There is a growing movement to networking for sustainability, and the engineering profession is an important part of this movement.  Several articles in this issue of the Forum newsletter highlight this valuable development. 

To illustrate, as a follow-on to the Final Report of the President's Council on Sustainable Development, the Global Environment & Technology Foundation is building the Sustainable USA Network.  In the education area, the Alliance for Sustainability in Higher Education has been organized.  A Professionals' Alliance for Sustainable Development is being created to promote multi-disciplinary networking.  At the international scale, the COMTECH of the World Federation of Engineering Organizations provides worldwide networking support through its website and newsletter.  Also, the Global Environment Facility is promoting technology transfer and training through its outreach activities. 

The Engineers Forum for Sustainable Development is primarily an U.S. networking organization.  We bring together a well-balanced and broadly representative group of government, academic, private sector, professional, international, and related individuals with strong interest and expertise in sustainable development.  The Forum Newsletter highlights the information and issues presented and discussed, and provides contacts for further information on each article.  The Forum's page on the ASEE website can be accessed by a broad engineering audience, as well as by students and non-engineers.

To facilitate networking and information exchange, enclosed with this issue of the newsletter is the current Forum Roster.  Please advise us of any corrections or additions.  Also, we would be pleased to receive items of interest for possible inclusion in future newsletters and updates.

The next Forum meeting is scheduled for Friday, November 5, 1999 from 9:00 to Noon at the National Academy of Engineering, Room 150, 2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C.

Further information about the Forum and its newsletters can be found on the ASEE website or by contacting William Kelly, ASEE, by e-mail at publicaffairs@asee.org

Al Grant, Forum Chair

The Final Report of the President's Council on Sustainable Development, entitled  Towards a Sustainable America: Advancing Prosperity, Opportunity and a Healthy Environment for the 21st Century, was issued in May, 1999.  The Report recommends over 140 specific actions Americans can take to realize new prosperity for our families and communities.  The Council reached agreement on how we can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect the climate; make environmental management systems more effective, flexible and accountable; develop metropolitan and rural strategies for building livable communities; and foster U.S. leadership on sustainable development.

The key findings and recommendations of the Report have been summarized as follows:

Climate Change:  The Council reached agreement on a set of principles to guide overall U.S. climate policy.  Specifically, the Council:

• Concluded that climate protection policy should be fundamentally linked to any national agenda for economic growth, environmental protection, and social justice,
• Developed principles for an incentive-based and voluntary early action program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,
• Identified over 50 specific actions to encourage the rapid development and deployment of climate-friendly technologies over the next 10 to 15 years in the electric power, transportation, industry, buildings, agriculture, and forestry sectors, and
• Recommended strategies to realize the broader benefits and global opportunities of climate change mitigation.

Environmental Management System: The Council identified the attributes of an environmental management framework designed for sustainable development and recommended 34 concrete actions to move the existing framework in a more sustainble direction.  Specifically, the Council concluded that moving environmental management into the 21st Century requires: 

• A broader understanding of the nature, source, and linkage of environmental problems and recycling of potential solutions.
• A system that is goal-,performance-, and information-driven; is attuned to natural ecological cycles; incorporates the values of community and place; is sensitive to variations in the business sector and changes in the economy, and increases outside participation in those decisions that affect the environment and neighboring communities.
• Continued refinement of traditional environmental management tools, while encouraging the development of new tools and collaborative strategies.

Metropolitan and Rural Strategies for Sustainable Communities: Sustainable community development is taking hold, gaining momentum, and producing benefits, as hundreds of communities and regions across America are taking bold and creative actions to preserve and enhance the economic, ecological, and social assets of the places they work, play, and live.

• The Council agreed that coordinated investment in five community development areas could make a substantial difference: green infrastructure, land use and development, community revitalization and reinvestment, rural enterprise and community development, and materials reuse and resource efficiency.
• The Council also agreed that three types of tools are critical to overcoming major obstacles: information and technical assistance, economic incentives and financial assistance, and local capacity and partnerships. 
• The Council recommended over 40 actions to help build more sustainable communities.

