entirely shot on iphone using only an external mic. 

q: hello ruby, thank you so much for answering these questions for planet forward! firstly, does middlebury’s declaration of its carbon neutrality change anything for other schools? has the college ‘paved the way’ for other institutions?

a: middlebury’s announcement certainly pressures other schools to reach their goals. middlebury is now the largest college or university to achieve carbon neutrality, which is a pretty powerful statement. i think this especially pressures schools that are peers to middlebury, for example smaller private colleges in the northeast. schools with similar situations and climates can look at middlebury’s strategies as models for their own paths to carbon neutrality. that being said, i don’t think this is a major change for the majority of the network. each school has different factors influencing its emissions and different challenges to overcome.

q: how can schools like middlebury, that have achieved carbon neutrality, continue to show climate leadership going forward?

a: schools can always continue to improve their operations, reduce energy use, and implement more renewables. maintaining carbon neutrality each year is a major task that will require an ongoing effort by middlebury. another way that schools like middlebury can continue to show climate leadership is to reach out beyond campus boundaries to drive climate action in the local community and region. many of the universities that we work with are now signatories of the [second nature] climate commitment, which means they are committed to improving climate resilience with their community. schools can act as conveners for local and regional stakeholders, and work with community partners to assess climate vulnerability. we know that many regions in the u.s. are already feeling the impacts of climate change, and i think there is a lot of opportunity for schools to step up and provide leadership in terms of adaptation and resilience.

q: what other schools are on the path of carbon neutrality?

a: all of the schools that have signed either the carbon or climate commitment have a target carbon neutrality date and a commitment to achieve this.  some are much closer to doing so than others. there are at least 30 schools that have set their carbon neutrality data as 2020 or before. you can look at our public reporting system to see the list of schools that have upcoming carbon neutrality dates.

q: on january 20, 2017, the united states will inaugurate donald j. trump as president of the united states. his nominee to lead the epa, scott pruitt, has been called a “climate change denialist” by the new york times. do you believe that his nomination will change anything for institutions looking to become more ‘green’?

a: so far we’ve actually seen this to be a motivating factor for schools. over 220 college and university presidents and chancellors just signed an open letter asking the incoming administration to remain in the paris agreement, support climate and energy research, and invest in a low carbon economy. higher education sustainability professionals have been organizing themselves and discussing the best ways to ensure that faculty, staff, and students remain engaged and committed to supporting the causes we believe in. the currently proposed polices of the incoming administration are certainly discouraging, but i’m actually optimistic that this will be a call to action and drive more commitment to addressing climate change on a local and regional level.

q: if alternative ‘green’ energy incentives are reduced, (i.e. removal of federal tax credits for renewable energy projects or the purchase of energy efficient products), can colleges and universities realistically still become carbon neutral?

a: yes absolutely, although it may change some schools’ paths to neutrality. regardless of federal incentives, renewable energy is becoming increasingly more cost effective and competitive with fossil fuels, especially large-scale wind and solar projects. and on the state level there are many states committed to policies that support clean energy and investment in renewables. i really do think that investing in clean energy is good business.

q: what do you see as major developments in store for institutions looking to achieve carbon neutrality in 2017?

a: i think there is a lot of room for innovative finance and insurance mechanisms to drive large-scale investments in clean energy and energy efficiency. we’re already starting to see some of this. for example, we work with a few schools that are able to sell carbon credits and access revenue from the voluntary carbon market to finance further energy reduction projects on campus. i’ve also heard about companies that are willing to develop large-scale renewable energy projects because there are now firms that will carry a lot of the weather risk. i don’t know much about this type of partnership, but am excited to learn more! schools are always in need of capital for the large-scale investments in clean energy and energy efficiency that can truly bring them to carbon neutrality. it is certainly a challenge, but i am excited there seem to be more creative financial mechanisms to explore.

q: what institutional innovation in achieving carbon neutrality are you most excited about right now [i.e. what is the newest, coolest way to reduce carbon effectively]?

a: i wish there was a silver bullet! i’m actually pretty excited about the land use and forest carbon sequestration that middlebury used to achieve net carbon neutrality. so many schools have large amounts of land that they are not fully considering in their ghg [greenhouse gas] emissions. i think there are still many questions to resolve, but there is a lot of opportunity for improved land management and reforestation to sequester carbon. this isn’t to say that schools don’t also need to reduce emissions and implement renewables. however, i do think that a holistic approach to carbon neutrality and sustainability includes land use and its exciting to see some schools beginning to tackle that. there are also exciting examples of partnerships that enable larger innovative projects. as i mentioned before, the cost of renewables are very competitive – institutions can form partnerships like gwu [george washington university] and au [american university] have done and source a significant amount of their energy from new renewables projects.

