Digital Commons Network^™

Food Systems And Security At The University Of Richmond, Kayla Sherman, Donald Edmonds, Yuncheng Liu

Geography and the Environment Capstone Projects

In the past fifteen years, the University has signed multiple national and global sustainability commitments, such as the 2003 Talloires Declaration, the 2007 American College and University President’s Climate Commitment, and the 2015 American Campuses Act on Climate Pledge (OFSb 2017). These commitments set ambitious climate action goals and address the responsibility of colleges and universities not only to cultivate a culture of environmental stewardship on campus but also to transform their conventional operational systems into sustainable systems. The University of Richmond’s 2017 Sustainability Report highlights the steps the University has taken to achieve these goals and identifies areas in …

A Proposal For Geothermal Heating & Cooling At The University Of Richmond, Zachary Snelling, Coleman Harris, Chelsea Wilson

Geography and the Environment Capstone Projects

Ground source heat pumps (GSHPs) offer a more efficient and environmentally responsible alternative to traditional heating and cooling systems. Using the earth’s constant subsurface ground temperatures to generate heating and cooling, GSHPs allow for a decrease in fossil fuel dependence and greenhouse gas emissions. Higher education institutions, such as the University of Richmond, have a responsibility to model sustainability for their students when expanding and developing their campuses. Environmental, educational, and economic factors must be evaluated when considering new and replacement heat and energy installations. The viability of a GSHP installation on the University of Richmond’s campus should weigh current …

Waste Reduction At The University Of Richmond: Recommendations For A Greener, Cleaner Campus, J. R. Mastro, Jaquelyn Pearlmutter, Joe Walderman, Alexa Williams

Geography and the Environment Capstone Projects

Connecting with the University of Richmond goals of stewardship and academic achievement both in and outside the classroom, we have constructed a plan for making the University campus more sustainable. By applying knowledge acquired throughout our Environmental Studies education, and understanding its connection to global issues, we hope to make a positive, lasting impact on our campus community. In the 2017 Strategic Plan, the University describes a vision of "modelling the way that colleges and universities can effectively meet the challenges of our time" (UR Strategic Plan, 2017). Although there is a broad range of environmental issues that can be …

International Environmental Law And American Leadership, Chelsey Davidson

Student Publications

The purpose of this paper is to detail and explore both the ethical and pragmatic implications of aggressive climate change mitigation on a coordinated international level. Particularly, this paper attempts to assess the extent to which the leadership of the United States influences the relative success and failure of international agreements, and the agreements, structures and mechanisms themselves. A secondary assessment is the extent to which the United States has incurred additional responsibilities to mitigate beyond those shared by the world, from both a harm-based and special responsibilities standpoint. In this paper, I will ultimately argue that the United States …

An Analysis Of Science Instruction And Environmental Education In Virginia And Oklahoma, Megan Wing

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

In order to understand how science instruction, and specifically instruction targeting environmental and climate change science, in K-5 classrooms can help form students into responsible and conscientious global citizens, I looked specifically at science education in K-5 curriculum. I explored how the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOLs) currently include environmental education and climate change education and how the SOLs provide the potential for future climate change education. For comparison, and to understand how states other than Virginia value environmental science education in the elementary grades, I considered the current Oklahoma Academic Standards (OASs) for K-5 students. In this paper, I …

Ur Scholarship Repository: 2016-2017 Year In Review, Lucretia Mcculley

UR Scholarship Reports and Statistics

Annual Report for the University of Richmond's institutional repository, UR Scholarship.

University Of Richmond Sustainability Report, Robert Andrejewski

Reports

The 2016 University of Richmond Sustainability Report represents where we are now, recognizes significant accomplishments, and provides a launching point for future endeavors. We all have a role to play in the continued stewardship of this great place.

This document presents a summary of the data we collected. It serves the dual role of providing information on the considerable sustainability efforts underway and establishes a benchmark for our efforts as we move forward. There is much to be celebrated, and there is much to be done.

Table Of Contents

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

No abstract provided.

Justice And Equity In Carbon Offset Governance: Debates And Dilemmas, Mary Finley-Brook

Geography and the Environment Faculty Publications

Trade-offs complicate development interventions so that benefits for one group or area often imply costs for another; large-scale projects deemed highly efficient in economic terms may generate harmful environmental or social externalities. This chapter explores issues of justice in carbon trading in terms of decision-making power and the subsequent distribution of positive and negative impacts. It explores whether offset governance can help resolve widespread problems, such as racial or income inequality and environmental injustice.