International: The Council examined how international private capital flows affect sustainable development, particularly investments in developing countries.  The Council concluded that:

• The United States must use its leadership role to help chart a path towards sustainable development both at home and abroad
• Champions from all sectors are required for change to occur
• Multilateral agreements should recognize and address economic, environmental, and equity considerations together
• Foreign investment, assistance, and all government activities should promote recipient countries' efforts to achieve sustainable development
• The Council, or another body, should continue as a forum for the thoughtful consideration of sustainable development issues by high-level leaders in all sectors

Contact: Copies of the report are available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/PCSD or by calling 1-800-363-3732

As a follow-on to the National Town Meeting for a Sustainable America, held in Detroit in May, the Global Environment & Technology Foundation (GETF) is intending to use its expertise in sustainability partnership building, information technology development, and project management skills to build the Sustainable USA Network (SUNetwork).  The SUNetwork will be both a  human and electronic network of individuals and   organizations dedicated to encouraging and advancing sustainable development in the U.S.  The SUNetwork will help its members leverage existing resources and more effectively address sustainable development challenges.  This network will expand the reach of existing sustainability organizations and make it easier to find partners and experts.

The website established to provide information about the National Town Meeting was a great success.  In April alone, the site received over 1.5 million visits.  The Sustainable USA website, (www.sustainableusa.org) will continue to serve as a valuable resource for National Town Meeting participants and for others interested in the topic of sustainability and will be the electronic hub of the SUNetwork. 

Features of the Sustainable USA website include:

• Quick access to local or regional sustainability resources;
• The latest news and information on sustainability issues in the U.S;
• Searchable databases providing access to individuals and organizations that offer sustainability resources, tools and projects;

Access to the resources of the National Town Meeting, including video and audio clips of selected presentations, the NTM proceedings, and sustainability best practices and tools discussed at the meeting, and more.

Several leaders of the Engineers Forum for Sustainable Development are helping to launch a new initiative to link engineers to other professionals working on sustainable development issues.  An effort is underway to create a "Professionals' Alliance for Sustainable Development (PASD) to support and promote sustainability work within and between U.S. professionals and their associations, societies, guilds, and disciplines.

Many professionals - from engineering, architecture, planning, local government, business and finance, agriculture, religion and ethics, education, law, public policy, and other fields - are actively applying their skills to identifying and solving sustainable development problems.  Many professions are also examining ways to improve education, training, and professional standards to better incorporate sustainability into their working life.  Yet, in many cases these efforts are being done "on the margins," struggling with few resources, swimming against the stream of traditional approaches, and disconnected from similar efforts in other professions.

PASD is intended to support the sustainable development efforts of U.S. professionals, promote information-sharing and cooperation across the professions and disciplines, and strengthen the contributions of the professions to policy-making on sustainable development.

An ad hoc steering committee and advisers group is being formed, to help guide the creation of PASD and its pilot phase.  If you are interested in joining this effort, or want more information, please contact Kathy Sessions.

Contact: Kathy Sessions phone: 301-229-9774, e-mail: gsessions@aol.com

At its June, 1999 meeting, the Board of Directors of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) adopted a policy statement supporting the integration of sustainable development and sustainability into engineering education programs.  The text of the approved statement is as follows:

ASEE Statement on Sustainable Development Education

The concept of sustainable development was defined by the 1987 Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development, Our Common Future, as a form of development or progress 'that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.'  Sustainable development requires the use of fewer resources, less energy, and less waste generation.  It requires new manufacturing processes and equipment, expanded use of recyclable materials, and development of recyclable products.  Sustainability is included in ABET Engineering Criteria 2000 under Criterion 4 which emphasizes economic, environmental, sustainability, manufacturability, ethical, health and safety, social, and political considerations. 

Engineering students should learn about sustainable development and sustainability in the general education component of the curriculum as they are preparing for the major design experience.  For example, studies of economics and ethics are necessary to understand the need to use sustainable engineering techniques, including improved clean technologies.  In teaching sustainable design, faculty should ask their students to consider the impacts of design upon U.S. society and upon other nations and cultures.  Engineering faculty should use systems approaches, including interdisciplinary teams, to teach pollution prevention techniques, life cycle analysis, industrial ecology, and other sustainable engineering concepts. 

Case studies, including studies of university-industry-government partnerships, can be used to illustrate the importance of the multi-disciplinary aspects of designed systems, the impacts of those systems upon society and the environment, and the practical viability of the sustainability concept. 

