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If you are fired up and want to learn more about sustainability, then check out these educational opportunities. Note: Many large corporations are now hiring Sustainability Managers. In fact, PNM had a recent opening.
UNM Sustainability Program - Bruce Milne, Director and Program Coordinator, Terry Horger.
The UNM Sustainability Studies Paradigm - Sustainability Studies addresses problems associated with climate change,
carbon emissions, energy dependence, resource depletion, food insecurity,
poverty, ecosystem collapse, and war. In sustainability Studies we
research and develop technologies and decision making processes to help
meet the basic needs of health, food, shelter, and transportation. Our
approaches include the interests 
of all communities while protecting the
environment and fostering economic vitality. We offer an undergraduate
minor degree that complements major degrees in six colleges and schools at
UNM: become a green architect, a green economist, a green artist!
UNM Continuing Education - Ecovillage Design Education (EDE) is a four week training course offered through the Univ. of New Mexico Continuing Education. The program is for people interested in creating solutions to global environmental, social, and economic issues through local and regional community building. The EDE Training is recognized as a contribution to the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainble Development (2004-2012) and completion of this course gives participants a certification as a Sustainble Designer.
NMSU - College of Agriculture has many programs that have a positive impact on our community and sustainability like:
- producing better food at cheaper prices with less impact on the environment and managing our natural resources for today and tomorrow. NMSU works to bring the results of their research in practical terms to all New Mexicans.
so little time.
Permaculture Drylands Institute - Located in Pojoaque, The Permaculture Drylands Institute offers programs in various aspects of sustainability, with the intent of creating an opportunity to continue life-long learning. Permaculture is the core foundation of their programs, that lays out the structure for wholistic thinking and systemic approach. They offer courses and workshops in permaculture, topbar beekeeping, natural building, community art and more. In addition, they connect permaculture projects in the Southwest.
Santa Fe Community College - Center for Community Sustainability - If you’re dedicated to helping make the world a cleaner, more energy efficient place, a certificate from SFCC in Environmental Technologies could be a great way to start. This program will provide you with an understanding of the basic issues regarding sustainability, renewable energy and water conservation. Upon completion of the program you’ll be ready to seek entry-level positions in a wide range of energy and water related businesses or organizations. You could even consider starting your own business.
Energy-Rater Training Program – This training, offered at the Santa Fe Community College, prepares students for national certification as a HERS home-energy rater. Certified HERS raters charge $300 or more to characterize the energy consumption of a residence, and they give the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Star label to homes meeting high standards of energy efficiency. Contact Lou Schreiber at 505-428-1617 or lschreiber@sfccnm.edu for more information.
Saturn Online, is an excellent online educational provider for Energy Efficiency Training. Chris Dorsi and John Krigger have written two of the textbooks in the field and they make learning as painless as possible. They also offer both ResNet (Hers) and BPI tests for certification in this area.
Ecoversity - EcoVersity is a non-profit educational center, which explores and 
demonstrates sustainable living, ecological design and responsibility for the wise stewardship of the Earth. Established in 1999 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, EcoVersity offers a unique curriculum designed to regenerate the Earth and revitalize the human spirit.
They welcome people from all walks of life; students, practitioners, poets, prophets, visionaries, optimists, skeptics, conservationists, ecologists, teachers of Earth dharma, and all who seek to create a sustainable path for the future.
Southwest Desert Sustainability Project (Southern NM) develops sustainable, certifiable vocational trade education (skills training) for at risk populations providing sustainable industry pertinent to the needs of the regional economy with emphasis on extremely affordable housing and community development; self build and rehab programs.
Educational programs addressed are “hands-on” and integrate learning processes that can create housing and advance the participant into a self-sufficient career. This is both formal through High School/ Community College Curriculum and informal as self build programs.
Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute - The Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute's (SIPI) renewable energy program seeks to establish renewable energy technology hardware on and around the campus, which will supplement and create the educational resources to teach renewable energy courses at its campus. SIPI's vision is to establish a Renewable Energy Program whose goals are:
- To prepare students both for technical careers in renewable energy technologies and for their pursuit of advanced studies in renewable energy engineering and technology;
The Foundation For Sustainable Living - Founded by Albuquerquean Frank Wilson in Costa Rica and established to promote sustainable organic agriculture of diverse food plants, aquaculture, and animal husbandry. They promote development and home construction methods that utilize local materials in well planned, comfortable, but compact living quarters that rely upon renewable power sources. A great educational experience in a beautiful exotic setting. They partner with Earth Education International, experiential learning in sustainable global stewardship.
KUNM audio clips on energy that are very educational.
Educational Sites for young people....
Shell Oil president discusses new fuels, energy security - Shell Oil isn't just about oil anymore. The multinational company has invested $1 billion in wind over the last decade, owns companies working on solar and hydrogen technologies and will soon announce the acquisition of an entity that uses municipal waste to produce biofuel. "With these, we could go a very long way toward meeting energy security requirements," according to John Hofmeister, president of Shell Oil Company. But conservation has to take hold "in our hearts, minds and behavior of who we are as a people. We have to teach our young people that energy is a precious commodity. We're doing a disservice to young people, because instead of teaching about energy, we're allowing ignorance to reign." |
Bringing energy to the classroom is an educational resourse provided by BP, one of the world's largest energy companies. They recently sponsored a grant program called A+ for Energy.
YouthXChange - raising awareness about the (voluntary and involuntary) electricity households’ wastage and their implications in terms of carbon dioxide emissions; stimulating energy saving consumption habits. Some really great ideas.
Eco-Schools have programs around the world and have provided some Eco-Bright Ideas that may help get you started here.
The Rio Grande Roots & Shoots Albuquerque chapter "is made up of homeschooling families who have come together with the common goal of empowering our children through inspiration, education and service. We focus our projects on the Rio Grande Valley and the surrounding area. Together, youth of all ages are taking action to improve our world through service learning projects that promote care and concern for animals, the environment and the human community." Check out this site and get involved.
It's All About Carbon - Cimate Connections from NPR (animated video) - There are five episodes, click on Episode 1 to get the best impact.
Discover Energy in NM by NM Energy Minerals Natural Resources Department - 
Provides great information, lesson plans and quiz for kids, teachers and adults.
Sunchaser Program - The New Mexico Solar Energy Association is educating students and adults about the science of solar energy with public displays, workshops, programs at schools, scout programs, and summer camps. Parents, individuals, and school teachers all volunteer to teach our future decision-makers the importance of clean renewable energy.
Albuquerque's Environmental Story: Educating For a Sustainable Community - created to help students relate caringly to their local natural and human environment.
South Mountain Dairy Kidding Tour - Kidding Season Tours Begins in April.
Open Tours Days: Saturdays Only: 2:00pm - 4:00pm.
Come to the farm, 48 Katzima, Edgewood, and meet the Hard Working Girls of South Mountain Dairy. You can pet them and their babies. For $1, you can buy a small bottle of milk to feed a baby goat, or a treat bag to feed the big girls.
Store Wars is an outreach effort of the Organic Trade Association to educate 
consumers about the benefits of organic products. (Cute, cute video)
The Story of Stuff is an incredible 20 minute video on the connection between consumerism and sustainability. This is a must watch video for ages 8-50.
Eco-animation resource for climate change education (video animation). While I am not a "kid", this is a feel good short movie.
The Bosque Education Guide is a resource book of background information, activities, curriculum suggestions, and references to help classroom teachers and non-formal educators teach others (primary/Kindergarten through 12th grade students) about the bosque. The Guide is a newly released major revision of the popular curriculum to teach about the Middle Rio Grande Valley ecosystem.
Books....(Buy Local)
The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight: The Fate of the World and What We Can Do Before It's Too Late - Sunlight makes life on earth possible. As humankind evolved from hunter-gatherers, we've learned how to use more and more sunlight, which is stored in the form of fossil fuel. Now we're drawing deeply from the last great reserves, while our numbers keep growing. How can we avoid disaster? In this passionate yet clear-eyed call to consciousness which combines spirituality and ecology, Hartmann explores the pervasive cultural insanity that threatens our planet, and suggests ways we as individuals can find the path to survival.