Empowering Energy Justice, Mary Finley-Brook, Erica L. Holloman

Geography and the Environment Faculty Publications

The U.S. is experiencing unprecedented movement away from coal and, to a lesser degree, oil. Burdened low-income communities and people of color could experience health benefits from reductions in air and water pollution, yet these same groups could suffer harm if transitions lack broad public input or if policies prioritize elite or corporate interests. This paper highlights how U.S. energy transitions build from, and contribute to, environmental injustices. Energy justice requires not only ending disproportionate harm, it also entails involvement in the design of solutions and fair distribution of benefits, such as green jobs and clean air. To what extent …

The Ethics Of Environmentalism For The Individual Consumer, Molly Collins

Jepson School of Leadership Studies Research Symposium

Climate change harms the health of the environment and the well-being of humans. It is the poor choices of individual consumers that contribute to climate change conditions. I argue that it is immoral to cause harm to others, thus climate change is an ethical dilemma for individual consumers. Enforcement of climate change policies are therefore justified, as individuals who cause harm through consumer behavior are liable to punishment. I begin with a pluralistic discussion of harm, before discussing the duties of individuals to make choices that will mitigate the current harms of climate change and the wrong moral assumptions that …

Sustainability & The Environment, Marissa Parker

George Modlin Book Award

Marissa Parker, Environmental Studies and Geography, Class of 2016 at the University of Richmond, describes her process of building a book collection focusing on Sustainability and the Environment.

Table Of Contents

Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest

Prefatory Matter for the Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest Volume XIX No. 2.

Table Of Contents

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

Prefatory Matter for the Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest Volume XIX No. 2.

Richmond Journal Of Global Law And Business Volume 15, Issue 1 - Prefatory Matter

Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business

No abstract provided.

The Ethics Of Environmentalism For The Individual Consumer, Molly Collins

Honors Theses

Climate change harms the well-being of humans. It is the poor choices of individual consumers that contribute to climate change. I argue that it is immoral to cause harm to others, thus climate change is an ethical dilemma for individual consumers. I begin with a pluralistic discussion of harm, before discussing the duties of individuals to make choices that will mitigate the current harms of climate change and the wrong moral assumptions that individuals make regarding their contribution to climate change. I discuss the principles of ethical consumerism, specifically in housing, food, and transportation. Lastly, I argue that climate change …

Forest Birds Respond To The Spatial Pattern Of Exurban Development In The Mid-Atlantic Region, Usa, Todd R. Lookingbill, Marcela Suarez-Rubio

Geography and the Environment Faculty Publications

Housing development beyond the urban fringe (i.e., exurban development) is one of the fastest growing forms of land-use change in the United States. Exurban development's attraction to natural and recreational amenities has raised concerns for conservation and represents a potential threat to wildlife. Although forest-dependent species have been found particularly sensitive to low housing densities, it is unclear how the spatial distribution of houses affects forest birds. The aim of this study was to assess forest bird responses to changes in the spatial pattern of exurban development and also to examine species responses when forest loss and forest fragmentation were …

Biodiversity And Carbon Content Of Trees On A University Campus, Todd R. Lookingbill, Kimberly Britt Klinker

Geography and the Environment Faculty Publications

The summer research project described in this chapter can serve as a model for the introduction of a spatial approach to problem solving in a multidisciplinary setting. This example demonstrates that even undergraduate students can collect, analyze, and build web applications for relevant spatial databases. It also demonstrates the importance of having a campus GIS support group to guide projects, train the students in technical skills, and enable them to share their results through an ArcGIS Online based web app. Involvement in the summer project prompted the students to pursue degrees in geography, economics and environmental studies, and computer science …

Should The United States Create Trading Markets For Energy Efficiency?, Noah M. Sachs

Law Faculty Publications

This Comment examines whether the vision for energy efficiency markets matches the reality. It explains how energy efficiency markets work, examines the handful of energy efficiency markets that have been established to date, and explores the policy challenges inherent in commodifying energy efficiency and making it a tradable good.

Table Of Contents

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

Table of Contents for the Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest Symposium 2015 Issue

Higher Ed's Carbon Addiction, Mary Finley-Brook, Alex Krass

Geography and the Environment Faculty Publications

Each year higher education produces millions of metric tons of greenhouse gases (GHG). As research and study abroad programs span the globe, faculty and staff travel regularly to professional meetings. Colleges compete for prospective students and offer state-of-the-art technology, entertainment, food services, and other high-impact facilities. Universities that market a comfortable, stimulating campus in order to attract and retain talent may resist carbon budgeting, as combustion of dirty fossil fuels currently remains vital to the operation of most campus buildings, sport fields, and labs.

