Green, Greener, Greenest

For those seeking more-rigorous ways to study the environment, there's no lack of options. Colorado State University offers more than 100 courses in fields from engineering to atmospheric science. "Students can work with professors who are engaged in the latest ideas on reducing climate change and producing new energy sources," says CSU president Larry Edward Penley. Several years ago, engineering students came up with a way to retrofit two-stroke engines on snowmobiles, making for cleaner, more efficient machines. A company called Envirofit International is now marketing the technology in Asia to help cut pollution from auto rickshaws. Students will also be able to help with multiple research projects at the huge new wind farm CSU is building.

It's not just the sciences that offer opportunities for study. Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pa., has more than 70 classes in departments like policy studies and history. "Humans have transformed the environment, and the environment has affected human events," says environmental historian Jeremy Vetter. He points to the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, when severe dust storms devastated so much farmland that the government stepped in to help save topsoil. Furman has even added a core-curriculum requirement for environmental studies, with classes like The Sustainable Corporation and Environmental Writing. And the college offers scholarships of up to $7,500 a year to environmentally active students. "I'm tired of looking to the next administration in government to do something about the environment," says Frank Powell, the campus's "sustainability guru."

Students like Roque Sanchez, an environmental-engineering major at Rice University in Houston, are already leading the way. He's head of Rice's team in the prestigious Solar Decathlon, an international competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy. The goal: to design and build an attractive house powered solely by the sun, yet with adequate power for normal household use. That's tough enough, but Sanchez and his team have upped the ante by aiming for a house suitable for low-income families. In October 2009, the finished houses from all 20 teams will be transported to Washington, D.C., where they will be on display on the Mall for a month. After that, the Rice team will donate its house to a family in Houston.

Ultimately, the goal for many students will be to translate their experiences into internships and jobs. For Maggie Stonecash, a 2008 Dickinson graduate, that means spending six months helping to manage the college's 15-acre organic farm. She and her fellow interns take field trips to places like the Rodale Institute, which is a leader in sustainable farming, and to nearby farms that raise grass-fed beef or use "no till" practices to spare the topsoil. They live on the farm for "full immersion" (and they live in yurts—large, round Mongolian-style tents, which are solar-powered and off the grid). "I feel passionate about organic farming as a way to help bring back a sustainable lifestyle," Stonecash says. More power to her.

© 2008