Worldchanging: A Users Guide for the 21st Century is a groundbreaking compendium of the most innovative solutions, ideas and inventions emerging today for building a sustainable, livable, prosperous future. "Worldchanging" is poised to be the "Whole Earth Catalog" for this millennium. Written by leading new thinkers who believe that the means for building a better future lie all around us, "Worldchanging" is packed with the information, resources, reviews, and ideas that give readers the tools they need to make a difference.
The Long Emergency: Surviving the End of Oil, Climate Change, and Other Converging 
Catastrophes of the Twenty-First Century by James Kunstler - The last two hundred years have seen the greatest explosion of progress and wealth in the history of mankind. But the oil age is at an end. The depletion of nonrenewable fossil fuels is about to radically change life as we know it, and much sooner than we think. As a result of artificially cheap fossil-fuel energy we have developed global models of industry, commerce, food production, and finance that will collapse. "The Long Emergency tells us just what to expect after we pass the tipping point of global peak oil production and the honeymoon of affordable energy is over, preparing us for economic, political, and social changes of an unimaginable scale.
Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future - Bill McKibben offers the biggest challenge in a generation to the prevailing view of our economy. For the first time in human history, he observes, “ more” is no longer synonymous with “ better” — indeed, for many of us, they have become almost opposites. McKibben puts forward a new way to think about the things we buy, the food we eat, the energy we use, and the money that pays for it all. Our purchases, he says, need not be at odds with the things we truly value.
The Renewable Energy Handbook: A Guide to Rural Independence, Off-Grid and Sustainable Living - As oil prices continue to rise, many people are starting to think about how to unhook from the power grid. "The Renewable Energy Handbook" focuses completely on off-grid, sustainable living and energy independence in a rural setting. Author William Kemp and his wife designed their own high-efficiency off-grid home in 1991. They worked methodically to produce a home which has all of the standard "middle-class" creature comforts while using six times less heating, cooling, and electrical energy than the average Ontario home. Soon they were inundated with inquiries and decided to put their experience into book form in 2003.
The Hydrogen Economy: The Creation of the Worldwide Energy Web and the Redistribution of Power on Earth - The road to global security, " writes Jeremy Rifkin, "lies in lessening our dependence on Middle East oil and making sure that all people on Earth have access to the energy they need to sustain life. Weaning the world off oil and turning it toward hydrogen is a promissory note for a safer world." Rifkin's international bestseller "The Hydrogen Economy presents the clearest, most comprehensive case for moving ourselves away from the destructive and waning years of the oil era toward a new kind of energy regime. Hydrogen--one of the most abundant substances in the universe--holds the key, Rifkin argues, to a cleaner, safer, and more sustainable world.
Real Goods Solar Living Sourcebook-12th Edition: The Complete Guide to Renewable Energy Technologies & Sustainable Living - Do you want to harvest sunlight, wind or falling water to power your home? Or sell that renewable energy back to your utility company? Are you looking to build your dream eco-home? Or to convert to biodiesel and minimize your fossil fuel use? This fully updated classic of sustainable living technology tells how and gives you access to the world's most extensive selection of hardware to make it all happen. The "Real Goods Solar Living Sourcebook-12th Edition" is the ultimate resource on renewable energy, sustainable living, alternative construction, green building, homesteading, off-the-grid living and alternative transportation, written by experts with decades of personal experience and a passion 
for sharing their knowledge.
Peak Oil Prep - Three Things You Can Do to Prepare for Peak Oil, Climate Change and Economic Collapse - How you can help your family, neighborhood and community prepare for Peak Oil, climate change, and economic collapse and live a more sustainable, money-saving lifestyle. A practical handbook of ideas, suggestions, and book and Internet resources.
Before the Wells Run Dry
• A major oil company, BP, adopts the sunflower as its logo and starts saying that its initials stand for "Beyond Petroleum".
• Exxon-Mobil, the world's biggest oil company, says that it is finding it harder and harder to find anywhere to sink new wells.