ASEE believes that engineering graduates must be prepared by their education to use sustainable engineering techniques in the practice of their profession and to take leadership roles in facilitating sustainable development in their communities.

The American Society for Engineering Education is a nonprofit association of more than 11,000 members representing colleges, corporations, and other organizations dedicated to promoting excellence in engineering education and engineering technology education.  ASEE, which celebrated its centennial in 1993, plays a key role in developing and promoting policies that will enable engineering education and its allied branches of science and technology to meet the new challenges of global competition and technological change."

Contact: William Kelly, Manager of Public Affairs at 202-331-3537, publicaffairs@asee.org.

In 1992, the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech established a "Green Engineering" Program.  Green Engineering is defined as environmentally conscious attitudes, values, and principles, combined with science, technology, and engineering practice, all directed toward improving local and global environmental quality.  The Virginia Tech program encompasses all of the engineering and science disciplines, focusing on the design and synthesis of materials, processes, systems, and devices with the objective of minimizing overall environmental impact (including energy utilization and waste production) throughout the entire life cycle of a product or process. 

The two primary goals of the Virginia Tech Green Engineering Program are: (1) to ensure that every Virginia Tech engineering graduate is fully aware of environmental issues and understands the environmental consequences of engineering systems, and (2) to offer a university concentration to those engineering students who would like to focus their studies in the green aspects of their particular engineering discipline. 

To achieve these goals, the Green Engineering Program has funded more than 60 course development projects.  These new or modified courses introduce content into each engineering major that considers the environmental impact of the development, manufacture, use, and disposal of engineering products and services associated with each discipline.  Furthermore, the program recently developed and now offers several Green Engineering core courses and interdisciplinary courses that can be taken in conjunction with required disciplinary courses having substantial green content to satisfy an 18-credit concentration in Green Engineering.  This allows interested students to obtain a university-recognized concentration in addition to their primary degree in the College of Engineering.  In order to earn this designation on their academic transcript, students are required to take a minimum of 18 credit hours in the concentration area.

Two new concentration core courses have been developed and were taught for the first time in the 1998-99 academic year.  Dr. Theo Dillaha  taught "Introduction to Environmental Science" from the Biological and Systems Engineering Department and Dr. Ron Kander taught "Environmental Life Cycle Assessment" from the Materials Science and Engineering Department.  Dr. Kander is also the Director of the Green Engineering Program at Virginia Tech.

The success of the College of Engineering in the promotion of Green Engineering was recognized by the University as one of its premier academic priorities.  In a highly competitive program seeking new academic endeavors within the University, Virginia Tech selected the development of green engineering as its top priority among the numerous suggestions.  It is currently exploring ways to expand the influence of the program beyond the College of Engineering to the College of Arts and Sciences at Virginia Tech as well as to engineering and science programs at peer institutions.  In addition to receiving funding from the College, Raytheon has made a five-year financial commitment to the program and proposals have been submitted to other industrial concerns (e.g. Enron) and federal agencies (e.g. the NSF IGERT Program).

More information can be found on the Virginia Tech Green Engineering website (www.eng.vt.edu/eng/green), or by contacting Dr. Kander.  The program was also highlighted by ASEE in the cover article of the January, 1999 issue of PRISM magazine.

Contact: Dr. Ronald G. Kander, Associate Professor, Materials Science & Engineering Department, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061 Work phone: 540-231-3178, home phone: 540-951-7324, fax:  540-231-8919,  e-mail, rkander@vt.edu

At the June Forum meeting, Prof. Roxanne Jacoby,  P.E., from the Nerken School of Engineering at Cooper Union, presented the work done at Cooper Union for the past four years on the Globetech International Simulation Project.  This Internet-based simulation was developed under the auspices of the Gateway Engineering Coalition, and is offered in conjunction with an interdisciplinary elective course entitled Global Perspectives in Technology Management.  The course and simulation are offered to junior, senior, and graduate engineering students.  The Globetech simulation takes place in the Fall semester of each year, from October to December, and is free of charge.  Student teams from domestic and foreign engineering schools are welcome to participate.  Students from France, Japan, Romania and Russia have participated in previous simulations.  In the United States, students from Carnegie Mellon and The Rensselaer Polytechnic have also participated in several simulations. 

