This installment of the AASHE Bulletin Sustainability Student Diary series features Meg Little, member of the award-winning permaculture team at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. For its pioneering efforts in campus permaculture, the Permaculture Committee was named Student Group of 2011 by the Real Food Challenge. Read on to learn about the committee's inception, inspirations and inner workings. We hope to see questions and feedback in the comments area! Submit diary entries of your own for consideration to bulletin@aashe.org.

As I look out onto the dormant January garden in front of Franklin Dining Commons at UMass, I can’t help but feel a sense of utter amazement at how much we accomplished in the past year and a half. In September 2010, this 12,000-square-foot plot was an unused patch of grassy lawn, unappreciated and overlooked by the campus community. Just one year later, it was transformed into a highly productive, beautiful permaculture garden; a space for students, staff and faculty to slow down and appreciate the wonderful smells, colors and unusual plants dwelling in the garden.

In September 2010, the word "permaculture" was practically unknown to the campus community. By September 2011, the word was almost commonplace among students, and our UMass Permaculture group was joyfully celebrating its accomplishments in the dedication event, "From Grass to Food in Under One Year" (featuring internationally acclaimed author Frances Moore Lappe).

The story begins in the fall of 2009 in a class called "Sustainable Agriculture." The final project for this class was to "come up with some way to change the world." Quite an overwhelming task for a class project! A group of students got together and decided to focus on what they believed had the most potential to change the world: local food. This led them to an idea: what if we had students growing food for students right here on campus? They dove into this project, focusing around the idea of establishing a permaculture garden adjacent to one of the Dining Commons to produce super-local food for students. Some students researched plants and design, and some looked at finance, interviewing administrators and chefs to see if there was actually funding interest in the project. It turned out that there was, and these students continued to push the project through administrative channels even after the class ended.

Later that spring, the project took a blow when discussions arose of building a temporary parking lot on that site. The project seemed defeated, along with the sense of empowerment students had felt in the process of establishing the project. However, Dining Services listened to student concerns and when the parking lot proposal fell through, Executive Director of Auxiliary Services and Enterprises Ken Toong began talking with Ryan Harb, a certified permaculture designer and recent graduate of UMass’s Green Building masters program. That fall, Harb was hired to oversee the project and put together a student committee to organize and plan for the successful implementation of a permaculture garden.

"...permaculture is the most promising solution to reverse the downward spiral of our current circumstances. It is systems thinking, it is gardens, it is communities, it is sustainable economies, it is rewriting our human impact to be regenerative for all living things by changing the way we relate ourselves to the world around us."

That’s where I come into the picture! As an environmental science major entering my junior year, I was run down and pretty downright depressed about our global situation. Having spent two years learning about the despondent state of our climate and the devastating impacts humans have had on it, I was desperate for a positive solution. In my first week of classes, I received an email looking for students to head the implementation of a permaculture garden on campus. "Permaculture?” I thought, "what is that?" So I started investigating. And the more I learned, the more I fell in love. This was the solution I had been searching for!

For those unfamiliar with the term, there are many definitions for permaculture. The Permaculture Institute defines it as an ecological design system for sustainability in all aspects of human endeavor. It teaches us how to build natural homes, grow our own food, restore diminished landscapes and ecosystems, catch rainwater, build communities and much more.

For me, permaculture is the most promising solution to reverse the downward spiral of our current circumstances. It is systems thinking, it is gardens, it is communities, it is sustainable economies, it is rewriting our human impact to be regenerative for all living things by changing the way we relate ourselves to the world around us. Needless to say, I was hooked, and I was ecstatic to hear I had been selected as a member of the eight-student UMass Permaculture Committee. We got right to work, focusing first on our mission statement:

"To offer education about sustainable living to the UMass Amherst community by creating model, edible and low-maintenance landscapes that are both highly productive and aesthetically pleasing."

As our site is located in a central area on campus, the educational aspect was incredibly important to us. Not only were we growing food, but with that we were changing paradigms on a local scale; changing the way UMass thinks about food production.

That fall we organized over 130 volunteers to help sheet mulch (a common permaculture practice to prepare the soil for growing) the entire 12,000-square-foot site, bringing in numerous campus and local groups including Big Brother Big Sister, Living Routes, and Amherst Regional High Green Action Club. We also started a blog, tabled and spoke at town and campus events, hosted a documentary screening, and had several media appearances. In the spring we pushed ourselves even further, adding on a few more committee members to assist in media outreach, enabling previous members to focus on designing the garden, participating in more local tabling and speaking events, hosting another documentary screening, and organizing a highly successful design charrette, which included over 100 students, faculty, staff and local community members who had the opportunity to take part in the design process, create their own designs for the garden, and voice their opinions on what they would like to see from the garden.