• The biggest oil-importing country in the world invades the country with the second biggest oil reserves and puts them under its control.
What's going on? The answer is that the world is using oil at four times the rate it is finding it and the output of many existing fields, including the North Sea, is beginning to decline. According to one contributor to this book, global oil production will start falling within the next five to ten years and increases in natural gas output will cease to be capable of making up the shortfall after about 2015. Src: FEASTA. org. Buy Before the Wells Run Dry from Green Books Online or read the whole thing on line free.
The Oil Depletion Protocol: A Plan to Avert Oil Wars, Terrorism and Economic Collapse - Richard Heinberg.
"My first reaction to the Protocol was “nice idea, but it’ll never happen”. The more I’ve thought about it since, the more the common sense of the idea emerges, and I think this is a concept of profound importance. Even if we just use it as the benchmark for our community energy descent work, it is still a very powerful idea, but its real power comes as a way of smoothing the post-peak transition. The book itself is great, its chapter on peak oil condenses all of his previous writings into one chapter. An idea whose time has come. "...Posted by Rob on Transition Culture. (Check out his other recommendations.)
The Post-Petroleum Survival Guide and Cookbook provides useful practical advice for preparing your family and community to make the transition.
This book takes a positive, upbeat, and optimistic view of "the Great Change," promoting the idea that it can be an opportunity to redeem our essential interconnectedness with nature and with each other. The many rifts that have grown up since oil became the world's prime commodity can be mended: between cities and their food sources; the design of the suburban-built environment and its car-oriented sprawl; runaway greenhouse warming, and the clearing of forests and toxification of rivers, oceans, and land.
SOLARTOPIA: Our Green-Powered Earth, A.D. 2030
After the age of fossil/nuke ... a new era dawned ...
Climb aboard our sleek, quiet, supremely comfortable hydrogen-powered "Hairliner" as we fly halfway around an Earth of A.D. 2030 that has mastered the problems of energy and the environment. Beneath us we see a post-industrial world booming with the wealth and harmony of a revolution in green power, one brewing since 1952, but finally in place. Written by one of the world's leading advocates of renewable energy, SOLARTOPIA takes its place with LOOKING BACKWARD and ECOTOPIA in classic visionary thinking. Read this once -- your view of the future will never be the same.
Heat: How to Stop the Planet From Burning is both a manifesto for action and a thought experiment. We know that climate change is happening. But can it be stopped? George Monbiot's new book "Heat" 
shows how it can. Its experimental subject is a medium-sized industrial nation: the United Kingdom. It seeks to show how a modern economy can be de-carbonized while remaining a modern economy. "I then seek to determine how best their energy might be supplied. Before I began my research on that subject, I thought it would be quite easy to cover: I would need only decide whether we should use wind, waves or solar power, or nuclear energy, or biomass, or a means of stripping carbon dioxide from the exhausts of power stations. But the more I read, the more difficult and contradictory the questions became.".
Bestselling author Barbara Kingsolver returns with her first nonfiction narrative that will open your eyes in a hundred new ways to an old truth: You are what you eat, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.
"As the U.S. population made an unprecedented mad dash for the Sun Belt, one carload of us paddled against the tide, heading for the Promised Land where water falls from the sky and green stuff grows all around. We were about to begin the adventure of realigning our lives with our food chain. "Naturally, our first stop was to buy junk food and fossil fuel. . . ." "This is the story of a year in which we made every attempt to feed ourselves animals and vegetables whose provenance we really knew . . . and of how our family was changed by our first year of deliberately eating food produced from the same place where we worked, went to school, loved our neighbors, drank the water, and breathed the air." Src: Harper Collins
DVDs....
Building With Awareness - The Award-Winning DVD On Straw Bale and Green Building - Inspiring video and now with a companion guide book ...buy both and SAVE. "My goal in creating this DVD and guidebook was to show you the step-by-step, real-world process of building a single, straw bale home from start to finish. With the knowledge you will gain from Building With Awareness, you will have the confidence and know-how to either build your own home yourself or to work with designers, architects, and contractors." - Ted Owens, green designer and film maker. Watch clip for just a taste.
