Environmental Science and Sustainability

Susan Washko ’16, Jared Balik ’16, and Professor of Environmental Science and Biology Scott Wissinger co-authored a paper, “Predicting ecosystem-level effects of species shifts in elevation associated with climate change in alpine ponds,” presented at the 100th Annual Meeting of the Ecological Society of America. The collaborative research was supported by a Harold State Fellowship award to Susan and a Beckman Scholars program award to Jared from the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation.

Source: Academics, Publications & Research

Melissa Mattwig ’17, Daela Munoz ’18, and Jonah Raether ’18 competed in the 10th annual Research Science Consortium Symposium in Erie in November. Melissa took first place in the student poster competition, and Daela and Jonah took second place in the student presentation competition. Daela and Jonah presented on research conducted during ES 210 last spring that focused on reducing the amount of compostable material in campus dining halls that ends up in the refuse stream.

Source: Academics, Publications & Research

Melissa Mattwig ’17, Daela Munoz ’18, and Jonah Raether ’18 competed in the 10th annual Research Science Consortium Symposium in Erie in November. Melissa took first place in the student poster competition, and Daela and Jonah took second place in the student presentation competition. Daela and Jonah presented on research conducted during ES 210 last spring that focused on reducing the amount of compostable material in campus dining halls that ends up in the refuse stream.

Source: Academics, Publications & Research

An article written by Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Benjamin Haywood and co-authors at the University of Washington has been accepted in a top science journal, Conservation Biology. The article, “Place-based, Data-rich Citizen Science as a Precursor for Conservation Action,” will appear in a special section of the journal dedicated to Citizen Science.

Source: Academics, Publications & Research

An article written by Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Benjamin Haywood and co-authors at the University of Washington has been accepted in a top science journal, Conservation Biology. The article, “Place-based, Data-rich Citizen Science as a Precursor for Conservation Action,” will appear in a special section of the journal dedicated to Citizen Science.

Source: Academics, Publications & Research

The Pennsylvania Environmental Resource Consortium presented 2015 Campus Sustainability Champion awards to Bennett Gould ’17 and to Creek Connections. Campus Sustainability Champion awards are given annually to students, faculty and staff of Pennsylvania colleges and universities who have made meaningful contributions benefiting social, economic and/or environmental sustainability on their campuses, in their communities or in society at large. Both Bennett and Wendy Kedzierski, director of Creek Connections, participated in a panel of Campus Sustainability Champions at PERC’s annual conference, held on October 9. Bennett was honored for his leadership with Allegheny College’s annual four-week energy challenge, for reviving the college’s bike share program, and for developing a detailed proposal to add humidistats to dorm ventilation fans and to place outdoor recycling receptacles across Allegheny’s campus.

Source: Academics, Publications & Research

The Pennsylvania Environmental Resource Consortium presented 2015 Campus Sustainability Champion awards to Bennett Gould ’17 and to Creek Connections. Campus Sustainability Champion awards are given annually to students, faculty and staff of Pennsylvania colleges and universities who have made meaningful contributions benefiting social, economic and/or environmental sustainability on their campuses, in their communities or in society at large. Both Bennett and Wendy Kedzierski, director of Creek Connections, participated in a panel of Campus Sustainability Champions at PERC’s annual conference, held on October 9. Bennett was honored for his leadership with Allegheny College’s annual four-week energy challenge, for reviving the college’s bike share program, and for developing a detailed proposal to add humidistats to dorm ventilation fans and to place outdoor recycling receptacles across Allegheny’s campus.

Source: Academics, Publications & Research

A number of students, staff, and Environmental Science faculty members presented at the 2015 Annual Pennsylvania Environmental Resource Consortium (PERC), “Building Bridges,” at Pennsylvania State University in State College.

Carissa Lange ’17, Elia Sherman ’17, Jonah Raether ’17, Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Brittany Davis, and Visiting Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Benjamin Haywood presented “Composting Conundrum: Evaluating Food Waste and the Effectiveness of Compost on College Campuses,” which described a course project that revealed that 94 percent of the items in the trash and 36 percent of the items in the recycling bins in campus dining halls could have been composted. Results from this study initiated changes in the dining hall that are reducing this waste.

Bennett Gould ’17, Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Beth Choate, Visiting Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Casey Bradshaw-Wilson, Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Ian Carbone, and Eric Pallant, Christine Scott Nelson Professor of Environmental Sustainability, presented “Reducing Campus Electricity through Cooperation and Fun,” which describes Allegheny’s successful annual four-week energy challenges that have funded purchase of solar panels for the college.

Bennett Gould ’17, Isaac Pallant ’17, and Sustainability Coordinator Kelly Boulton ’02 presented the poster “Allegheny College Bike Share,” which explores the development of the Allegheny College Bike Share program.

Beth Choate, Paige Hickman ’17, and Erica Moretti ’17 presented “Diversity and Abundance of Native Bees on a Land-use Gradient in Meadville, PA.” Their work investigates the influence of land use on diversity and abundance of native bees.

Rebecca Anderson ’17, Keri Tucker ’16, and Carrden Director Kerstin Martin presented “The Community Wellness Initiative,” a community garden collaboration among Allegheny College community partners.

A poster by Kerstin Martin, Eric Pallant, and Sarah Swartz ’16, “The Wonder of Bread,” documented the educational and experiential process of harvesting, threshing, winnowing, milling, baking, and enjoying bread on campus from wheat grown in the Carrden.