At the end of the spring semester, we put together an enthusiastic new summer committee and finally started planting. We worked diligently over the summer to make the garden as productive as possible, planting over 1,500 plants of more than 100 different species. All the while we strived to make it accessible to everyone by blogging about our struggles and successes, incorporating informational plaques throughout the garden, creating a self-guided tour for visitors, and hosting over 300 K-12 school children to come work, play and learn in the garden. By the time September rolled around, the garden was looking wonderful, and we produced 1,000 pounds of food for the Dining Commons. When students returned for the semester we were bombarded with compliments on the amazing transformation that had taken place over the course of the summer, which was extremely rewarding for all of us who had worked so hard.

For this academic year we’ve remodeled the student committee. Last year’s committee members now have the opportunity to both teach and learn alongside other students as facilitators working to assist new members. I work with other students to host events with the goal of engaging students and local community members in our project and creating space for them to learn about new permaculture-related topics, have fun, and participate in the processes of UMass Permaculture.

"...not only does permaculture grow food, it also heals and remediates degraded landscapes."

Which brings us back to today: a cold January morning in 2012. As we reflect on the past year and look forward to the one ahead of us, I feel incredibly fortunate to be a part of this amazing project. Due to the success of this garden, we’ve been granted land next to another Dining Commons on campus: neglected land that has compacted, rocky, dead soil, where even grass can barely grow. We’re all pretty excited about the challenge this presents, as we hope to use this site as an educational tool highlighting the regenerative capacity of permaculture; not only does permaculture grow food, it also heals and remediates degraded landscapes. We will also be hosting a "Permaculture Your Campus" conference this June. From colleges around the country, we invite student groups, dining services, sustainability committees and any other interested groups/individuals to come to UMass and develop their own unique action plans for how they will design and implement permaculture gardens on their own campuses. Interested schools can register beginning this month. Registration fees will contribute to our project’s financial sustainability as we move ahead with our own gardens and assist in the development of other projects across the world.

The work I’ve done for this group has without a doubt been one of the defining experiences of my undergraduate career. I have grown more from this experience than I could have imagined and have learned more than any number of classes could have taught me. Above and beyond my own personal gains, the project and the garden itself have become a visible example of student empowerment and shifting paradigms on campus. Students drove this movement, and students are helping it grow to new heights all the time. The Franklin garden’s location, in a highly visible and highly trafficked area for students, enables it to be seen by thousands every day and to begin to change the way UMass Amherst thinks about food. Our project may not be capable of feeding the 16,000 students on meal plans, but it can demonstrate different ways of thinking about how land is used, where food is grown, and who grows food. Our gardens are a site of education and student empowerment - and what a beautiful sight that is.

Meet Meg and other committee members in this UMass Permaculture Documentary series!

It’s almost Valentine’s Day, and love is in the air, especially for Yogita Tailor ’05, M13, who just got engaged. Of course, every marriage proposal is special in its own way, but Tailor got an extra special surprise when her boyfriend Dhaval Desai asked her to marry him while they were standing in the crowd outside the “Good Morning America” studio in Times Square. From the GMA video:

“The past two years have been amazing and I want you to know how much I love you. Nothing would make me happier than to spend the rest of my life with you,” Desai, also 29, said on “GMA” today. “So as we stand here in the heart of New York City, in Times Square, on ‘Good Morning America,’ with all of our friends and family watching, there’s something I want to ask you. Baby, will you marry me?” “Oh, my gosh, yes,” she squealed, smiling.

All of us at UMBC send out heartfelt congratulations to Tailor and Desai!

Good Morning America has the full video and story.

–Do you have your own great news to share? Perhaps a new job, an engagement, or a big move? Send in a class note to let us know!

– Read more about UMBC alumni news and events on Retriever Net

miscellaneousmee:

UMBC memes facebook page LOL

https://www.facebook.com/pages/UMBC-Memes/207896509308291

FORREAL THO- WE HAVE EVENTS.

cyclingbum:

I’ve signed the Recyclemania pledge along with Dr. Hrabowski and Green Man, have you?

Check out “UMBC Green Man” on Facebook. Get you pic taken with him and submit it to his fan page to help spread his important message about sustainability stewardship.

The Quality of Life Technology (QoLT) Center, a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center led by Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh, will sponsor a Dissertation House for their students at the end of March.  The Dissertation House (DH) for the QoLT will be held in Pittsburgh, PA.  Funding for this DH is provided by QoLT’s National Science Foundation funding as a collaborative grant between PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP and the QoLT Center.    The collaboration between PROMISE and the QoLT began at a national NSF meeting for the ERCs in December 2010.  PROMISE was participating in the conference as part of a panel on under-representation in STEM, facilitated by the Mid-InfraRed Technologies for Health and the Environment (MIRTHE) Engineering Research Center that includes UMBC,  Princeton University, Johns Hopkins University, Texas A&M University, and the City College of New York.

