Patel College of Global Sustainability

It has been a great first week in Barbados. Along with research for case studies, meeting the staff members of the Caribbean Tourism Organization, interacting with local Barbadians, navigating the non-gridded streets, enjoying the cuisine, snorkeling, and taking pictures have all been the highlights of this week. Barbados offers so much in terms of beauty, friendliness, professionalism, and natural wonder. I’m looking forward to the coming weeks, for the research and work, and for the possibilities of unknowns becoming reality. Lastly, having a fellow PCGS’r here as an internship partner, Chris Cramer, has contributed to the already great experience and will undoubtedly provide for great times in the future. He took this picture of me while we were both free diving at one of the many shipwrecks Barbadian waters offer.

Just getting settled in here in Barbados.

We have a lot of research to do, but we gave ourselves a little bit of a head start, starting some of the work at home. We’re just about finished developing our survey to distribute to our contacts at our target destinations, and then it’s a whole lot more research while we’re waiting on those to come back.

We’re working in a really nice office, in what looks to be the tallest building on the island.

We’ve already been snorkeling and fishing and had a lot of great food.

Excited to spend 5 more weeks here and develop some great research.

Entrepreneur starting a Grassroots Farming Movement @ Parque Urraca, Panama City

In my time here in Panama I have had the opportunity to meet and read about many American entrepreneurs that have made the choice to seek new markets outside of the United States. With bubbles forming and popping at an ever increasing rate in American markets leading to recession and questions regarding regulations it is easy to question the entire system and realize that opportunities outside of the United States present a greater probability of success. Many of these markets, for example Panama, offer a blue ocean opportunity where no competition exists. Looking back at this time period, I believe statistics will show a pronounced exodus of entrepreneurs that have left the United States to create ventures abroad, it is key to note that the United States Census Bureau does not keep track of how many American Citizens are living abroad. I am amazed how many of these entrepreneurs use social media to connect and create a vibrant atmosphere to work with each other and have had the luck to be invited in to the “Tropical Cowboys” group on Facebook, which is a forum to sell, barter, ask questions, and overall gain important information quickly in Panama. Need a car, dentist, or any random thing ? You will get multiple answers in under 30 minutes.  It has developed into a network for entrepreneurs to help each other and create mutually beneficial value.

I have met many ex-pat entrepreneurs tackling many unique opportunities ans solving problems such as a retired tech entrepreneur turned furniture designer using the excess shipping pallets to create chairs, tables, artwork and much more.  In Panama pallets are made of high quality wood such as teak and other tropical hardwoods and discarded by the thousands. They can be obtained for free or as much as 2 dollars a pallet. He is currently in discussions to distribute to California and other markets. A Peace Corps volunteer that wound up in South America and struggled to learn Spanish who’s travels brought him to Panama where running out of money he decided to start a school to teach English, failed, and pivoted into a Spanish school that has become successful and employs many locals using a unique business plan. A coffee and bagel shop owner that was disillusioned with life in the United States and has created something that had not existed before in Panama, a coffee house with wifi and food where you can conduct business or work for a few hours. He has NO competition so far!

It is very easy to get caught up in the big dreams of what is possible in Panama, but quite often the simple low hanging fruit provides the best opportunity for success and can help the local community the best. My roommates and I often are shocked with the lack of good food down here as most of the restaurants we have been to have been utter disappointments with food poorly prepared or missing ingredients. McDonald’s and KFC dominate the landscape and it is common to see lines with 20+ people at all times here – and it is not “fast food” the line moves slow, then you wait for 10+ minutes for a simple burger, fries, and a drink. Many ex-pats are opening restaurants and a friend of Kalu Yala has actually had great success opening pizza parlors, currently operating 8 locations.

I am loving my time in Panama and working away on my paper non stop with research so it is nice to take a break and freestyle a blog on some current observations.

Until next time…

Brian Clair

Week 6- Internship Complete

With the last remaining days of my internship, I continued to focus on the report. Throughout this entire internship I have experienced more than I could have possibly asked for. In Europe, especially the areas I focused on, were infused with signs of sustainability on every corner. The transportation model is just one facet of how environmental considerations are at the forefront of European policy. While the European continent possesses plenty of space for expansion of population, their urban city lifestyle restricts the amount of space in cities. This actually has benefited them in the long run due to the short travel time, thus achieving sustainability unlike less spacious conscious environments (such as the U.S.) where cities and the suburbs often are great distances from each other. In European development, space is utilized to the highest level of efficiency and thus provides shorter transportation time. The trading of goods and free flow of human capital has also been very beneficial thanks to the European Union. As the EU continues to grow while recently gaining Croatia, the European continent will strengthen the relationship it has with neighboring countries, as well as tackling larger problems such as sustainability and job creation.

