School of Natural Resources and Environment

Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise

SNRE students get a voice at U.N. climate change conference

Two SNRE students in the Frederick A. and Barbara M. Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise maximized a prime career and scholarly opportunity this month, as they exchanged ideas and met with global policymakers at the United Nation's global climate change convention in Durban, South Africa. Miguel Sossa (M.S./MBA '13) and Daniel Gerding (M.S./MBA '14) represented the Ross School of Business at the conference, which brought together leaders in business, government and non-governmental organizations. Sossa also moderated an official side event Dec. 2 on the topic of professional standards in carbon markets, an idea generated in part during his first visit to the conference last year.

image: From left: Ajay Varadharajan, Lawrence Han and Javier Rivera

SNRE students look to put the brakes on 'range anxiety' among electric vehicle owners

Three aspiring student entrepreneurs have set their sights on overcoming a major obstacle to electric vehicle (EV) adoption: "range anxiety." Range anxiety refers to the concerns of potential EV buyers about the limited range of these new automobiles and the accessibility of re-charging stations to keep them on the road. University of Michigan students Javier Rivera, Lawrence Han and Ajay Varadharajan believe they can eliminate these concerns by creating an EV network that matches the demand for electric vehicle power with supply.

Erb Institute key driver in Ross School's MBA ranking

Once again, the Michigan Ross School of Business is among the best business schools in the world for integrating environmental, social and ethical issues into its MBA program, according to the Aspen Institute's 2011-12 Beyond Grey Pinstripes report. The biennial survey and ranking of business schools placed the Ross School at No. 7 overall. Ross is the only U.S. school to make the Top 10 in every ranking since Beyond Grey Pinstripesbegan in 2001. Ross also was once again ranked highly in the relevance and business impact of course content and in peer-reviewed faculty research related to social and environmental responsibility.

Student assesses Mpala project in Kenya

SNRE student Melissa Antokal (M.S./MBA '12) was recently in Kenya to complete a team master'project with other students. On behalf of their client the Mpala Wildlife Foundation, the graduate students researched and analyzed issues around sustainable growth and responsible energy consumption. In a blog post, Antokal writes about how the adage "Location, location, location," used commonly during her previous work in the real estate industry, is also a useful guiding principle for sustainability and growth in the developing world.

Hoffman named a 2011 Leopold Leadership Fellow

Andy Hoffman, the Holcim (US) Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at SNRE, was one of 20 environmental researchers from across North America recently awarded Leopold Leadership Fellowships for 2011. Based at Stanford University's Woods Institute for the Environment, the Leopold Leadership Program was founded in 1998 to help academic scientists make their knowledge accessible to decision makers.

Master's project wins $25K Clean Energy Prize

A team of four dual-degree SNRE students took second place last week in the Clean Energy Prize contest for their master's project. Team Smart Energy—Andrew Lubershane, who is completing a master's in applied economics in addition to a degree at SNRE, and Erb students Mike Elchinger, Ryan Flynn, and Graham Brown—won $25,000 for a plan that uses an innovative financing model to retrofit municipal buildings for energy efficiency savings. Their master's project client is the Clean Energy Coalition. The group has also received a $50,000 grant from the Ford Motor Company to support implementation of their business plan over the summer.

Erb Institute students to help Michigan's "Cities of Promise" save money, gain energy efficiency

Feb. 11, 201

Facing budget challenges and pressure to reduce costs, Michigan's cities and towns are seeking creative solutions. With Ford Motor Company's help, students from The Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise at the University of Michigan are helping create one solution for Michigan's poorest cities: an innovative financial model that will provide desperately needed capital to upgrade facilities, reduce energy consumption and save money.

Have we changed our ways after the BP oil spill? Not really

On the heels of last week's federal recommendations to help prevent another BP oil spill disaster, a University of Michigan researcher says the tragedy has come close to acting as a catalyst for deeper change---but not quite. "The BP oil spill is, potentially, a 'cultural anomaly' for institutional changes in environmental management and fossil fuel production," said Andrew Hoffman, professor of management and organizations at the Ross School of Business and a professor at the School of Natural Resources and Environment. "But true change in our approach to handling issues related to oil drilling, oil consumption and environmental management have yet to occur."

Erb students win $25K for business plan to convert food waste into energy

A group of students from the Erb Insitute for Sustainable Enterprise and the School of Engineering won first prize in the student division of a Michigan business-plan competition. ReGenerate, a company started by Erb students Paul Davis, Nolan Orfield and Hunt Briggs, along with chemical engineering PhD student Bobby Levine, won $25,000 in the Accelerate Michigan Innovation Competition on December 10.

COP16 update: Week One

Dec. 6, 2010

During the first week of the UN climate conference in Cancun, Erb Institute student Miguel Sossa helped a non-profit agency launch a sustainable-marketing campaign, ate lunch with like-minded students from across the world, observed as foreign dignitaries positioned their appeals, shook hands with a top UN official who replied "Go Blue!," and shared thoughts on the rice trade with an ambassador on his ride back to his hotel.

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