The simulation works as follows: some student teams write Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for two project themes given in the simulation scenario.  The remaining teams develop and write the responding Proposals.  The Proposals are then negotiated by the RFP and Proposal teams, and contracts are awarded for the two projects.  The simulation feedback process takes place and the simulation ends.  Since 1997, environmental, new energy sources, and sustainable development projects have been discussed.  The Globetech simulation aims to develop students' teamwork and leadership skills, better knowledge of the global economy and technology management, communication skills, awareness of sustainable development and environmental issues, international collaboration skills, Internet research and communications skills.

Cooper Union is preparing now the fifth Globetech simulation for the Fall '99 semester.  The Global Perspectives in Technology Management course will also be put on the world-wide web and made available, free of charge, to all simulation participants.

Contact: Roxanne Jacoby e-mail: jacoby@cooper.edu; Globetech IV (1998 simulation) website at: http://www.cooper.edu/GlobeTech-IV

Reggie J. Caudill, Professor and Executive Director of the Multi-lifecycle Engineering Research Center at the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), presented the Multi-lifecycle Engineering and Sustainable Green Manufacturing Initiative at NJIT, to the June meeting of the Engineers Forum. 

According to Prof. Caudill, the vision of the multi-lifecycle engineering initiative is an industrial economy where competitiveness, environmental sustainability, and social responsibility become a single, reinforcing priority, i.e. a next-generation engineering system where:

• The quality of the waste stream is engineering with the same concern as product.
• Innovative demanufacturing and separation technologies capture maximum value from discarded product and industrial waste streams.
• Waste materials are reengineered into valuable feedstock and subassemblies are remanufactured to be better than new.
• Next-generation lifecycle considerations are designed into the product.
• Waste-free manufacturing processes not only minimize waste, but also increase operational robustness and efficiency.
• Policy and infrastructure support encourages multi-lifecycle use of materials and components in next-generation applications.

The research thrust areas are: 

• Reengineered Materials from the Waste Stream - Characterization of waste streams and reengineered materials, structure/property relationships, and predictive models for mixtures.
• Separation Technologies -Fundamental research associated with separation processes for material reclamation and purification, and processing of gaseous, liquid, and solid waste streams.
• Demanufacturing Systems - Advanced methodologies and technologies for systematic disassembly, mechanical sortation and cleaning and testing of discarded products.
• Policy, Economics, and Infrastructure - Methodological and theoretical frameworks and database development for examining lifecycle analysis (LCA), corporate structures, collection infrastructure, management initiatives and policy issues.
• Multi-lifecycle Product Process Design - Engineering design synthesis with consideration of multi-lifecycle concerns into the earliest phase of product conceptualization - Integrating knowledge & data into tools.
• Applications Development & Testbeds - Identification, cost & performance requirements, feasibility assessment and selection of applications; prototype & demonstrations in REMAPP testbed network

The Sustainable Green Manufacturing Program includes:  (1) Environmental Lifecycle Model Development & Simulation; (2) Environmental Research & Engineering; (3) Coatings Application/Removal; (4) Corrosion Protection Research & Engineering; (5) Design for Predictive Research & Engineering; and (6) Environmental Management Systems.

Contact: Reggie J. Caudill, Professor and Executive Director, Multi-lifecycle Engineering Research Center, New Jersey Institute of Technology, phone: 973-596-5856, fax:  973-642-7796, e-mail: caudill@admin.njit.edu, website: http://www.njit.edu/MERC

The World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO), jointly with the American Association of Engineering Societies (AAES), sponsored a panel of engineering experts at the United Nations on April 28, 1999.  Engineering for Sustainability addressed the topic of production efficiencies in the developing world.  This panel, on consumption/production patterns, was a featured event during the annual two-week meeting of the U.N. Commission on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) and was moderated by WFEO Vice President and Chairman Emeritus of CH2M Hill James W. Poirot.

Presenters were: Mr. J. Patrick Nicholson, Chief Executive Officer, N-Viro International Corporation; Mr. Otto Vydra, Vice President Europe/Middle East, CH2M Hill Companies; Mr. Frank Rittner, Program Manager, Global Environment Facility; and Dr. Jesse Ausubel, Director, Program for the Human Environment, The Rockefeller University.

