Monthly Archive for June, 2011

The University of Oregon is one of the first universities to offer a one-year graduate certificate program in sustainable practices for the built environment.

Oregon Leadership in Sustainability <http://olis.uoregon.edu/>  (OLIS) is a one-year, full-time interdisciplinary program geared toward students with a bachelor’s degree who desire more applied skills training in sustainability and cities. The program addresses the need for future leaders in the public, private and nonprofit sectors in fields such as water, waste, transportation and land use.
The program is led by Dr. Vicki Elmer, a former city manager in Eugene, one-time planning director for the City of Berkeley in California and former professor at the University of California.

“This program was established by the Oregon University System to educate the next generation of sustainability leaders,” Elmer said. “It’s a one year ‘boot camp’ for 20 to 30 students who want to immerse themselves in the skills and knowledge necessary to help make sustainable cities a reality.”

The program, divided into three terms, includes four required core courses – Foundations of Sustainability, Green Cities, Sustainable Energy Planning and Finance and Ecological Design. In addition, students will work in a year-long practicum with a client city on a sustainability project while learning leadership, analysis and implementation processes.  Students will learn how to prepare a sustainability plan; how to plan an eco-district; and how to evaluate development projects against both financial and ecological criteria.

OLIS applications are currently being accepted for the fall of 2011. Offered through the Planning, Public Policy and Management department, at the University of Oregon, the program welcomes students of all backgrounds who would like to expand their knowledge of sustainability.

Source: Anya Dobrowolski, OLIS Program Assistant 541-346-8227, adobrowo@uoregon.edu, Vicki Elmer, OLIS Program Director, (541) 346-8227, velmer@uoregon.edu, Rich Margerum, PPPM Associate Professor/Department Head and OLIS Faculty Director, 541-346-2526, rdm@uoregon.edu
Link: http://olis.uoregon.edu/

By Dieter Helm from Prospect Magazine

Peak oil—the idea that we have passed or are about to pass the physical peak of oil production—is again in fashion. It has been lent impetus by events in the Middle East and North Africa. Predictions abound of imminent price shocks, $200 dollars-a-barrel oil, and an oil-induced Armageddon. We have been here before: it is all very reminiscent of the reactions to the Iranian revolution and the oil price shock in 1979 when oil prices hit $39 a barrel (about $130 in current money).

Belief in this coming Armageddon naturally underpins the case for going green, and in particular for placing overwhelming emphasis on renewables and energy efficiency measures. Current extremely expensive offshore wind programmes (amounting to over £100bn in Britain before 2020) become economic, advocates of this argument say, because the price of the alternative is going to be so high. Energy efficiency becomes more attractive at high oil prices, the argument goes, and hence the demand for energy will fall (at least for the domestic market) thereby offsetting the costs of renewables. Thus the strategy pays for itself.

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By Misha Lepetic from 3 Quarks Daily

Much as the 20^th century taught us that central planning failed our nations, the 21^st century will teach us that central planning will fail our cities.

It is commonly known that sometime in the last few years, we have passed the milestone, with half of the world’s population now residing in cities. Somewhat less known is the projection that 60% of all people will do so by 2030 – that is a rate of almost 180,000 persons moving into cities every day. This is a trend of such immensity that it is basically irreversible, and yet city governments (as well as their state-level counterparts) are ill-equipped to handle it from just about any point of view. Specifically, urban growth will mostly occur within the context of peripheral, unplanned environments, where physical, social and legal infrastructure is present in only the most arbitrary, self-organizing fashion. When coupled with the increasing frequency of extreme weather events that is the true consequence of climate change, the resilience of cities themselves is called into question.

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