While some Stony Brook students were still sleeping and others were dragging their feet to an 8:20 a.m. class, SUNY Chancellor Nancy Zimpher was listening to the statements of concerned individuals at an open forum in the Student Activities Center, Thursday morning.
The open forum was part of the SUNY Strategic Planning Statewide Conversations, which have been ongoing at SUNY schools across the state since October. Stony Brook’s conversation focused on the theme of Energy and Sustainability.
Speakers were chosen prior to the forum’s start and had a mere three minutes to present their testimony to the panel, which included President Dr. Samuel L. Stanley Jr. and Zimpher.
Mary Pearl, dean of Stony Brook Southampton, a sister campus, which prides itself on being environmentally friendly and sustainable, stressed the importance of hands-on studies for students, as they are preparing them to create “green collar jobs.”
Malcolm Bowman, a member of the New York City Panel on Climate Change, reminded the audience of Stony Brook’s rich history when he mentioned how George Washington walked through the campus grounds. However, he did note that we have “obliterated this trail.”
Preservation of land was also a concern of Jeffrey Levinton, an ecology and evolution professor. According to Levinton, we have lost the majority of our woods, and to his dismay, there is no rule to stop this from occurring.
“Our responsibility is to produce knowledge… to be an example to the entire state,” Levinton said. “We are very far from these ideals. We must act soon and forcefully.”
But it was Patrick Looney, associate director for policy and strategic planning at Brookhaven National Laboratory, who was able to put all of the presenters’ concerns into perspective, when he asked the panel and audience one question:
“Does New York want to be an investor or consumer?”
The open forum was part of the SUNY Strategic Planning Statewide Conversations, which have been ongoing at SUNY schools across the state since October. Stony Brook’s conversation focused on the theme of Energy and Sustainability.
Speakers were chosen prior to the forum’s start and had a mere three minutes to present their testimony to the panel, which included President Samuel Stanley and Zimpher.
Mary Pearl, dean of Stony Brook Southampton, the sister campus which prides itself on being environmentally friendly and sustainable, stressed the importance of hands on studies for students, as they are preparing them to create “green collar jobs.”
Malcolm Bowman, a member of the New York City Panel on Climate Change, reminded the audience of Stony Brook’s rich history when he mentioned how George Washington walked through the campus grounds. However, he did note that we have “obliterated this trail.”
Preservation of land was also a concern of Jeffery Levinton, an ecology and evolution professor. According to Levintson, we have lost the majority of our woods, and to his dismay, there is no rule to stop this from occurring.
“Our responsibility is to produce knowledge… to be an example to the entire state,” Levinton said. “We are very far from these ideals. We must act soon and forcefully.”
But it was Patrick Looney, associate director for policy and strategic planning at Brookhaven National Laboratory, who was able to put all of the presenter’s concerns into perspective, when he asked the panel and audience one question:
“Does New York want to be an investor or consumer?”
