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Antioch receives grant

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Greene County News Report

YELLOW SPRINGS – Antioch College – in partnership with peer institutions Oberlin College, Albion College, DePauw University and Hope College – has been awarded a grant from the Great Lakes College Association (GLCA) as part of their “Expanding Collaboration Initiative” for 2015-2016.

The project will implement the Environmental Dashboard technology developed at Oberlin College as a digital platform to foster collaboration between faculty, students and staff across the participating campuses. Beginning this fall, three kiosks across the Antioch campus will display real-time energy-use data informing students, faculty, staff and the greater college community. Instrument-connected kiosks will be located in Birch Hall, McGregor Hall and South Hall. Additional buildings may come online in the future.

The Environmental Dashboard is a communication technology that combines real-time display of water and electricity use in buildings, organizations and whole communities with photographs and ideas on environmental thoughts and actions contributed by community members. Using electronic signs and websites, the Dashboard employs compelling graphics to reconnect people with the natural world by making flows of resources visible and promoting sustainable behavior.

“We’re honored to receive this meaningful grant from the GLCA – an organization that has been a great partner to the re-created Antioch,” Antioch College President Mark Roosevelt said. “The Environmental Dashboard further signals Antioch College as a nationwide leader in college sustainability efforts. By raising awareness of our energy usage, we will further reduce our environmental footprint.”

Over the next two years, a core team of faculty and staff across the five GLCA campuses will work to install the Dashboard technology to engage their respective institutions in curriculum development, research and community outreach around the tool and instill cross-campus dialogue and collaboration. They will be joined by an extended team of up to 25 faculty and staff that will be recruited through a series of workshops and outreach initiatives. The project seeks to bring together a diverse group of stakeholders, including faculty, staff, administrators, facilities personnel, sustainability officers and students in the participating campuses to make the Dashboard a common digital platform for communication, collaboration and creativity.

Antioch’s project team is led by Kim Landsbergen, Associate Professor of Biology and Environmental Sciences; Rick Kraince, Dean of Cooperative, Experiential and International Education; Barbara Sanborn, Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Jessica D’Ambrosio, Assistant Professor of Cooperative Education, in collaboration with 16 faculty and staff members from the five GLCA campuses as part of the core team. The initial funding allocation is for $108,416 with provisions for additional funds for workshops and collaborative projects up to a total of $231,160 over two years.

Greene County News Report compiled by Whitney Vickers.