Mr. Nicholson spoke on Bio-Mineral Processing: A Holistic Approach to Community Waste Management.  He described an operation that creates agricultural fertilizer from organic wastes and animal manure.  The plant can vary in size, making it applicable to communities of any size.

Mr. Vydra presented Public/Private Partnerships for Sustainable Development, in which he detailed a project in Hungary that brought together community leaders and Coca Cola Amatil to create a wastewater treatment facility benefiting both manufacturer and community.  He provided information on both the producer's needs and those of the community, as well as on specific problems of financial structuring, permit processing, and length of construction.  

Mr. Rittner spoke on Financial Engineering to Promote Transfer of Environmentally Sound Technologies.  Through a case study highlighting a program in Thailand to reduce CFC emissions from chillers, Mr. Rittner identified financial mechanisms available that can be applied to enable a project's completion.

The final speaker, Dr. Jesse Ausubel of The Rockefeller University, completed the panel with remarks entitled Robust Earth: Technology to Spare the Land and Sea, in which he stressed the role technology plays in sustainability efforts and identified decarbonization of energy and landless agriculture as two cardinal directions for engineering. "For the next couple of decades," he commented, "the context indicates that priority and profit will come to those who build a high-efficiency methane economy, the next state of decarbonization."

WFEO is producing a written report on the session for wide distribution.  For a copy, contact Jane Alspach of AAES.

Contact: Jane Alspach, AAES, phone: 202-296-2236, e-mail: jalspach@aaes.org

The North American Coalition on Religion and Ecology (NACRE) has undertaken a new Climate Change Project as part of its Solar Stewardship Initiative (SSI), in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The SSI is an environmental program initiative designed by NACRE to involve the interfaith/religious community and related non-profit institutions in an effort to introduce energy efficiency and renewable solar energy technologies to local, state and regional communities in the United States.  The Initiative seeks to educate them on the ecological, economic, and ethical (stewardship) reasons, in light of global climate change, for using environmentally clean technologies to generate electricity and solar thermal hot water and heat.

Using two "pilot" grants in 1996 and 1997, NACRE experimented with a new programmatic approach for introducing photovoltaic and solar thermal hot water technologies to local communities through the ecumenical and inter-faith networks.  Building upon the success of these two pilot projects, NACRE sought and secured grant funding from DOE and EPA in 1998 to begin a nationwide, regionally-based, SSI education and action program for local religious and cultural communities.

In an effort to educate and motivate people within these communities to Earth Stewardship values, NACRE has designed an introductory brochure and packet on the SSI campaign and on the President's Million Solar Roofs Initiative.  This brochure and packet will include a graphic foldout showing the five steps of the "Caring for Creation" eco-action process, along with information on climate change.  In addition to these introductory pieces, two other promotional pieces will be designed for leaders: (1) information on the "Solarstewards" website on climate change education; and (2) a Leader's Guide designed to provide to educators, ministers, and pastors with the rationale for persuading their communities and congregations to participate in the SSI-EPA Million Solar Roofs Program. 

NACRE will also design awareness and recruitment resources organizers will need to attract leaders in their communities to become solar stewards.  These resources will include: (a) a software "walk-thru" or initial solar audit for a facility such as a church, school, or center; (b) an explanation of how to do an initial "walk-thru," and (c) a PowerPoint program with accompanying overhead transparencies and a printout of the presentation for the use by organizers.

The SSI is one part of a three-fold NACRE "Caring for Creation" Campaign including:

• A value-oriented sustainable development education, training, and action program focused on introducing  renewable energy technologies into actual local installations;
• Introduction of affordable housing which uses recyclable and eco-sensitive building materials and construction techniques, especially in  the colonias region, in Appalachia, and the Caribbean, through the Sustainable Community Initiative; 
• Introduction of water and soil regenerative technologies (in particular, local neighborhood community water regenerators), through the Local Regeneration Initiative, in an effort to bring about the healing, sustaining and renewing of the immune systems of the planet, local communities, and individual households.

Contact: Rev. Donald Conroy, S.T.L., Ph.D., President, North American Coalition on Religion and Ecology, 5 Thomas Circle, Washington, D.C.20005, phone: 202-462-2591, fax: 202-462-6534, e-mail: dconroy@SolarStewards.org

According to the seventh annual National Environmental Education & Training Foundation (NEETF) National Report Card on Environmental Attitudes, Knowledge and Behaviors, most Americans rely on outdated or incorrect information when making decisions about the environment and use common myths to guide their behavior on environmental issues.

