Innovative Program: Education for Sustainability

"The breakdown of ecological systems is largely due to human intervention," says assistant professor of biology Susan Allen-Gil. "Studying sustainability lets students know there are alternatives to environmental degradation."

Students will study sustainable living and practice at EcoVillage, a nationally renowned community just minutes from the College

Now IC students have a chance to study sustainability through an unusual partnership. The College has received a National Science Foundation grant of $149,000 to engage in a teaching and research collaboration with EcoVillage at Ithaca (EVI). EVI is an educational nonprofit that's also a working model of sustainable living -- integrating housing, food production, work, and play while helping to regenerate the natural environment. EVI owns 176 acres on Ithaca's West Hill and so far has two "cohousing" communities of clustered, individually owned homes.

Cohousing is a concept that developed in Europe during the 1970s and has spread to the United States in the last 15 years; there are now some 55 such communities in this country. At EVI the dwellings all feature passive solar energy and superinsulated construction; some also have more sophisticated environmentally sensible components such as composting toilets. In addition, there is a "common house," which offers a center for residents to gather for community meals, celebrations, and meetings. Many residents work on-site, including the farmers who run West Haven Farm, an 11-acre organic farm that feeds about 1,000 people a week during the growing season. EVI also plans an education center and a third cohousing neighborhood. It has won wide attention for its design and hosts visitors from around the world.

"There are communities similar to EcoVillage all over the world, but this [college-community] partnership is one of the first between an environmentally sustainable community and a college," says Tom Shevory, associate professor of politics and coordinator of the environmental studies program. "This collaboration is a rare opportunity for students to use what is essentially a 'living laboratory' to develop research projects, independent studies, and residential experiences."

Photos by Jillian Bendig '03

Thanks to the grant, which is being matched by the College and EVI, the College's environmental studies program is offering four classes in which students, working with College faculty members and EVI practitioners, will research and analyze sustainable relationships between humans and the natural world.

The first course, Ecologically Sustainable Communities, started this semester. The other courses, which will be offered in upcoming semesters, are Sustainable Land Use, Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Energy, and Ecological Footprinting. "The environmental studies program is relatively new," says Allen-Gil, who is principal investigator for the grant. "These courses in sustainability are a good way to develop a focus for our program, and the partnership with EcoVillage gives our students the use of facilities that very few other programs have access to." The classes are not limited to students majoring in environmental studies, and they're open to students from Cornell University and Wells College, who may take the courses for transferable credit.

Educators and students at the College will work closely with Liz Walker, cofounder and director of EVI, and Elan Shapiro, EVI's education coordinator. Among the projects already planned for students to tackle:

• alternative transportation planning -- researching options for EcoVillagers to use their cars less;
• developing a sustainable land-use plan -- researching ways to care for the EcoVillage land, which was depleted by heavy logging and poor agricultural practices in the past; and
• education on sustainable lifestyle choices -- exploring personal sustainability indicators in their own lives and learning to curb wasteful consumption of energy and goods, and then organizing workshops on this topic for the Ithaca-area public.

"Offering students a chance for real-world experiences in energy, land, and resource use greatly strengthens the EcoVillage mission of sustainability," Walker says. The partnership also strengthens the mission of Ithaca College, as Provost Peter Bardaglio, an enthusiastic champion of the program, notes: "The College emphasizes the importance of performance-based and experiential learning, and this curriculum introduces students to research projects, independent study, and other endeavors that expand the skills acquired in formal course work."