Comments (0)
Email
There are many challenges that face engineers regardless of their discipline or concentration. Whether designing a water treatment plant, a power grid, or a car, we carry a critical responsibility. We must protect and improve the environment for future generations. This responsibility has become even more significant in recent years as engineers are being called upon to accommodate the environment in all their designs.
Nowhere is this challenge more evident than in NYC. As more buildings are built, so are rooftop solar panels, geothermal heating and cooling systems, walling, carpets, and even special windows that help cut down on wasted energy and produce less waste. In fact, the Bank of America Tower, that is being built on 6th Avenue between 42nd and 43rd opposite Bryant Park in midtown, will be the first skyscraper in the US to strive for a Platinum LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification. This building will use technologies such as floor-to-ceiling insulating glass to contain heat and maximize natural light, as well as a greywater system, which captures rainwater and reuses it. The building will be constructed largely of recycled and recyclable materials. Another innovation is that the air entering the building is not only being purified to a high degree, but the air exhausted is also cleaner, acting effectively as a giant air filter for Midtown Manhattan.
On a more personal level, people are being asked to do something for the environment by recycling their daily newspaper and plastic soda bottles. Today, every part of our daily lives, from the toilets we flush to the food we eat, are being reevaluated and redesigned to accommodate green friendly lives. Gone are the jokes about the crazy people who use solar panels and energy efficient windows. That kind of activity is now taken for granted. Through advertisements and the global stride to focus on being green, everyone is being asked to step up to the plate. This compels me to ask us here at Manhattan College to focus our energies on "green."
At the first College senate meeting of this academic year, the Speaker of the Senate, Government Professor Pamela Chasek, gave a speech challenging the MC community to go green. She noted that 284 college and university presidents, representing some of the nation's most influential schools, announced an agreement pledging to make their campuses "carbon neutral." Some of these schools included our "benchmark" institutions: Villanova, Santa Clara University, College of Holy Cross, St. Lawrence, Clark, Hamilton and Union College. She then asked all the Senators the question: "What about Manhattan College?"
I too throw out a challenge, to all Engineering students: "What about Manhattan College?"
Since, as modern engineers, it is our responsibility to make sure that whatever we produce does not harm the environment and the first place to start on campus is with us, in the School of Engineering. The Manhattan Engineer has already started! The paper this magazine is printed on is made from trees and plantings that are green friendly. We, the engineering students at MC, must spearhead an initiative for the entire College to embrace this endeavor. I call upon you to come forth with ideas, to volunteer for a Committee I would like to form, and to get involved with faculty and Trustees who might be impassioned by Professor Chasek's challenge.
Nowhere is this challenge more evident than in NYC. As more buildings are built, so are rooftop solar panels, geothermal heating and cooling systems, walling, carpets, and even special windows that help cut down on wasted energy and produce less waste. In fact, the Bank of America Tower, that is being built on 6th Avenue between 42nd and 43rd opposite Bryant Park in midtown, will be the first skyscraper in the US to strive for a Platinum LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification. This building will use technologies such as floor-to-ceiling insulating glass to contain heat and maximize natural light, as well as a greywater system, which captures rainwater and reuses it. The building will be constructed largely of recycled and recyclable materials. Another innovation is that the air entering the building is not only being purified to a high degree, but the air exhausted is also cleaner, acting effectively as a giant air filter for Midtown Manhattan.
On a more personal level, people are being asked to do something for the environment by recycling their daily newspaper and plastic soda bottles. Today, every part of our daily lives, from the toilets we flush to the food we eat, are being reevaluated and redesigned to accommodate green friendly lives. Gone are the jokes about the crazy people who use solar panels and energy efficient windows. That kind of activity is now taken for granted. Through advertisements and the global stride to focus on being green, everyone is being asked to step up to the plate. This compels me to ask us here at Manhattan College to focus our energies on "green."
At the first College senate meeting of this academic year, the Speaker of the Senate, Government Professor Pamela Chasek, gave a speech challenging the MC community to go green. She noted that 284 college and university presidents, representing some of the nation's most influential schools, announced an agreement pledging to make their campuses "carbon neutral." Some of these schools included our "benchmark" institutions: Villanova, Santa Clara University, College of Holy Cross, St. Lawrence, Clark, Hamilton and Union College. She then asked all the Senators the question: "What about Manhattan College?"
I too throw out a challenge, to all Engineering students: "What about Manhattan College?"
Since, as modern engineers, it is our responsibility to make sure that whatever we produce does not harm the environment and the first place to start on campus is with us, in the School of Engineering. The Manhattan Engineer has already started! The paper this magazine is printed on is made from trees and plantings that are green friendly. We, the engineering students at MC, must spearhead an initiative for the entire College to embrace this endeavor. I call upon you to come forth with ideas, to volunteer for a Committee I would like to form, and to get involved with faculty and Trustees who might be impassioned by Professor Chasek's challenge.
Leave a comment