Universities are integral to climate science knowledge production. Nevertheless, policymakers in many academic institutions appear unaware …

The Limits Of Energy Efficiency Markets In Climate-Change Law, Noah M. Sachs

Law Faculty Publications

This Article examines whether market-based policies, deployed in many areas of environmental law, should be harnessed to promote energy efficiency. Several countries in Europe and Asia have experimented with this new approach to energy efficiency, establishing markets that involve mandatory energy savings targets for firms and inter-firm trading of certificates that represent quantified energy savings. Many analysts contend that these new markets can unlock overlooked opportunities for energy efficiency improvements and could be a critical policy tool for addressing climate change. After describing the rationale for these new markets and their operation in other countries, this Article concludes that the …

Education & Practice (Newsletter Of The Section On Education Of Lawyer, Virginia State Bar) - V. 25, No. 1 (Fall 2016), Dale Margolin Cecka

Law Faculty Publications

What You Do and Do Not Learn in Law School: A Family Law Associate’s Perspective

Hiring and Supervising New Lawyers: A Family Law Partner’s Perspective

Chair’s Column

Law Faculty News and News and Events Around the Commonwealth

Call for Nomination: William R. Rakes Leadership in Education Award

2016-2017 Board of Governors

Table Of Contents

Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest

Table of Contents for the Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest Symposium 2015 Issue

Front Matter

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.

Creating The Chesapeake Bay Marine Protected Area, Emma Thomson

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

The Chesapeake Bay provides economic benefits to its surrounding states in the form of tourism, fishing, recreation, and ecosystem services. However it is not sufficiently protected by these states and is suffering the consequences. This precious habitat needs more protection to ensure the long-term survival of the wildlife and services it provides. Creating a Marine Protected Area (MPA) at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay and extending out in to the Atlantic Ocean will protect multiple habitats and fish populations, which will in turn improve the health of the Bay (Narula 2014). This MPA will restrict harmful fishing, drilling, dumping, …

Proposal For A Virginia Seed Bank, Casey Schmidt

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

Climate change is causing the ranges of native species to shift northward at a pace that outstrips the ability of many plant species to migrate and adapt (Walther et al. 2002; Renwick & Rocca 2014). Although assisted migration, the process of relocating individuals or spread of seeds through human intervention, has been used successfully in some cases to preserve species, it comes saddled with potential ecological damage and legal complications arise when these ranges cross state lines. These complications threaten Virginia’s biodiversity, especially among rare plants and those plants from habitat affected most by climate change. In order to preserve …

Changes To Shoreline Hardening Process In The Face Of Climate Change, George Appling

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

As a result of global climate change, sea level has risen and will continue to rise throughout the 21st century. Sea level rise has been higher in Virginia than any other state over the past 100 years (US Climate Change Science Program 2009). Varied projections show that sea level could rise 1.2 to 5.5 feet above 1992 levels by 2100 (Boon et al. 2010; Ezer and Corlette 2012; Sallengar et al. 2012). Sea level rise threatens to drown intertidal wetlands (Craft et al. 2009; FitzGerald et al. 2010; Kirwan and Guntenspergen 2010; Menon et al. 2010). Wetlands are key biodiversity …

Life Cycle Cost Assessment: A Win-Win For Virginia Wetlands, Austen Kelso

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

Virginia shorelines are facing some of the highest rates of sea level rise seen over the last 5 millennia and are among the most vulnerable coastlines in the country to the effects of sea level rise such as flooding and storm surge (Down et al. 1994). In the face of these rising sea levels, coastal wetland habitats will be forced to migrate inland to avoid inundation (Akumu et al. 2011). However, increased development on the Virginia coast threatens these critical wetland habitats by blocking their inland movement as the try to avoid rapidly rising sea levels. Without a clear migratory …

Recommendations For Conservation Easement Reform, Amy Murphy

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

Virginia has a well-established easement program which offers landowners a state income tax credit in return for donating land rights such as development and subdivision rights. Currently, there are inefficiencies with easements which could be lessened with reform (Owley 2011, Rissman 2011). This paper proposes that Virginia establish statewide conservation priorities and switches from a flat rate credit for easement donations to a tiered system which provides greater incentives for easements on land with high conservation value (McLaughlin and Pidot 2013). Additionally, this paper proposes that Virginia require adaptive language in easement terms and standardizes monitoring procedures.

Poster session prepared …