Upcoming Events

Education for Sustainable Summer Institute: July 21-22, 2011
Come to learn about model programs, practical strategies, and resources for integrating sustainability into classes, schools, and districts. This event will be the first of its kind in Kentucky and the region. It is being hosted by the WKU College of Education and Behavioral Sciences and WKU Center for Environmental Education and Sustainability.

Who should attend? PreK-12 teachers, faculty/staff, non-formal educators & administrators.

Register today!. The deadline for registration is July 15, 2011. It is necessary to pre-register for the conference, including for presenters. The fee includes meals, field trips, and the reception and is now $50, or $15 for students. Scholarships are available if needed; contact cees@wku.edu.

Click the links below for more information information and for forms.

Conference Information
Registration Form
Lodging Information
Exhibitor's Application
Schedule of Events

News

Save the dates! The WKU College of Education and Behavioral Sciences and Center for Environmental Education and Sustainability will be hosting the first Education for Sustainability Summer Institute for Kentucky and its region on July 21-22, 2011.

WKU to offer new Master of Arts in Social Responsibility & Sustainable Communities

Western Kentucky University will be offering a new Master of Arts in Social Responsibility & Sustainable Communities beginning in Fall, 2011. The new graduate program will be offered through the Institute for Citizenship & Social Responsibility, within the University College. “Faculty from various departments crafted the interdisciplinary program that is already attracting students,” said Dr. Jane Olmsted, director of the Women’s Studies Program and coordinator of the new master’s degree.

Olmsted said that the new degree program will provide graduate students from diverse backgrounds with the tools to lead communities toward social justice and sustainability. Students within the cohort program will take six core courses and additional electives, with or without a thesis option, for a total of 33 hours. All students will have the opportunity to conduct an action research project to understand relevant community issues and to identify possible solutions. In their final semester, students will share their research in a symposium at a sustainability conference.

For more information visit www.wku.edu/cohort/srsc or contact Jane Olmsted at 270-745-5787.

Habitat for Humanity Green Infrastructure Statewide Demonstraton”
The CEES has been awarded a 3-year $655,000 grant 319(h) nonpoint source (NPS) pollution grant from the Kentucky Division of Water. This is a partnership project between WKU, Habitat for Humanity and other regional partners. It represents the first phase of a larger plan to develop a mixed income mixed use affordable housing community that will eventually comprise up to 50 green housing units, a community center, outdoor amphitheater, walking trails, community gardens, rain gardens, edible landscaping, native species plantings and increased tree cover on the site. “This is a wonderful opportunity to work with WKU and a broad collaboration of community partners to create a community that will model for us a better way to live,” said Rodney Goodman, Executive Director for the BG-WC Habitat office.

The Center has become part of the national network of urban-based City Partners for Flying WILD. A new program of the Council for Environmental Education, that introduces middle school students to bird conservation through standards-based classroom activities and environment stewardship projects. Flying WILD encourages schools to work closely with conservation organizations, community groups, and businesses involved with birds to implement school bird festivals--events in which students take a leading role in teaching their classmates and community about migratory birds. The Center provides a certified facilitator, Robin Hume, to provide training in the use of Flying WILD materials and to distribute Flying WILD Materials in the Green River region of KY.

The KUPEE Energy Initiative
Western Kentucky University ’s Center for Environmental Education and Sustainability was funding in late 2009 to lead a three-year, $1.57 million project to integrate service learning into environmental education programs in Kentucky. The project will engage about 360 college students and 4,000 elementary and secondary school students in high-quality service-learning projects that meet local needs...Read More

Alec Loorz - Youth speak out about climate change
While some adults dismis global warming, to 15-year old Alex Loorz, a keynote speaker at the Green California Summit, the future is clear: Climate change is about to have serious consequences on the planet-and it will be up to his generaton to deal with it. Just returned from representing youth at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, he offers his impressions of the conference and explains why the voices of youth should not be ignored. Click here to read the story.

Fighting 'Nature Deficit Disorder': Preschools in Forests Take Root in the US
by Manuel Valdes
Published on Monday, May 24, 2010 by the Associated Press http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/05/24-5
VASHON ISLAND, Wash. - When they're outside, the children in Erin Kenny's class don't head for cover if it rains or snows. They stay right where they are - in a private five-acre forest. It's their classroom.