q: anything else you wanted to share about carbon neutrality in 2017?

a: congrats to middlebury [on achieving carbon neutrality]!

this announcement also solidifies middlebury’s place as a leader in environmental studies and education, especially considering the idea that set the school’s carbon goal in motion started as a class project that made its way to the board of trustees.

so how did middlebury do it? here are the five top ways the college has innovated to reduce its carbon footprint and reach its goal:

1. biomass

middlebury college’s biomass gasification plant was opened in 2009. it gasifies wood, a process by which, instead of burning, draws gasses out of woodchips, which are fed into the system, and burns the gases emitted by the woodchips. the plant is manned 24 hours a day and features extensive exhaust filtering, which promises to remove 99.7% of particulates, meaning most of what the plant releases from its distinctive smokestack is water-vapor. while biomass gasification can be viewed as controversial, as it does require wood to be chopped and burned, middlebury considers it carbon-neutral since all their wood is harvested within 75 miles of campus and net forest growth in vermont typically far exceeds the harvest rate. the biomass plant accounts of 50% of middlebury’s reduction in carbon emissions.

according to middlebury college “… the biomass gasification plant exceeds the manufacturer’s original specifications” and actually saves the college between $1-2 million dollars per year in energy costs!

for a video tour of the plant, see https://vimeo.com/129550116. 

2. local, college-owned solar farm network

middlebury also utilizes a small network of solar projects that are located both on and in the close vicinity of campus. the original farm, called the “all earth solar farm,” is located just past middlebury’s science building, along the path to the college’s organic farm. the 143-kw plant is about five years old. in addition, the college is working on two more solar projects, the south ridge project (just 5 miles off campus), which just came online, and the wilber project (12 miles off campus), which will come online soon. middlebury’s solar farms will account for 8% of the college’s electricity use.

3. efficiency on campus

in addition to utilizing new forms of energy production, middlebury has taken steps to ensure that energy-consuming objects and appliances on campus also minimize their electricity use. projects include installing compact fluorescent and led lights across campus, new appliances, and installation of new variable-speed “smart” heating and cooling fans in dorms, offices, classrooms, and the main library.

4. permanent conservation of 2,100 acres on middlebury’s bread loaf campus

just under 12 miles away from campus is middlebury college’s bread loaf school of english. surrounding the school are 2,100 acres of pristine green mountain forest. thanks to a donation from middlebury alum and conservationist louis bacon, the college announced in 2014 that the forest would be conserved in perpetuity, never to be cut down. as a result, middlebury gained the ability to measure and register the land for their carbon sequestration. preliminary numbers suggest that for the first five years after the announcement and measurement, middlebury will receive offset credits for 25,000 tons of carbon per year. after five years, the college will be able to count roughly 3,000 tons of carbon offsets per year, which accounts for the yearly net growth of the bread loaf forest land. while the land does offset middlebury’s carbon output, director of sustainability integration jack byrne hesitates to call them an “offset,” rather pointing out that middlebury created an offset rather than purchasing one.

5. shredding the (carbon neutral) gnar at the middlebury snow bowl

in 2006, middlebury college snow bowl became the first ski area in the united states to go carbon neutral. the snow bowl is one of two remaining college-owned ski areas in the united states. just 12 miles from campus, the snow bowl has three ski-lifts, 17 trails, and 1,000 vertical feet of skiable area. carbon neutrality here was achieved through offsets, meaning that the college invested in protected land and sustainable energy projects across the united states. to do this, the college works with nativeenergy: “… a privately held renewable energy company that helps reduce co2 emissions by funding native american owned and operated wind turbine farms and family-owned farm methane projects.”

the project was recently awarded ten million dollars in federal funding, which will be used to improve the quality of the tracks, build new stations (including one planned for middlebury), and install 13 new rail crossings. once tracks quality is improved, trains will be able to travel at 60 miles per hour, rather than the current maximum speed of 10-25 mph for freight trains.

vermont’s rail resurgence is reflective of a growing desire for public transit. currently there are only several train stations in the state. as the project develops in coming years, the hope is that vermont and surrounding areas will be able to rely more heavily on public transit, and reduce the state’s dependency on automobile traffic.

for students at middlebury, the hope is that the project will connect them to other public transit throughout new england, providing them with an even broader link to the region.

in this film, i spoke with senior architecture students working on proposals for a new train station in middlebury. the students, who are working on these projects as their senior theses, will present them to the town of middlebury select board at the end of the year.