Graduate students who are already part of the QoLT will have the first opportunities to register for this DH.  The timing of this Dissertation House will connect to the start of the annual convention for the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE).  Since Pittsburgh is hosting the 2012 NSBE national convention that is expecting thousands of students and professionals, the QoLT will consider registrations from graduate students who attend their partner institutions and are planning to attend the mini Graduate School Conference (GSC) at the NSBE convention.

Dissertation House at the QoLT Main session: Monday, March 26 – Wednesday, March 28, 2012. 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM.   Small group and individual coaching: Thursday, March 29, 2012, 9:00 AM – 12 PM.

Head Coach: Dr. Wendy Carter-Veale. Facilitator: Dr. Renetta Tull. QoLT Graduate Assistants: Sossena Wood (Region II Chair for NSBE, Twitter: @R2Chair) and Portia Taylor.

Graduate students from the QoLT who plan to participate should follow the application procedures on the application webpage for the Dissertation House.  Students from other institutions must seek permission from  Shelly Brown, Outreach Coordinator for the QoLT Center at the Human Engineering Research Laboratory and the University of Pittsburgh Department of Rehabilitation Science and Technology:  srbrown@pitt.edu, (412) 822-3665 (email preferred).  Applications will be accepted for an extended enrollment period between February 20 and March 9.  Deadline: Friday, March 9, 2012. 

 Dissertation House Location:

Gates-Hillman Hall, Room 4405, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh, PA  15213

Campus map:  http://www.cmu.edu/homeimages/campus-map/CMU_MapColor_8x11.pdf

Hotel for grad students at QoLT partner institutions:

(Students or QoLT Partner representatives from schools other than Carnegie Mellon or the University of Pittsburgh must obtain permission from Shelly Brown to participate, and must pay for hotel fees from their own funds.)

Marriott SpringHill Suites at Bakery Square, 134 Bakery Square Boulevard · Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15206

There is a free shuttle from the hotel to the campus.

The Quality of Life Technology (QoLT) Center, a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center led by Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh, will sponsor a Dissertation House for their students at the end of March.  The Dissertation House (DH) for the QoLT will be held in Pittsburgh, PA.  Funding for this DH is provided by QoLT’s National Science Foundation funding as a collaborative grant between PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP and the QoLT Center.    The collaboration between PROMISE and the QoLT began at a national NSF meeting for the ERCs in December 2010.  PROMISE was participating in the conference as part of a panel on under-representation in STEM, facilitated by the Mid-InfraRed Technologies for Health and the Environment (MIRTHE) Engineering Research Center that includes UMBC,  Princeton University, Johns Hopkins University, Texas A&M University, and the City College of New York.

Graduate students who are already part of the QoLT will have the first opportunities to register for this DH.  The timing of this Dissertation House will connect to the start of the annual convention for the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE).  Since Pittsburgh is hosting the 2012 NSBE national convention that is expecting thousands of students and professionals, the QoLT will consider registrations from graduate students who attend their partner institutions and are planning to attend the mini Graduate School Conference (GSC) at the NSBE convention.

Dissertation House at the QoLT Main session: Monday, March 26 – Wednesday, March 28, 2012. 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM.   Small group and individual coaching: Thursday, March 29, 2012, 9:00 AM – 12 PM.

Head Coach: Dr. Wendy Carter-Veale. Facilitator: Dr. Renetta Tull. QoLT Graduate Assistants: Sossena Wood (Region II Chair for NSBE, Twitter: @R2Chair) and Portia Taylor.

Graduate students from the QoLT who plan to participate should follow the application procedures on the application webpage for the Dissertation House.  Students from other institutions must seek permission from  Shelly Brown, Outreach Coordinator for the QoLT Center at the Human Engineering Research Laboratory and the University of Pittsburgh Department of Rehabilitation Science and Technology:  srbrown@pitt.edu, (412) 822-3665 (email preferred).  Applications will be accepted for an extended enrollment period between February 20 and March 9.  Deadline: Friday, March 9, 2012. 

 Dissertation House Location:

Gates-Hillman Hall, Room 4405, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh, PA  15213

Campus map:  http://www.cmu.edu/homeimages/campus-map/CMU_MapColor_8x11.pdf

Hotel for grad students at QoLT partner institutions:

(Students or QoLT Partner representatives from schools other than Carnegie Mellon or the University of Pittsburgh must obtain permission from Shelly Brown to participate, and must pay for hotel fees from their own funds.)

Marriott SpringHill Suites at Bakery Square, 134 Bakery Square Boulevard · Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15206

There is a free shuttle from the hotel to the campus.