The convenience of ebooks and ereaders has made them a popular choice for both leisure and educational reading. From 2009 to 2010 alone, ebook sales increased by almost 165%! As demand for such digital books increases, so does the debate over which books are more environmentally friendly – ebooks or paper books? The answer to this question is important especially for online universities that offer a large number of etextbooks to students, such as American Public University System (APUS). Ray Uzwyshyn, Director of Libraries at APUS, recently published a work on etextbooks in higher education. To see his in depth review of this trend, click here.
At first glance, it would seem that reducing the amount of ink and paper is the greenest option. In order to truly capture the carbon footprint of both types of books, however, it is also vital to consider the method by which they are read. Apple has estimated that an iPad emits 287 pounds of carbon dioxide and the Kindle is thought to emit 370 pounds of carbon dioxide. Printed books, on the other hand, are typically estimated at almost 9 pounds of carbon dioxide. Part of the trouble with ereaders is that they need to be recharged, whereas physical books do not require additional energy sources to be reused. Paper copies may also be given to friends or charities for reuse and tend to last longer than their technological counterparts.
This is not to say that ebooks cannot be the greener alternative! A person can read 30 – 40 ebooks on an ereader in order to match the lower emissions of a print book. Another great option is reading books on a computer that you already own (or have access to) instead of purchasing a new ereader. APUS offers thousands of etextbooks in the online library that can be accessed by students 24/7. This electronic option also saves students and universities a significant amount of money as etextbooks are approximately half the cost of a physical version.
American Public University System (APUS) is celebrating another milestone in its journey toward achieving greater sustainability – the official opening of its 1,660 panel solar array. The array is the largest in West Virginia and is a testament to the school’s commitment to sustainability. Providing more than 480,000 kWh of electricity, the array will provide approximately 50 percent of the total energy needed to power the university’s newest addition to its Charles Town campus, a 105,000-square-foot green building still under construction. To provide some perspective, that is enough energy to power 30 average size homes for a year. The array doubles as a covered parking lot and will include 15 universal electric car charging stations.
Experts note that every hour the sun beams enough energy to Earth to satisfy the world’s energy needs for a full year. Solar energy is an inexhaustible source and is touted as being non-polluting. Despite these facts, solar power represents a meager one-tenth of one percent of the world’s energy sources. In the United States, where 5 percent of the world’s population uses 20 percent of the world’s total energy, solar energy currently provides less than 1 percent of our energy. Many other countries are leading the solar charge, however, and global demand for solar energy has increased more than 30 percent over the last 20 years. Germany and Japan, for example, have developed extensive incentive programs and are leading the way in use of solar energy. Despite the relatively low use of solar energy in the United States, the nation is beginning to slowly see use of solar power increase.
Located in historic downtown Charles Town, West Virginia, APUS has always been mindful of its geographic location and the community’s long history. In designing their campus, the school has used an innovative strategy mixing historical preservation with energy efficiency and sustainability. The school’s adaptive reusepractices have reclaimed many historic buildings in the downtown Charles Town area which otherwise were vacant and often neglected. The school’s solar array, on the other hand, embodies the innovative and forward-thinking spirit of this fully online university. With more than 100,000 students located in and studying from all 50 states and more than 100 countries around the world, APUS has been a cutting-edge leader in the education industry. It is fitting for that reason that it also plays a leading role in the innovation of the American energy landscape.
The APUS solar array clearly represents the school’s commitment to the environment. In addition, it is also representative of the school’s commitment to its more than 100,000 students, its local community, and the nation. Nearly all of APUS’ students are adult learners, most juggling fulltime jobs, families, and often military deployments as well. The APUS solar array is evidence of the school’s “lead by example” mentality. In developing such a project, the school’s students will have a tangible learning tool that will serve them well as they take their degrees into the workforce to create additional positive change toward promoting sustainability. The array is also a benefit to the community and APUS will continue as it has been to educate the local community about the array, solar power in general, and how others can invest in such technologies. On a national level, the APUS solar array is another step in the right direction toward promoting more sustainable energy sources and breaking the nation’s dependence on fossil fuels.
Check out this timelapse video showing the panel installation.
In Part 2 of our series, Tatiana Sehring, Strategic Manager Environmental Leadership and Sustainability, gives us 5 quick, easy ways that we can minimize our environmental impact in the office. As we celebrate Earth Day tomorrow, the world will turn its focus to issues related to the state of our environment. With Tatiana’s suggestions, however, we can carry the spirit of Earth Day past tomorrow and integrate sustainable practices into our daily lives throughout the year. Happy Earth Day!
Last year, Hannah Jones, VP of Sustainable Business at Nike, wrote that businesses must adjust their sights, and begin to see sustainability as a “strategic prism.” The line of thinking Jones adopts seems to be an iteration of a familiar idea: to gain a competitive advantage in today’s progressively green-minded marketplace, sustainability must be allowed to develop into a constitutive strategic element driving and leading the commercial activities of businesses. Sustainability in the 21st century, Jones reflects, has developed into “a core strategic imperative for any company that intends to thrive and grow in the years ahead.”
Beyond labeling sustainability a “core strategic imperative”, or, translated into the rather muddled parlance in which I write, a universal social imperative, Jones underscores the transformative impact of transparency in the promotion of social movements encouraging structural changes to existing cultural paradigms. Put another way, in detailing how technology-derived and -related social pressures are not only driving corporations and governments to become more transparent, but have, in some way, directed the distribution of corporate and state-owned resources and become “a trigger for movements and political action,” Jones begins to trace the contours of a revolution that will come to define the Information Age.
Warning! What follows is a rather esoteric discussion of an ongoing debate centering on one early modern political theorist’s purported views on the value and function of a nation’s educational apparatus, seeing it a conduit to disseminate a specific brand of political or social dogma. Have I lost you? Trust me, this short discussion illustrates an important point—just bear with me.
On one side of this arcane debate, we have commenters who believe this unnamed political theorist seemed to see education as a social institution which can be easily politicized, and used to systematically inculcate a nation’s citizenry. Commentators on this side of the debate object to how this political theorist seems to envisage the institution of education as an arm of the state, which can be easily bent and used by the state as a means of brainwashing individual citizens. On the other side of the debate are a group of people (myself included) who see this political theorist, and the object of the theory he created, through a far less nefarious lens. That is, we see his motives as more noble than villainous. According to this lot, he sought to use the university as a means by which to bring about social accord, but not by disseminating a particular brand of political theology. Rather, by promoting and cultivating knowledge and understanding conducive to the common good—the curriculum taught by the university should transcend local politics and set its sights on creating an informed and socially aware citizenry.
Both sides seem to converge over one point in particular: that the university sits at an important crossroads and wields an inordinate amount of power because of it.
Without getting too in depth about how a university’s curriculum should look, or saying something which might inadvertently trample on academic freedom (something of which I am a staunch and unyielding proponent), I think what is important to draw from this debate is that the university, because of its function, is uniquely situated to lead the charge in the promotion of social change (for the better, I hope).
As a signatory to the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC), American Public University System (APUS) is committed to developing methods to reduce the organization’s carbon footprint. Additionally, APUS is dedicated to sharing information and best practices with others who may be interested in developing “greener” practices for their own organizations or in their personal lives. This blog will provide a forum to discuss topics related to sustainability in higher education and in general. We welcome your comments and suggestions.