Upcoming Events Education for Sustainable Summer Institute: July 21-22, 2011 Come to learn about model programs, practical strategies, and resources for integrating sustainability into classes, schools, and districts. This event will be the first of its kind in Kentucky and the region. It is being hosted by the WKU College of Education and Behavioral Sciences and WKU Center for Environmental Education and Sustainability. Who should attend? PreK-12 teachers, faculty/staff, non-formal educators & administrators. Register today!. The deadline for registration is July 15, 2011. It is necessary to pre-register for the conference, including for presenters. The fee includes meals, field trips, and the reception and is now $50, or $15 for students. Scholarships are available if needed; contact cees@wku.edu. Click the links below for more information information and for forms. Conference Information Registration Form Lodging Information Exhibitor's Application Schedule of Events
News Save the dates! The WKU College of Education and Behavioral Sciences and Center for Environmental Education and Sustainability will be hosting the first Education for Sustainability Summer Institute for Kentucky and its region on July 21-22, 2011. WKU to offer new Master of Arts in Social Responsibility & Sustainable Communities Western Kentucky University will be offering a new Master of Arts in Social Responsibility & Sustainable Communities beginning in Fall, 2011. The new graduate program will be offered through the Institute for Citizenship & Social Responsibility, within the University College. “Faculty from various departments crafted the interdisciplinary program that is already attracting students,” said Dr. Jane Olmsted, director of the Women’s Studies Program and coordinator of the new master’s degree. Olmsted said that the new degree program will provide graduate students from diverse backgrounds with the tools to lead communities toward social justice and sustainability. Students within the cohort program will take six core courses and additional electives, with or without a thesis option, for a total of 33 hours. All students will have the opportunity to conduct an action research project to understand relevant community issues and to identify possible solutions. In their final semester, students will share their research in a symposium at a sustainability conference. For more information visit www.wku.edu/cohort/srsc or contact Jane Olmsted at 270-745-5787. Habitat for Humanity Green Infrastructure Statewide Demonstraton” The CEES has been awarded a 3-year $655,000 grant 319(h) nonpoint source (NPS) pollution grant from the Kentucky Division of Water. This is a partnership project between WKU, Habitat for Humanity and other regional partners. It represents the first phase of a larger plan to develop a mixed income mixed use affordable housing community that will eventually comprise up to 50 green housing units, a community center, outdoor amphitheater, walking trails, community gardens, rain gardens, edible landscaping, native species plantings and increased tree cover on the site. “This is a wonderful opportunity to work with WKU and a broad collaboration of community partners to create a community that will model for us a better way to live,” said Rodney Goodman, Executive Director for the BG-WC Habitat office.
The Center has become part of the national network of urban-based City Partners for Flying WILD. A new program of the Council for Environmental Education, that introduces middle school students to bird conservation through standards-based classroom activities and environment stewardship projects. Flying WILD encourages schools to work closely with conservation organizations, community groups, and businesses involved with birds to implement school bird festivals--events in which students take a leading role in teaching their classmates and community about migratory birds. The Center provides a certified facilitator, Robin Hume, to provide training in the use of Flying WILD materials and to distribute Flying WILD Materials in the Green River region of KY.
The KUPEE Energy Initiative Western Kentucky University ’s Center for Environmental Education and Sustainability was funding in late 2009 to lead a three-year, $1.57 million project to integrate service learning into environmental education programs in Kentucky. The project will engage about 360 college students and 4,000 elementary and secondary school students in high-quality service-learning projects that meet local needs...Read More
Alec Loorz - Youth speak out about climate change While some adults dismis global warming, to 15-year old Alex Loorz, a keynote speaker at the Green California Summit, the future is clear: Climate change is about to have serious consequences on the planet-and it will be up to his generaton to deal with it. Just returned from representing youth at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, he offers his impressions of the conference and explains why the voices of youth should not be ignored. Click here to read the story.
Fighting 'Nature Deficit Disorder': Preschools in Forests Take Root in the US by Manuel Valdes Published on Monday, May 24, 2010 by the Associated Press http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/05/24-5 VASHON ISLAND, Wash. - When they're outside, the children in Erin Kenny's class don't head for cover if it rains or snows. They stay right where they are - in a private five-acre forest. It's their classroom.