Hixon Center News and Events
Biomass-To-Energy Study
April 23, 2019
BY: TANJA SREBOTNJAK, Hixon Center Director Claremont McKenna College graduate, Lauren d’Souza (’18), was deeply interested in understanding the obstacles and opportunities faced by Native Americans when it comes to tribal economic development, sovereignty, and sustainable energy generation. Under the guidance of Prof. William Ascher (CMC) and Prof. Tanja Srebotnjak she studied the feasibility of […]
The “Green New Deal” – Part 3: Will It Pass?
April 17, 2019

By: LOUIS SPANIAS, Sustainability Program Manager The past two segments of this blog series have covered a lot of ground on the “Green New Deal” Resolution. In the first segment, I explained what exactly the “Green New Deal” was: a blueprint by which Congress could legislate on the issues of climate change and economic injustice. […]
The “Green New Deal” – Part 2: Can Its Goals Be Achieved?
April 9, 2019

By: LOUIS SPANIAS, Sustainability Program Manager In the previous segment of the “Green New Deal” series, I provided an explanation of the Resolution co-introduced by Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Senator Ed Markey (D-MA). As I outlined in Part 1, the “Green New Deal” offers a strategic blueprint for Congress to act on the issues […]
The “Green New Deal” – Part 1: What Exactly Is It?
March 26, 2019

By: LOUIS SPANIAS, Sustainability Program Manager This past February, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) introduced the “Green New Deal,” a proposed package of programs and goals that aims to directly address climate change as well as economic inequality. It is named after and inspired by Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “New Deal” of […]
Why Does Food Ever Become Waste?
February 12, 2019

By: LOUIS SPANIAS, Sustainability Program Manager Amidst the busyness of everyday life, we often overlook the moments when we throw things away. The decision to dispose is a seemingly trivial moment, but at the same time it is a universal experience: we all use things, and at some point, those things become trash. Even food […]
Campus Sustainability: An International Perspective
January 28, 2019

By: LOUIS SPANIAS, Sustainability Program Manager Last month, I attended the 2nd Symposium on Sustainability in University Campuses (SSUC) conference in Florence, Italy. With 60 attendees from academic institutions around the world (largely from Europe), the conference offered an opportunity to hear from our international counterparts about how they have managed to advance environmental sustainability […]
How did Energy, Climate, and Environment do in the Midterm Elections?
December 3, 2018

By: LOUIS SPANIAS, Sustainability Program Manager Leading into the Midterm Elections this past month, much of our attention was focused toward the candidates running for office – from local school board seats to the United States Senate. At the same time, citizens of every state were not just voting on the people who will represent […]
Where Does Our Trash Go? Takeaways from a Material Recovery Facility Tour
November 20, 2018

By: LOUIS SPANIAS, Sustainability Program Manager On Friday, November 9th, I had the opportunity to revisit the Waste Management Material Recovery Facility (MRF) in Azusa, CA. As part of the Hixon Center’s “Eco-Engage” Sustainability Dialogue Series held each Fall, I was joined by students, faculty, and staff from across the Claremont Colleges for a tour […]
2030 or Bust? About the New IPCC Report
October 29, 2018

By: LOUIS SPANIAS, Sustainability Program Manager Earlier this month, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a Special Report (SR15), “Global Warming of 1.5°C,” which quickly grabbed headlines and found its way into our newsfeeds and newspapers. These headlines and accompanying op-eds painted a pretty dire picture. Just to reel off a few: “We […]
The Augury of our Heat Exhaustion
September 10, 2018

A warming world presents us with harsh realities and harsher dilemmas. What do the next fifty years look like? By: LOUIS SPANIAS, Sustainability Program Manager I managed to miss the heatwave that blasted the greater Los Angeles region in July. Triple digit temperatures were ubiquitous in the early days of the month, some breaking historic […]