Isaac Pallant ’17—along with Dan Conant ’06, Laura Nagel ’06, Meadville Mayor Christopher Soff, Meadville City Manager Andy Walker ’01, and Professor of Environmental Science Richard Bowden—presented “Basking in the sun: Can solar power work for the municipality of Meadville PA?” which addressed the feasibility of photovoltaic (PV) use for Meadville.

Sadie Stuart ’15 and Richard Bowden displayed “Carbon Athletic Conference,” which explores the environmental and social costs associated with travel for athletic events.

Environmental Science Professor and Geographic Information Systems Laboratory Director Chris Shaffer presented “Sustainable Forest Management: Identification and Prioritization of Forest Landowners in NWPA in Support of Targeted Outreach Program.” The project identifies forest landowners within the region to gauge interest in sustainable management practices.

Director of Creek Connections Wendy Kedzierski and Creek Connections Pittsburgh Director Laura Branby presented a poster on Creek Connections, describing the program’s educational efforts.

Source: Academics, Publications & Research

A number of students, staff, and Environmental Science faculty members presented at the 2015 Annual Pennsylvania Environmental Resource Consortium (PERC), “Building Bridges,” at Pennsylvania State University in State College.

Carissa Lange ’17, Elia Sherman ’17, Jonah Raether ’17, Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Brittany Davis, and Visiting Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Benjamin Haywood presented “Composting Conundrum: Evaluating Food Waste and the Effectiveness of Compost on College Campuses,” which described a course project that revealed that 94 percent of the items in the trash and 36 percent of the items in the recycling bins in campus dining halls could have been composted. Results from this study initiated changes in the dining hall that are reducing this waste.

Bennett Gould ’17, Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Beth Choate, Visiting Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Casey Bradshaw-Wilson, Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Ian Carbone, and Eric Pallant, Christine Scott Nelson Professor of Environmental Sustainability, presented “Reducing Campus Electricity through Cooperation and Fun,” which describes Allegheny’s successful annual four-week energy challenges that have funded purchase of solar panels for the college.

Bennett Gould ’17, Isaac Pallant ’17, and Sustainability Coordinator Kelly Boulton ’02 presented the poster “Allegheny College Bike Share,” which explores the development of the Allegheny College Bike Share program.

Beth Choate, Paige Hickman ’17, and Erica Moretti ’17 presented “Diversity and Abundance of Native Bees on a Land-use Gradient in Meadville, PA.” Their work investigates the influence of land use on diversity and abundance of native bees.

Rebecca Anderson ’17, Keri Tucker ’16, and Carrden Director Kerstin Martin presented “The Community Wellness Initiative,” a community garden collaboration among Allegheny College community partners.

A poster by Kerstin Martin, Eric Pallant, and Sarah Swartz ’16, “The Wonder of Bread,” documented the educational and experiential process of harvesting, threshing, winnowing, milling, baking, and enjoying bread on campus from wheat grown in the Carrden.

Isaac Pallant ’17—along with Dan Conant ’06, Laura Nagel ’06, Meadville Mayor Christopher Soff, Meadville City Manager Andy Walker ’01, and Professor of Environmental Science Richard Bowden—presented “Basking in the sun: Can solar power work for the municipality of Meadville PA?” which addressed the feasibility of photovoltaic (PV) use for Meadville.

Sadie Stuart ’15 and Richard Bowden displayed “Carbon Athletic Conference,” which explores the environmental and social costs associated with travel for athletic events.

Environmental Science Professor and Geographic Information Systems Laboratory Director Chris Shaffer presented “Sustainable Forest Management: Identification and Prioritization of Forest Landowners in NWPA in Support of Targeted Outreach Program.” The project identifies forest landowners within the region to gauge interest in sustainable management practices.

Director of Creek Connections Wendy Kedzierski and Creek Connections Pittsburgh Director Laura Branby presented a poster on Creek Connections, describing the program’s educational efforts.

Source: Academics, Publications & Research

Eric Pallant, Christine Scott Nelson Endowed Professor of Environmental Sustainability, presented “How to Save 10% on the All-College Electric Bill” at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the Association of Environmental Science and Studies. The paper discussed the success of the October Energy Challenge and was written in conjunction with Beth Choate (Assistant Professor of Environmental Science), Kelly Boulton (Allegheny College Sustainability Coordinator), Casey Bradshaw-Wilson (Visiting Assistant Professor of Environmental Science), and Ian Carbone (Assistant Professor of Environmental Science). Professor Choate presented “Why Banning Bottled Water Doesn’t Solve the Problem,” which was written in conjunction with Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Brittany Davis, Jacqueline Verrechia ’17, Kelly Boulton, and Professors Wilson, Pallant, and Carbone. The paper examined use of bottled water by students on the Allegheny campus, which was assessed by Professors Choate and Davis’s Spring 2014 section of ES 210: Environmental Science Research Methods. Professors Pallant, Choate, Davis, Associate Professor of Environmental Science and Global Health Studies Caryl Waggett, Professor Bradshaw-Wilson, Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Ben Haywood, and Professor of Environmental Science Richard Bowden presented the poster “Teaching Environmental Research by Doing It in an Entry-Level Course,” which describes the course “Environmental Research Methods.” Sadie Stuart ’15 and Professor Bowden presented the poster “The Carbon Athletic Conference,” which described Sadie’s senior thesis quantifying social, economic, and environmental costs of participation by the Allegheny softball team in the North Coast Athletic Conference.

Source: Academics, Publications & Research