A Busy Time for Thumbprint Endeavors Team Members

This has been a very busy time for Thumbprint Endeavors Team Members.

Thumbprint Endeavors Associate, Barret Ramey, LEED AP recently attended the USGBC Conference in Denver on May 7^th and 8^th. In addition to attending several sessions on Green Building topics, Barret volunteered to help out with the conference. He is always more than willing to lend a hand and to meet new people. And that he did – Barret met numerous Green Building professionals, networking and continuing to expand his circle of contacts in the industry. Barret’s interests include a broad spectrum of Green Building aspects including energy and water conservation measures, more efficient building practices and sustainable design.

Linda has been busy as well. She attended a Green Building Professional Forum in Columbus, hosted by the Ohio EPA on April 30^th. In addition to touring the Grange Columbus Audubon Center, currently under construction on a former brownfields site on the Whittier Peninsula. Other tour stops include the Lazarus Government Center (LEED Silver) Green Roof in a renovated 1930’s department store and office building, the new 4-H center on the Ohio State University campus, and a LEED home pilot project near downtown Columbus. There was also a Round Table Discussion on “Overcoming Barriers to Green Building”, facilitated by Carolyn Watkins, Chief, Office of Environmental Education, Ohio EPA. Much wisdom was presented by: Elaine Barnes, Ohio School Facilities Commission; Jeff Bates, Columbus State Community College;

David Brehm, DesignGroup and Columbus Mayor’s Green Team; Paul Freedman, City of Columbus, Building Services & Code Development; Gail Hesse, Ohio EPA Division of Surface Water; Heather Starck, Grange Columbus Audubon Center; Meera Parthasarathy, Columbus Green Building Forum, Columbus Mayor’s Green Team; and Craig Weise, AIA, CCM, PMP State Architect of Ohio

Linda received a very positive and encouraging reception to her presentation of her recent research on the importance of connecting adult’s outdoor childhood experiences with the need to get today’s children out in to the natural world at the Environmental Education Council of Ohio Conference May 1 – 3, 2009.

And to connect our Dayton and Denver TE locations, Linda attended the talk by Justin Wilson, Building Performance Solutions, Inc., Boulder, CO. Justin presented at the Dayton Home Builders Association meeting on “Building Energy Efficient Homes Through Integration and Implementation” on May 7^th, 2009. It was very interesting to hear about projects in or near downtown Denver that are great examples of re-use of sites with existing “footprints” including the sustainable design of the site of a former airport that will be tied to all of the transportation and utilities, etc. of Denver.

So, the Thumbprint Endeavors Environmental Consulting Team continues to be actively involved and learning as well as educating others on Green Building and Sustainability.

We look forward to seeing you out there as well.

Teach Your Children Well, or . . . Children, Teach Your Parents Well?

One of the really fun things I did for Earth Day 2009 was to talk with several hundred 4th graders at Fairborn Intermediate School. We had a focus on learning about their backyard and their neighborhood, particularly parks in the Greater Dayton area. I choose this approach for my presentation because research shows that while children know about distance places like the Amazon Rainforest and the effects of the destruction of the rainforest, they know very little about the impact of development on the area where they live. Another example is that children know about the dire consequences of the melting sea ice for polar bears but they do not understand the myriad of species being lost in the Midwest because of habitat fragmentation.

So, in my Earth Day conversation with these (very well behaved) 4th graders, I wanted to talk with them about where they lived and what they could do to help the Earth. I asked them questions and they knew a lot – they identified several examples of Ohio wildlife including the state bird, the Cardinal. We talked about places like Five Rivers Metro Parks locations where they could hike or camp and explore the outdoors nearby. We also talked about a place in Ohio where they could also see more exotic wildlife, The Wilds. About 90 minutes east of Columbus, on nearly 10,000 acres of land reclaimed from a coal mining operation, The Wilds provides opportunities to see bison, giraffes, rhinos, zebras and a much more.

I had also asked the teachers at Fairborn Intermediate School to collect questions from the 4th graders so I could see what questions they had about topics related to Earth Day. These were some very smart and savvy students. There questions were very informed and I told them that – and I told them that I wished some adults were asking such good questions. They asked me about recycling, energy production, resource conservation, and what they could do – like I said, very smart and insightful 4th graders. We discussed not using the drive through, turning off the car and walking and riding bikes more, thinking about what you need versus what you are feeling like you need because of some advertising and more. Like I said, these were some smart kids, and only in the 4th grade! I truly enjoyed my visit and I believe that the students enjoyed and learned from the Power Point presentation I shared with them this week for Earth Day.

So, whether Cosby, Still, Nash and Young had the title of the song right or not – I am hoping these children can teach their parents well about reducing, reusing, recycling and rethinking our consumption of resources to live in more sustainable ways – for the future of all children and for all living beings, young and not so young.