Aquinas College has developed a new Master of Sustainable Business (MSB) degree – the first program of its kind to be offered in the upper Midwest that will build upon the undergraduate sustainable business program already offered by the liberal arts college.

“With the launch of this new program, prospective students and employers will become natural-system thinkers who can respond and influence change in local and global conditions, positively affecting people, profit and the planet,” said Matthew Tueth, Ph.D., Steelcase Professor of Sustainable Business and chairman of the Sustainable Business Department. “We recognize the strategic benefit that sustainable business delivers to commerce inside our communities and we’re pleased to offer an even deeper educational opportunity in the sustainable business movement.”

Aquinas College, already a leader in sustainable business (SB) education, has built the new graduate program upon the regional and national success of its undergraduate program in sustainable business. The MSB degree will be comprised of six conventional business courses, currently offered in the College’s Master of Management program, along with six sustainable business courses. Graduate students in the MSB program will complete 12 courses (36 credit hours) over a typical 18-24 month period. Courses in the MSB program will be offered in eight-week segments, beginning this fall.

For graduates of the Master of Management (MM) program, the College is currently reviewing which credits will be applicable to meeting requirements for the Master of Sustainable Business degree.

“A Master of Sustainable Business degree will allow students and employers to benefit by obtaining skills, knowledge and the understanding needed to not only restore environmental integrity and build healthy communities, but also maximize profitability within the work sector,” said Deborah M. Steketee, Ph.D., associate professor of sustainable business and executive director for the Center for Sustainability at Aquinas.

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The network was formed after an analysis uncovered 800 West Michigan companies that had potential to manufacture wind energy components. The WMWMN will no doubt aim to network companies working the wind energy sector who might not otherwise know each other existed.

Because of the regions expansive manufacturing expertise and the thousands of parts in just one wind turbine, West Michigan can enter the market quickly; building off existing capabilities. The region also has another advantage, experience with integrated systems.  This gives the turbine OEMs the opportunity to consolidate their supply chain by purchasing from as few vendors as possible; a process the manufacturers are accustomed to from the automotive and office furniture industries.

Though the wind energy industry shows great promise, the current demand may not be as impressive as one may think. Policies, government actions and incentives have given the industry some wind behind its sail; but the potential for the industry is considerably lower then estimates so far. As demand in America increases it only makes sense that the components, with their shear size and shipping cost, come from local facilities.

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The next site takes it a step further by using solar imaging and existing satellite images to design solar panelling. Sungevity.com uses a similar process as described above, but after finding your location, using Bing instead, you request an iQuote taking care of the complete design and costs online. Meaning they can cut out visits to your home for measurements and such; which should speed up process, saving customers (and the company) time and money, and also reducing carbon emissions. Cool. They’re currently not servicing my area, but assure they’re quickly expanding.

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Nine Banded Armadillo

Texas is a land of cattle, horses and armadillos. The armadillo is a fascinating creature to visitors from the north. They first foraged into Texas across the Rio Grande from Mexico in the 1800’s. Armadillo is Spanish for “Little Armored One”. There are 20 species of armadillos which are distinguished by the number of bands on their armor. They range from the 5 foot Giant Armadillo to the Pink Fairy Armadillo of 5 inches. All species are native to the Americas. In the U.S. the sole resident is the Nine-banded Armadillo.

Armadillos are prolific diggers and build burrows near creeks and streams feeding on ants and grubs. The Nine-banded Armadillo tends to jump straight up in the air when frightened and consequently collides with the undercarriage or fenders of passing cars, unfortunately the reason you see so many fur-belly side up beside the road.

Southwestern Decor

They first came into Texas crossing the Rio Grande River from Mexico in the 1800’s. Interestingly enough they have the ability to remain underwater up to 6 minutes and inflate their stomach with air to float and swim. The Nine-banded Armadillo also serves science through its unusual mammal reproductive system in which genetically identical quadruplets are born in every liter. During the great depression the species was actually hunted for it’s meat in East Texas where it was known as “Hoovers Hog’.

Cowboy's Limo

There are interesting energy solutions across Texas including everything from old windmills pumping water to livestock in vast desolate acreages, to big oil wells drilling the liquid gold, to wind turbines converting the kinetic energy of the wind into mechanical energy which is then converted to electricity.

Turbines used in wind farms are usually a three bladed tapered airfoil shape and pointed into the wind by computer controlled motors. The blades rotate 10-22 rpms and range in length from 65-130 feet and the steel towers range from 200-300 feet tall – making for an awesome sight across the landscape. All turbines are equipped with shut down features to avoid damage at high wind speeds.

Wind Turbine Power in Texas

Saturday May 9th the Windpower 2009 conference was held at McCormick Place, Chicago. It was reported that the 2008 wind energy production was at 25,170MW installed, putting the U.S. as #1 in the world ahead of Germany. Texas with 7116MW accounts for ¼ of that and Iowa second with 2790MW. The wind industry employs 85,000 people in the U.S. The Obama administration wants the U.S. to be producing 20% of it’s electricity from wind by 2030. Amazingly we are on track to do it.

Closer to home, Mas Tech, a small factory in Manistee, is churning out wind turbines helping usher in a new greener era for Michigan manufacturing. According to Next Energy, a renewable energy group in Detroit, “Some 400 other Michigan manufacturers have the capabilities to craft gear boxes, brakes, generators and other parts for utility size wind turbines with the structures selling for two million dollars a piece.” One federal report identifies Michigan as one of the four states that could create up to 30,000 new jobs from wind energy.

Home of the 72oz

Back in Texas, the state is also known for its great steak houses. A popular spot on the trail is the Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo. Their claim to fame is the Free 72 oz. steak dinner… if you can eat it all in 1 hour. They say many have tried and many have failed, but reports over 8,000 hearty diners have done it including a 68 year old woman. I think we’ll have to pass, but you never know… maybe next year.

View all Bio-Kleen’s Photos from Albuquerque to Dallas

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Randy East has already built his retirement home with all the green planning ahead of time. The 240-square-foot home is currently setting behind his 1,600-square-foot home in the backyard, patiently awaiting it’s turn. He plans on selling his current home and moving the retirement home when the time comes.

East spent only about $8,000 building the energy efficient home. It uses a wood stove for heat, estimated to heat the home for a year with only one cord of wood, and is solar powered. He has had to make some compromises to run on such a budget. He installed a 10″ LCD TV that draws only 1 amp and fitted the home with LED light bulbs; allowing him to wire the structure for 12 volts. The home’s facilities may be a little different then the norm as well. East installed a composting toilet, rated for 2-3 users, which only requires to be emptied three times a year.

We think Randy is ahead of his time and can see more retirees shifting towards a completely sustainable lifestyle. Not only can you feel good about living a green lifestyle, but you can feel good about spending more time, and more green, on the things that really matter in the golden years.

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