In Our Nature

Welcome to Week 7 of Spring quarter!

Now that midterms are over, use your free time to join us for another week filled with sustainability-related events. Here are some of the highlights - for more information about these events or to find out what other sustainability events are happening on campus this week check out our full calendar. If you know of any events, which should be added, let us know.

If you'd like to get a weekly email of all the upcoming sustainability events,...

This post was originally published in the UW Green Labs newsletter. Each quarter, the newsletter covers a topic on how labs can improve their scores in one category covered by the UW Green Laboratory Certification Application (opens in a new tab).

Read the rest of this quarter's newsletter and subscribe to future UW Green Labs mailings.

Fieldwork and Work-Related Travel

To “green” your travel, minimize...

May is Bike Month, and UW Transportation Services wants to give you the tools to be a better-informed cyclist on the road. Whether you're looking to start riding for the first time, are looking for some extra pointers on how to ride in traffic, or want to learn how to fix your own flat tires, there's a class for you this month.

It starts this Wednesday, May 6, with "Bike Commuting 101: Getting...

Photo: (Left) Co-creator of ReThink Will Fantle and (Right) Vice President Gracie Dahl

A trip to Israel sparked a UW student's dream to leave a mark on the environment.

"There was a full moon, a massive brilliant orb, and stars everywhere,” said Will Fantle, co-creator of ReThink, a UW club focused on business sustainability. “They took us out in silence and told us to go find a spot in the desert. We sat out there for what felt like hours. I just lay there looking up at the stars thinking about what I wanted to do with my life."

As part of Birthright, a...

Welcome to Week 6!

Here are some of the highlighted events for the week. All of these events and more are listed on our Sustainability Events calendar, where you can find the full details for all events and any last-minute additions. If you'd like to get a weekly email of all the upcoming sustainability events, subscribe here. If you know of any events which should be added, let us know.

Clean Energy Institute (CEI) Graduate Fellow Jenny Stein wants to pass on her love for discovery and applied research to high school students interested in STEM careers.

CEI chronicles Stein’s experiences mentoring students’ part of the STEM OUT program at TAF Academy in South Seattle. The program is run through UW’s Institute for Science...

Several University of Washington scientists, along with scientists from other schools around the country, have filmed videos to share what their work studying climate change means to them, and their personal feelings on what climate change means to them and the people around them. 

These are some powerful messages from people who deal with the details and work with the science of climate change. Some...

This winter and spring, UW’s School of Environmental and Forest Sciences challenged Washington state high school and undergraduate students to grab a camera and film what climate change meant to them in three minutes or less. The prize: up to $5,000 for each age group.

The winners will be announced at Town Hall on May 15 at 7:00 p.m. The top five teams from both high school and undergraduate categories will meet with the judges and watch the screening of...

One of the 2015 Green Seed Fund teams aims to study the use of efficient lighting system in terms of both energy savings and user experience. Dr. Amy Kim, member of the proposal team looking at “Value-driven property-investing strategy for the UW campus,” has a strong background in quantifying energy savings for energy service projects. When she joined the University of Washington, she was interested in the methods UW used to save energy and the kind of environment these methods created. She joined Dr. Dorothy Reed, a professor in Civil and Environmental Engineering, in working on her 2014...

During Winter Quarter 2015, many labs achieved Green Laboratory certification by going above and beyond the criteria on the Green Laboratory application. The following are some of the cool innovations being done by these Green Labs:

• UW Bothell Chemistry Lab (Gold): This lab uses dynamic light control sensors that turn down lights depending on natural light levels in their lab. In effect, this lab reduces its energy use.
• Treponemal Research Lab (Gold): The Treponemal Research Lab autoclaves pipette tip boxes with other loads using autoclave racks. In doing so, this...