Episode 22: Renewable Fuels Drive Education and an Artistic Revolution in Jackson County

Timm Muth, Director of the Jackson County Green Energy Park

Guests:

Timm Muth
Director, Jackson County Green Energy Park
Dillsboro, North Carolina

Host: Sarah Barr
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

In this episode, we’ll travel to rural Dillsboro, North Carolina nestled in the southern Appalachian Mountains, where a small county landfill and a passionate engineer are transforming the community’s perspective on waste. They’re using methane to power the Jackson County Green Energy Park, an arts facility offering glassblowing, metalworking, and ceramics classes and studio spaces. From reducing greenhouse gas emissions, to revitalizing heritage arts and stimulating tourism, to offering educational opportunities for children, college students, and even retirees, the Jackson County Green Energy Park is truly a centerpiece of its community. Join myself and guest Timm Muth this episode as we explore a variety of ways small communities and college campuses can make the most their waste resources, simultaneously achieving environmental, educational, and social equity goals.

Cole Johnson blowing glass.

Brock Martin metalworking.

Judy McManus glassblowing.

Resources:

• Timm Muth: tmuth@jacksonnc.org

• Jackson County Green Energy Park: https://www.jcgep.org/

• University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Biogas Systems: https://uwosh.edu/biogas/

• EPA’s Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP): https://www.epa.gov/lmop

Episode Transcript:

The following is an automated transcription of this episode which will include errors and omissions. You can listen and follow along with the text here:

https://otter.ai/s/lF5E6n6MRk660vqx4NPOWA

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Episode 22: Renewable Fuels Drive Education and an Artistic Revolution in Jackson County - Transcript

Episode 21: Institutionalizing Sustainability for Real Change - Live at CHESC 2019

(top) Jillian Buckholz, Mackenzie Crigger
(bottom) Nurit Katz, Joseph Fullerton

Guests:

Jillian Buckholz
Director of Sustainability
California State University — East Bay
Mackenzie Crigger
Energy Conservation and Sustainability Manager
Chapman University
Nurit Katz
Chief Sustainability Officer
University of California — Los Angeles
Joseph Fullerton
Energy and Sustainability Manager
San Mateo County Community College District

Host: Dave Karlsgodt
Principal, Fovea, LLC

Production Assistant: Kaia Findlay
Intern, Campus Energy and Sustainability Podcast

In this episode, you'll hear a live recording of a panel discussion at the California Higher Education Sustainability Conference, which took place earlier this summer at the University of California, Santa Barbara.  It was great to be back at this conference again. Regular listens may remember Episode 13 which we recorded at CHESC in 2018. While that episode focused on Aggressive Climate Action,  this year, we focused on the idea of institutionalizing sustainability. We tried to deconstruct some of the tactics, traits and tricks that our panelists, who are all rock star sustainability professionals, use to move beyond running pilot projects and underfunded awareness campaigns to leveraging the full power of the world-class institutions that they work within.

Resources:

• California Higher Education Sustainability Conference: https://chesc.org/

• Sustainability at CSU-East Bay: http://www.csueastbay.edu/sustainability/

• Sustainability at UCLA: https://www.sustain.ucla.edu/

• Sustainability at SMCCCD: https://sites.google.com/my.smccd.edu/smcccdsustainability/home

• Sustainability at Chapman University: https://www.chapman.edu/campus-services/sustainability/index.aspx

• Second Nature Climate Leadership Commitments (mentioned by Jillian Buckholz): https://secondnature.org/signatory-handbook/the-commitments/

Episode Transcript:

The following is an automated transcription of this episode which will include errors and omissions. You can listen and follow along with the text here:

https://otter.ai/s/y_3Mlsk3Shu_agxOooiEIg

You can find a text-only version of the transcript here:

Episode 21: Institutionalizing Sustainability for Real Change - Live at CHESC 2019 - Transcript