The 1998 NEETF/Roper national survey data reveals that there are many persistent bits of misinformation concerning environmental issues in America.  Kevin J. Coyle, President of NEETF, said that "these myths can stand in the way of addressing some of our most immediate and wide-ranging environmental issues."

Despite this reliance on outdated information, Mr. Coyle says that the survey results are encouraging.  Seventy-one percent of Americans consider environmental protection vastly more important than economic development (17%), an increase of 8% since 1995.  And fully 85% frequently engage in certain behaviors aimed at preserving the environment.  According to Mr. Coyle, "the good news is that an educated public will take action.  Continued education on environmental issues will result in more effective efforts to protect the environment."

The survey, commissioned by NEETF and conducted by Roper Worldwide, is based on interviews with a representative sample of American Adults, ages 18 and older.  The survey found that when presented with 11 questions that each contained a "myth" answer, two plausible but incorrect answers, and a correct answer, the myth response received a plurality in six cases.  For five of the eleven questions, a majority of Americans gave the incorrect myth answer.

The environmental myths revealed in the results of the eleven questions were as follows:

• Environmentally Damaging Aerosol Cans - 67% of Americans don't know the only remaining sources of ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbons  (CFCs).  Despite the fact that the use of CFCS in spray cans has been banned in the U.S. since 1978, 32% of Americans believe the source of CFCs is aerosol spray cans.  Just 35% of Americans know that the only sources of CFCs are air conditioners and refrigerators.
• Diaper-Clogged Landfills - 77% of Americans don't know the greatest source of landfill materials, with a plurality (29%) believing that disposable diapers are the largest source.  Just 23% understand that the vast amount of paper products we send to our landfills is the greatest source of landfill material.
• Bottled Water is Routinely Tested by the Government - A 51% majority of Americans assume that bottled water is regularly tested for safety and purity by some government agency.  Just 42% of Americans understand that there is no requirement that bottled water be tested by any government agency.
• Wild Animals Ensnared in Beverage Six-Pack Rings - 90% of Americans don't know the leading cause of wildlife entanglement.  Fully 56% of Americans identify beverage six-pack rings as the number one cause.  Just 10% of Americans know that fishing lines left out by anglers when they snag or break is the leading cause of wildlife entanglement.
• Tested-Safe Industrial and Household Chemicals - 65% of Americans assume that a federal agency is screening household and workplace chemicals for safety.  Just 27% understand that industrial and household chemicals are not routinely tested by the U.S. EPA or any other federal agency.
• Main Source of Oil Pollution: Tankers, Oil Rigs and Refineries - 84% of Americans don't know the main source of oil in our rivers, lakes, and bays, with a 57% majority believing that the leading source of oil pollution is ships, offshore drilling, or coastal refineries.  Just 10% know that Americans changing their car oil and disposing of it improperly - down the sink, in the storm drain, or on the ground - is the main source of oil pollution today.
• America Enjoys Pollution-Free Power Production - 73% of Americans don't know how most electricity is generated in the U.S., with some 55% of Americans believing our electricity is produced in non-air-polluting ways (hydropower, solar power).  A plurality (38%) believes hydroelectric power accounts for most of our electricity production.  Just 27% know that burning oil, coal and wood accounts for 70% of our nation's electricity production.
• Factories are the Leading Cause of Water Pollution - 78% of Americans don't know the most common cause of pollution in streams, rivers, and oceans, with nearly half believing that factories are the leading cause of water pollution today.  While once true, just 22% of Americans know that run-off pollution - precipitation running off farm fields, roads, parking lots and other land areas - is now our leading water quality problem.
• Safe Underground Storage for Spent Nuclear Fuel - 83% of Americans don't know what we currently do with spent nuclear fuel, which is dangerous for at least 10,000 years.  A plurality (34%) believe spent fuel from nuclear plants is safely placed in a deep underground facility in the West.  Just 17% of Americans know that we store spent nuclear fuel at the power plant and monitor it pending the development of a long-term solution.
• Worldwide Famine is the Leading Cause of Childhood Death - 91% of Americans don't know the leading cause of childhood death worldwide.  A 55% majority of Americans believe that malnutrition and starvation from famine is the leading cause.  Just 9% of Americans know that the number one cause of childhood death is microorganisms in the world's drinking water supply.
• Tap Water is Tested/Filtered for Animal Waste and Pesticides - 59% of Americans assume that our tap water is fully protected from animal waste and pesticides.  Though regularly tested for the presence of pollution and microorganisms, regular testing is not conducted for other kinds of pollution (pesticides and some types of microorganisms from farm waste).  These pollutants may not be filtered from the water supply because of antiquated filtration systems.  Just 35% of Americans recognize this fact.