This week has been very exciting! In my internship, we began the packing process because we are finally moving into our brand new offices and giant warehouse. We are all looking forward to decorating and creating a fun environment. I am just sad I will not be there for long because I only have 2 weeks left. But I am excited to be working in the US as the main point of contact for Ettitude in the US and Canada. I am also excited to be starting training with the fulfillment companies software so I can manage the inventory in the US when it finally arrives to the US. I will keep you posted on the move and the expansion next week!

I have also finished my complete first draft of my paper and look forward to refining and editing it for the next month. I will be relieved when I can finally have it done and I can be assured that graduation is actually in my near future!

The final exciting thing for the week is that I went on a tour to a wildlife park where I got to meet koalas, wallabies, and kangaroos up close. I was also lucky to see tasmanian devils and dingoes. I was also fortunate enough to see seals in there natural environment on the coast of Australia. I also got to see the world’s smallest penguins emerge from the ocean at night after days of fishing at sea. They were adorable! Seeing these animals in the wild really ensured the necessity of sustainability not only for people, but also for all of the animals trying to survive in a world that we have overtaken.

I am excited that my trip is coming to an end, but there are so many things that I would still love to do an see while I am in Melbourne.

I will talk to you next week!

Electromobility-Bus System

Greetings from Goteborg, Sweden. This past week was spent intensely analyzing the collected information I gathered during my pre departure phase. Comparing sustainability measures with laws and regulations, testing its cohesion with accesibility. Electromobility is the foundation that Europe has created which has influenced not just their mobility, but all facets of life. Working meticulously on the final project, I am in the conclusion stage where I report my findings from field reports and research. A reoccuring finding is that technologies are constantly evolving into new, more sustainable, and financially responsible methods. In just a few years there will be new tunnels, with fans that accumulate the exhaust from vehicles, recycling it as a clean energy. The opportunities are limitless and it has been the opportunity of a lifetime to learn of these wonders. Pictures will be coming soon after I can overcome the technological difficulty. Regards,

Have been working on the STAR Community Index, a national monitoring and tracking system for communities. This was developed in conjunction with USGBC and is somewhat similar to LEED in that it is point based program with five possible ‘Star’ levels. It has seven categories that profile a city’s or county’s sustainability status such as, Built Environment, Natural Systems, Health & Safety, etc…all emanating from three pillars of economic, environmental and social equity.

Have gone through various phases of thought about it. At first excited, then overwhelmed by the mass of detail – it has about 300 individual data entry portals wherein one  must upload maps, documents and tables. Then underwhelm, wondering was it worth it. Excited again, as yesterday attended the Green Cabinet meeting, a sustainability leadership committee of all City Dept Directors and  headed by the City Administrator. Progress on STAR was presented and received an enthusiastic response from City Administrator. He wants DC to be the first city to receive a five star rating and made  this imperative clear to the Directors. the sense of competition will help as we have to call upon staff many times to supply us with their internal data for verification of programs and progress.

It has the same shortcomings as early LEED in that it is a bit of “sustainability by numbers”, but if effort is made in providing the best input it can provide an excellent baseline and tool with which to measure progress over time.

The program is in Pilot stage right now and the STAR staff is actively seeking feedback re: the parameters set and measures asked for. Like LEED it will evolve and become better with greater use.

We are somewhat over a third complete  and submission date is next March, but as most of the items require showing progress over time it will give more time to complete some achievement steps. The most important first step is identifying the point of contact persons in each department or outside agency that will have the needed information or know how we can get it. Certainly helps one learn the organizational logistics of a complex city government.

DC was also invited to be a member of an international sustainability organization of cities, called C 40. Although it is a relatively small city in population it GDP and international impact is such that it was invited to join in ‘megacity’ status.

Ann Pierce

My first week in Hamburg was filled with unexpected surprises. At every turn something new and exciting like the Stuhlmannbrunnen fountain above which I happened across while accidentally taking the wrong train station on an expedition to find where I would be working Monday morning. Similarly, I stumbled across an annual music festival in the heart of the Altona District of Hamburg while completely lost, it was great. Multiple stages, vendors selling art and random goods, and of course street food galore. Oh, the street food. First Bratwurst my trip, but certainly not the last. The German people definitely got food right. Hearty soups, fantastic breads. fine cheeses, and the best wursts around.

The first week at ZEBAU was pretty great as well. First off, the office itself is amazing, over 200 years old, looking onto the Elbe River and all of its activity.  The people in the office are equally as amazing, incredibly warm and inviting, even speaking English much of the time to make me feel included. The highlight of the first week, though, was definitely being given the opportunity to sit in on a conference room meeting between ZEBAU and FISH Germany where some very innovative ideas in the area of green building were discussed. Also, being able to see windmills generating electricity from my desk, I know I have come to the right place for my research!

-David Sweeney