GE & SU - Leadership @ Work

]L@W Student VolunteersStudents met with campus leaders and showed an understanding of the current economic strain on cash resources- and looked at alternative ways of funding their ideas in a sustainable fashion.

Choosing the winner was tough, as students were very creative. The ideas ranged from campus newspaper recycling programs, water conservation, motion sensors for lighting, biofuel, dining hall composting, and even incentive programs for recycling on campus.

However, when it came down to choosing the winner, Peter Bowen recommended that the team take into account the "low hanging fruit" - taking into account time and cost, what would have the biggest impact on the campus.

The first place award went to the team who proposed a water reduction campaign in the Skyhalls dorms on south campus- where all the showerheads in the bathrooms would be replaced by water-efficient alternatives.

Second place went to a team who did a thorough analysis of the impact of implementing a "green roof" on top of bird library on main campus. Although the cost was high, the judges agreed that the team did the best financial cost/benefit analysis.

Overall, the teams involved were "really thinking green" and proposed options that ranged from large scale (green roofs) to small scale (showerheads, high-efficiency lightbulbs). Creativity was king with the group, as many made videos and leveraged Internet resources such as Google Earth, YouTube, and Facebook to conduct surveys and gain VOC.

Overall, 55 students from a variety of majors at Syracuse University joined Program Coordinator Sue Kudlack, Campus Ambassador Stephanie Zuninga, and Presentation Skills Trainer Nancy Martin for this tremendous recruiting and knowledge sharing effort that spanned two weekends!