Here Are The Upcoming Climate Week Events We Are Participating In
September 21st
September 21st
September 24th
September 25th
September 26th
Solar One’s Green Design Lab Selected as a Winner of 2019 UL Innovative Education Award
We have exciting news to share with our Solar One friends – Our Green Design Lab program has been honored for our excellence in environmental STEM education as a 2019 UL Innovative Education Award (ULIEA) winner!
The UL Innovative Education Award is celebrating five years of recognizing organizations in the United States and Canada that demonstrate effective educational programming and community engagement. The program is supported through a partnership between Underwriters Laboratories (UL) and North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE). To celebrate UL’s 125th Anniversary, six ULIEA winners were selected.
We are thrilled to be honored as a second tier winner and to receive $50,000! (Want to see our team surprised with the announcement of winning? Watch this fun video to see our reaction!)
While winning $50K provides invaluable support for us to continue to refine and develop our programs, we are also excited to join the established network of ULIEA alumni awardees. In early August we will meet with our fellow 2019 winners, along with experts from UL and NAAEE, to further discuss environmental STEM education and how we can collaborate on social impact projects to engage youth, inspire leadership, and drive sustainable change.
“It is truly a privilege to recognize the important work of the UL Innovative Education Award winners, and to help them continue to bring unique and engaging learning opportunities to students in their regions,” said Cara Gizzi, VP of Education and Outreach, Underwriters Laboratories. “Over the past five years, 26 total winners received over $1.275 million to support environmental STEM programs, and they’ve built a strong network with like-minded organizations around the U.S. and Canada. This year’s cohort reaches a diverse group of audiences with innovative programming that can serve as a model for programs around the globe.”
To learn more about the UL Innovative Education Award, please visit ulinnovationeducation.naaee.net.
Although there were some setbacks at the Federal level, there was plenty of good news in the world of Solar Power last year. More and more Americans are working in the solar industry, and there were plenty of installations last year in all sectors of our society. The more solar we install, the more we reduce our CO2 emissions and mitigate the effects of global warming. The infographic below is just a small sampling of some recent numbers. Enjoy and feel free to share!
Hannah Schanzer is a Park Intern at Solar One this summer, working in Stuyvesant Cove Park. She is a rising junior at Washington University in St. Louis, studying Environmental Policy and Urban Studies. She has come to the Park this summer to learn more about urban park stewardship and urban ecology.
For my summer research project, I really wanted to focus on studying how the urban setting impacts the biodiversity of the park. Stuyvesant Cove Park is situated between a gas station, a power plant, and the highway. Additionally, it is located on the former site of a cement mixing factory.
Preliminary testing revealed that the soil in some beds of the park have slightly elevated levels of lead, although not enough to cause concern with park operations (highest lead concentration in a bed was 80 ppm (parts per million), anything less than 100 ppm is considered safe for children to play in). I was curious to find out whether there was a way to “clean” the soil with the highest lead concentration without treating it with chemicals or replacing it with imported soil.
NYC DoE Holds First Climate Summit
Teachers, Instructional Coaches, and Educators from across the DOE participated in the first NYC DOE Climate Summit at the NY Hall of Science in Queens, NY. The Summit was organized by the Office of Sustainability, Solar One, and the Climate and Urban Systems Partnership in an effort to profile the diversity of climate change and how it relates to a variety of school activities and curriculum.
Activities in the two Round Robin sessions included mapping visualizations, climate themed simulations and games, school climate risk assessments, data analysis, health impacts, and climate advocacy.
