Dr. Debra Rowe is the President of the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development (www.uspartnership.org). The U.S. Partnership convenes members of the business, education, communities, government, and faith sectors of the U.S. and catalyzes sustainability initiatives. Dr. Rowe is also National Co-coordinator of the Higher Education Associations Sustainability Consortium (www.aashe.org/heasc), Founder of the Disciplinary Associations’ Network for Sustainability (www.aashe.org/dans) and Senior Advisor to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (www.aashe.org). Through the American Association of Community Colleges, she is also a U.S. Designee to the World Federation of Colleges and Polytechnics’ for their international sustainability group (http://wfcp.accc.ca/) . She helps higher education associations and institutions integrate sustainability into mission, curricula, research, student life, purchasing and investments, facilities and operations, and community partnerships.

Debra Rowe is often a keynote speaker at national and international education conferences. She is the author or editor of numerous publications on the integration of sustainability into education (see http://www.michiganenergyoptions.org/learnmore/sustainable-education-handbook for examples).

Debra has been professor of energy management, renewable energy technology and psychology for over 29 years at Oakland Community College. Oakland Community College offers degrees in Environmental Systems Technologies and certificates in Renewable Energies and Sustainable Living. Dr. Rowe created a model energy services technician degree design for community and technical colleges, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. She also created and teaches energy management and renewable energies in an on-line format with National Science Foundation support as professional development for community college faculty offered by the Consortium for Education in Renewable Energy Technology (www.ceret.us). Dr Rowe is presently working with the American Association of Community Colleges to create the Sustainable Economy Resource Center that is designed to share curricula, partnership models, quality criteria, and promising practices relating to sustainability and green energy. She has helped numerous colleges develop their energy curricula.

Bruce Seifer
Assistant Director for Economic Development
City of Burlington’s Community and Economic Development Office

Bruce Seifer was among the first set of employees hired by the City of Burlington’s Community and Economic Development Office in 1983. Bruce is the Assistant Director for Economic Development. The division he supervises is responsible for implementing the City of Burlington Vermont’s economic development policies.

Bruce helped found, and is an advisor to the Boards for the Vermont BioScience Alliance and Vt Software Developers Alliance.

Bruce serves on 1) Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility, Public Policy and Nominating Committee; 2) Internal Steering Committee of Vermont EPSCoR and 3) Community College of Vermont’s advisory committee for the Business and Accounting degree programs.

Jennifer Green is Burlington’s environmental specialist. She has over 20 years of community development experience, including work on gender equity, national planning, and environmental management with the Peace Corps, CARE International, Chemonics, and the World Resources Institute. Shortly after moving to Burlington in 1999, she consulted with the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation and later Efficiency Vermont. In addition to working for the City, Jennifer has taught several environmental and sustainable development courses at the University of Vermont. She has a masters in public adminstration from Columbia University and earned her PhD in environmental sociology from American University in 2005.

Gioia Thompson has been working on sustainable practices at the University of Vermont since 1996, where she has recently been appointed director of the new Office of Sustainability. She is responsible for tracking the institution’s environmental performance; recommending environmentally responsible practices; working with students, faculty members, and staff members on environmental projects; and connecting with the Vermont and higher education communities.

Gioia has been working since 1996 with the UVM Environmental Council, a group of faculty, staff, students, and community members dedicated to promoting excellence in academic programs and campus operations. Her 2002 publication Tracking UVM: Environmental Report Card 1990-2000 has been hailed as a model for tracking environmental performance. Recent activities include support of the EcoReps, a residential education program; developing public information for the University’s new LEEDTM Gold certified student commons; analyzing the University’s greenhouse gas emissions; co-teaching a project-based course focusing on the Presidents’ Climate Commitment; and participating in regional and national professional dialogue on environmental performance in higher education. She currently serves on the steering committees of the Northeast Campus Sustainability Consortium and the Burlington Legacy Project.

Gioia received a B.A. in Environmental Studies in 1987 with an honors thesis on municipal leaf composting, and an M.S. in Natural Resources in 2000 on sustainability in higher education, both from the University of Vermont.

Dr. Stephanie Kaza is the Director of the Environmental Program at the University of Vermont, with a Professor appointment through the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources. She teaches and advises undergraduate and graduate students with a concentration in the environmental humanities. Her courses include: Religion and Ecology, Ecofeminism, Unlearning Consumerism, and Introduction to Environmental Studies. Dr. Kaza’s interdisciplinary approach is reflected in her academic training: Ph.D. in Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz; M.A. in Education, Stanford University; M.Div., Starr King School for the Ministry; and B.A. in Biology, Oberlin College. As co-chair of the UVM Environmental Council, Dr. Kaza has been actively engaged in campus sustainability initiatives to reduce waste, conserve energy, and promote environmental values. For more.

Dr. Robert Costanza is the Gund Professor of Ecological Economics and Director of the Gund Institute for Ecological Economics10 at the University of Vermont. His research focuses on the interface between ecological and economic systems, particularly at larger temporal and spatial scales. This includes landscape level spatial simulation modeling; analysis of energy and material flows through economic and ecological systems; valuation of ecosystem services, biodiversity, and natural capital; and analysis of dysfunctional incentive systems and ways to correct them. He is the author or co-author of over 300 scientific papers. For more.

Michelle Smith is the Green Building Coordinator at the University of Vermont. She helps to facilitate the USGBC’s LEED process, is involved in strategic capital planning, and works collaboratively across campus to advance sustainability initiatives within university operations.She has also co-taught an undergraduate campus sustainability course, and recently managed an EPA grant which produced an online program and waste tracking tool to minimize construction & demolition (C&D) waste. She is the Vice President of the Staff Council, chair of its Employee Environment and Facilities Committee, and a founding board member and chair of the Education Committee of the Vermont Green Building Network, the USGBC VT chapter. Michelle is a LEED AP and graduated from the University of Vermont in 2002 with a B.S. in Environmental Studies, with a focus in ecological design and green building practices.

Tom Hudspeth is Professor of Environmental Studies in the Rubenstein School of the Environment and Natural Resources. In May 2002, he received UVM’s highest honor, the George V. Kidder Award for Excellence in Teaching. He is a recipient of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Environmental Merit Award and is a 1999 Fulbright Senior Scholar for a German Studies Seminar on “Alternative Forms of Energy and Environmental Protection.” His interests focus on: sustainable community development; environmental education; environmental interpretation; citizen participation in natural resources planning; and international environment issues. Currently he is working on Sustainability Stories: A Field Guide to Sustainability in the Greater Burlington, Vermont, Area.

Kimberly DePasquale is Coordinator of Community-Based Learning for the Community-University Partnerships and Service Learning (CUPS) office. Kim joined the CUPS staff in 2008 and works primarily with the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources. She recently completed a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies at UVM. As an undergraduate, Kim saw the value in service-learning and her thesis focused on community-based teaching in the Rubenstein School. As coordinator of Community-Based Learning in the Rubenstein School, Kim works to support faculty and encourage community-based learning.

Stephen Posner is a sustainability fellow at the University of Vermont, where he coordinates the eco-reps program, develops sustainability projects, and teaches in the environmental program. His research interests include systems thinking, sustainability indicators, and ecosystem services. He has experience consulting with businesses on the measurement of ecosystem values, and with state governments in the US on the redesign of governmental accounting systems. He earned a BS in physics and astronomy from Haverford College, an MS in natural resources from the University of Vermont, and studied science education at Stanford University.