Living Laboratory, Resource Circularity on Campus
|
Fah Kumdokrub grad proposes the use of circular resource management to make Cornell a more carbon neutral campus.
Borehole Observatory
The Science Behind Cornell’s New Sustainable Energy Initiative: Earth Source Heat
|
On June 20, the Cornell Borehole Observatory began drilling into the Earth. Their goal is to reach a deep depth where there is natural heat sufficient to heat all of campus.
With a limited supply of fossil fuels, the University has explored alternative energy options. In 2009, the University set its sights on using Earth Source Heat, a sustainable type of geothermal heat that rests deep underground, to heat the campus.
Science
Cornell Researchers Make Breakthrough in Understanding Energy Budgets of Earthquakes
|
The McLaskey Research Group, led by Prof. Gregory McLaskey, civil and environmental engineering, has made a breakthrough in the study of earthquakes by experimentally showing that the fracture energy and breakdown energy of earthquakes are not equivalent.
campus shutdown
Cornell Energy Usage Plummets on an Empty Campus
|
An unexpected positive of online learning: Cornell’s energy usage has drastically decreased, with some parts of campus using only 20 percent of their original energy consumption.
carbon neutral
Cornell Goes for Green: New Sustainability Council Forms to Keep C.U. on Track
|
To maintain its status as a leader in promoting campus and climate sustainability, Cornell has announced a new sustainability force: the Sustainable Cornell Council.
fossil fuel divestment
EDITORIAL: Time to Divest From Fossil Fuels
|
The moral case for Cornell divesting from fossil fuels has long been clear. Simply put, the University should not hold equity in resource extraction firms that have sent the planet hurtling toward climate ruin. An overwhelming body of science tells us the fallout of human-caused climate change will come in the form of severe developing-world food insecurity, more frequent extreme weather events and worse economic growth. Projections indicate death, disease, dislocation and malnutrition will sharply rise, especially for the global poor. The cost in human misery will be enormous.
Featured in Category
Lights on, Lights off: Energy Conservation Initiatives Can Save Cornell Money
|
Most classes at Cornell end by 4:30 p.m., but the lights in academic buildings sometimes stay on until midnight, even when not in use — potentially costing the university up to $60,000 each year, a 2010 report found. Several efforts have been taken to alleviate the electricity waste.
energy
Cornell’s Renewable Energy Initiatives: From 115-Year-Old Hydroelectric Plant to Rooftop Solar Farms
|
Built in 1904 in the Fall Creek gorge, Cornell’s first hydroelectric plant served to provide renewable energy to Ithaca’s campus. More than 120 years later, the plant generates only two percent of Cornell’s total electricity, according to Sarah Zemanick, director of campus sustainability office.
obituary
Former Economics and Engineering Professor Richard Schuler Dies at 81
|
A Cornell faculty member since 1972, Prof. Richard Schuler was an active leader in the Cornell community.