Contact: Derek Young, NEETF, phone: 202-628-8200, ext. 23; fax: 202-628-8204; e-mail: young@neetf.org website: http://www.neetf.org

The Global Environment Facility (GEF) is a mechanism for international cooperation for the purpose of providing new, and additional, grant and concessional funding to meet the agreed incremental costs of measures to achieve agreed global environmental benefits in the areas of biological diversity, climate change, international waters, and ozone layer depletion.  Most GEF projects have technology transfer components or technical training.  The GEF started with a three-year pilot phase in 1991.  In 1996-97 the GEF adopted an operational strategy and ten specific operational programs that cover these four focal areas.  Additional operational programs for energy-efficient transport and carbon sequestration are now being developed.  GEF projects are implemented through three agencies: the UN Development Program, the UN Environment Program and the World Bank Group.

In the Climate Change focal area, the GEF has promoted technology transfer of energy efficiency and renewable technologies through a series of projects in developing countries.  The GEF pilot phase focused on making cost-effective greenhouse gas emissions reductions.  Three specific operational programs were then developed for promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies by reducing barriers, implementation costs, and long-term technology costs.  A significant aim of these programs is to catalyze sustainable markets and enable the private sector to transfer technologies.  To this end, many individual GEF projects test and demonstrate a variety of sustainable financing and institutional models for promoting technology transfer.  Capacity building is also a central feature of most projects and is resulting in indirect impacts on host countries' abilities to understand, absorb and diffuse technologies.  From 1991-1998 the GEF approved grants totaling $610 million for 61 energy efficiency and renewable energy projects in 38 countries.  The total cost of these projects is $4.8 billion, as the GEF has leveraged financing through loans and other resources from governments, other donor agencies, the private sector, and the implementing agencies.  An additional $180 million in grants for enabling activities and short-term response measures have been approved for climate change.

In the Ozone focal area, the GEF is currently supporting 15 Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) phase-out projects in countries with economies in transition, which are not eligible for assistance under the Multilateral Fund established for the Montreal Protocol.  In these projects, more than 90% of the financing supports procurement and transfer of environmentally sound, non-ODS technologies from OECS to recipient countries.  Total grant contributions amount to more than $100 million for technology transfer.  Technologies transferred with GEF support include advanced solutions for the following sectors: refrigeration, foaming, solvents, fire protection, insulation, and aerosols.  Technology choices have been adapted to local circumstances to assure the viability of relevant investments.  Widespread dissemination of technology transfer results has been strongly encouraged to enable further diffusion of these technologies in economies in transition.  A comprehensive study to analyze the GEF role in ODS phase-out, country program implementation and related technology transfer is currently being commissioned by the GEF.  Results will be made available to interested stakeholders later this year.

In the International Waters and Biodiversity focal areas, GEF activities are assisting with country efforts at legal and policy reforms, demonstrations of appropriate technologies, institutional strengthening and capacity building, removal of specific barriers to technology transfer, and enhanced management techniques.   Biodiversity projects focus on conservation, protected areas and improved ecosystem and resource management.  GEF is the leading multilateral entity responding to the global threat to Biodiversity and it is the financial mechanism of the Convention on Biological Diversity.  Since 1991 GEF has provided over $775 million for nearly 250 Biodiversity projects, and generated an additional $1.2 billion in co-financing.  Amongst others, GEF is working with Ethiopia's traditional farmers to preserve genetic materials, in Indonesia to establish a sound framework to manage coral reefs and in Mexico and Panama to establish the Mesoamerica Biological Corridor.

International waters project focus on reversing degradation trends in multi-country water-bodies or in protecting still relatively pristine marine or freshwater ecosystems.  Since its creation in 1991, GEF has allocated $242 million to international waters initiatives that help address shared problems in a coordinated, cost-effective manner.  For example, GEF international waters projects are promoting the use of several environmentally sound technologies by demonstrating: technologies for the reduction of nutrient pollution from point sources; reduction of non-point sources of nutrient pollution by testing simple and cost-effective manure management techniques at farm level; prevention of ship-based pollution along high traffic sea routes, and of over-fishing, through the introduction of precision navigation technologies using electronic charts and satellite-based monitoring; and harbor management techniques for the prevention of alien species introduction through ballast water discharges.

The Renewable Natural Resources Foundation (RNRF) has begun planning for the 2000 Congress on "Tools and Strategies for Sustainability in the 21st Century," to be held in the fall of 2000 in the vicinity of Portland, Oregon.

Among the tools and strategies that will be considered are:

• Environmental education
• GIS and the data that is needed to put it together
• Information technology
• Decision-making models-conceptual and generic
• Conflict Resolution Techniques - How do you get people to work together?
• Focus groups - "What have we learned about the training of natural resource managers?" and "What educational tools will professionals need for the future?"
• Legislation - How do multiple branches of government and/or legislation interact and conflict?
• Pilot programs and test sites (Borderlands is an example of a pilot project)
• Multi-disciplinary partnerships
• Teamwork
• Land Trusts

The Congress will include both regional and local case study presentations.  Among the regional case studies under consideration are the Pacific Northwest Regional Council and the Chesapeake Bay Region.  Local case studies being considered are Portland, Oregon and Boulder, Colorado.  A field trip to a local example of sustainability is also being explored.

At the Congress, delegates will discuss the role of renewable natural resource professionals in promoting sustainability at the regional and local levels.  The Congress will identify the skills, tools, strategies and partnerships that these professionals will need to promote sustainability in the 21st century.

Contact: Kristen Krapf, Director of Programs, RNRF, phone: 301-493-9101;e-mail: klkrapf@aol.com

The U.S. Department of Energy will soon seek proposals from industrial end-user plant sites interested in completing comprehensive, plant-wide assessments aimed at increasing the plant's overall energy efficiency while reducing environmental emissions.  The goal is to encourage industrial manufacturer plants to team with their service and equipment suppliers to evaluate the adoption of best available and emerging technologies.  Up to $75,000 per site is available and a 50 percent cost-share is required.  To apply, and for other industrial steam-related news, go to http://www.oit.doe.gov/steam/

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 1 has announced a "Livable Communities Grant Program."  Proposals must be postmarked on or before August 23 and applicants may compete for funding in the range of $5000-$50,000.  For information, check http://www.epa.gov/region01

EPA has announced Sustainable Development Challenge Grants.  Applications are due in October.  The details of this grant opportunity will be announced in July.  Check http://www.epa.gov/ecocommunity

The U.S. Department of Transportation is offering a grant program.  The Transportation and Community and System Preservation (TCSP) pilot grant program is designed to investigate the relationship among transportation and community and system preservation and private sector-based initiatives.  Information can be found at http://tcsp-fhwa.volpe.dot.gov/

A new textbook, Industrial Ecology: Policy Framework and Implementation, has been written by Dr. Braden Allenby, Vice President, Environment, Health and Safety, AT&T.  While the book is intended primarily for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, particularly in the areas of engineering, economics, technology, business, government, and policy, it is also written to be of use to those in industry, government, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).  The publisher is Prentice-Hall, Inc.

In his book, Dr. Allenby defines the essence of industrial ecology as follows:

The text is divided into three major parts:

Part I: "A New Policy Framework," includes chapters on sustainable development; industrial ecology; industrial ecology infrastructure; and applications to practice in sector initiatives, techniques, and tools, and research and development.

Part II: "Industrial Ecology Policy Development," includes chapters on complex systems; risks, costs and benefits; economic issues; legal issues; government structures and industrial ecology policy formulations; and private firms.

Part III: includes four major case studies.  These are:  (1) Structural Design for Environmental Case Study: the AT&T Matrix System; (2) Private Firm Case Study: Is the Private Firm Compatible with a Sustainable World?; (3) Policy Case Study: The Netherlands; and (4) Enhanced National Security Case Study: the United States