As a writing tutor, I tried to be as honest and straightforward about my assessments of student writing as I could while supporting the art and act of writing and helping writers to see where they had room to improve.  This made me a very polar writing tutor: people either loved sessions with me or they hated it and never returned.  If I got lucky, students who hated it realized that they needed the level of candid feedback that I provided and returned for more sessions with different pieces of work.  If I got extremely lucky, the writers that I absolutely reveled in working with returned time and time again.  That is not to say that I did not enjoy each and every single session I had (there were bad ones, but 90% of them were enjoyable).  But the quality of the writing and the talent of the writer allowed me to engage on a much deeper philosophical level with several students over time, getting past mechanics into more complicated issues like flow, thesis development, voice, and assertiveness.

I have not offered to read many of my classmate’s papers in the MSIM program, partly because it was no longer my job, but partly because my group work and the quality of the writing that resulted from that work discouraged me.  It is not that I am dealing with more English as a World Language speakers (some of whom have a better grasp of the mechanics of English composition than I do!), but that I am left unimpressed by the devotion to the art.  I recognize in many of my classmates the same tendencies that I wrestled with as a writing tutor: an aversion to the skill of written communication in general, a lack of interest in complete development of ideas, and no realization of the power that the written word holds.  Again, I do not imply that these are bad writers — there is no such thing - underdeveloped, perhaps, where skill can be improved, but never bad — only that they seem detached.

The problem is this: the MSIM program is a professional program, and a core competency for professionals is to be able to write.  By this, I do not mean the ability to string words together to make a coherent sentence - it is a much higher level than that.  It is the ability to use words to convince, to argue, to assert, to discuss, and to realize.  I do not demand that they enjoy the act, that they pine for the days when they can pick up the pen or sit down at the keyboard and write.  I do not even demand that they do so frequently (the program does, but I don’t).  Instead, I demand that they respect the process and that they devote themselves to nothing less than the best they can achieve.  Half-hearted is not sufficient.  I prefer no complaints, but I will tolerate those within reason, for not everyone is as interested in writing as I am.  If I am to hear whining the entire quarter about how we have to write a paper, I am unlikely to be interested in working with that individual again, for such reactions are uninspiring and indicative of more than they might think.

This is not a complaint post - far from it.  I am not bemoaning my peers, nor am I taking any stance in particular as to the technical quality of their work.  I have merely realized that my skills in writing have influenced my perception of my peers.  I have also realized that perhaps I have failed at something small but nonetheless significant: it was not simply my job to promote the art and act of writing as a writing tutor, but to carry this effort on.  I owe this in part to Kevin Desouza, associate professor at the Information School, who tirelessly offers on a weekly basis to both his Change Management and Finance classes to read any writing sent his way so long as it is mechanically correct.  His devotion to his students and to supporting them is above and beyond some of the other classes I have taken here.  This is neither good nor bad from a program perspective, but from the perspective of a tutor who has, perhaps, let the art slip, is inspiring nonetheless.

The letter below was originally written as a reflection paper for Kevin Desouza’s class, IMT 583 - Finance & Accounting Foundations for Information Professionals.

Mr. Eyman:

It seems, that in this economic climate where people are trying to make life easier for themselves, you are intent upon bringing up initiatives that will only waste our money and time. In fact, your abuse of Washington’s initiative system has been so flagrant that you have been mocked by an initiative that attempted to name you a horse’s ass^[3]. Fortunately for you – unfortunately for the citizens of Washington – the Courts struck Initiative 831 down as a mockery of the initiative system^[5]. Now we find you at it again with Initiative 985, which has been soundly discounted by none less than the federal government as potentially endangering Washington’s transportation infrastructure, despite your attempts to prove otherwise^[1].

So here is my proposal: since you seem so gung-ho about utilizing the initiative system to make the lives of Washington State citizens better (nevermind that you often miss your target and go straight to making it a living hell): why not create an initiative to abolish Washington State’s observation of Daylight Savings Time?

No, bear with me now – this is no better or worse an initiative than you could have dreamed up yourself. Arizona and Hawaii already buck the trend of daylight savings (so much so that Arizona becomes its own time zone when the rest of the country switches to Daylight Savings). Back in 2007, when the United States extended Daylight Savings so that it ended later, the National Geographic had this to say:

A study released last year by the U.S. Department of Energy estimates that the change will save less than 1 percent of the country’s annual energy consumption.

Bob Aldrich of the California Energy Commission told National Public Radio that energy needs in the U.S. have changed a lot since the 1970s, when the data supporting the current bill was collected.

"We’ve become much more electronically configured, if you will," he told NPR. In addition to lights, people plug in more computers, televisions, satellite dishes, and other power-hungry electronics than they did 30 years ago^[2].

Yup, that’s right – we based the choice, in part, on data from the 1970s! Keep in mind, Daylight Savings Time was a way of helping to standardize railroad schedules, and no federal mandate exists that requires states to observe it^[6]. Let’s examine this from a financial perspective, since your initiatives are all about saving citizens money.

Consider for a moment that Washington is widely regarded as an economic gateway to Asian countries. Thus, much of our economy depends on our economic relationships with them. Later in Handwerk’s article, he cites Anthony Concil of the International Air Transport Association:

"When Europe and the U.S. are on different times, connections become less convenient. Right now there is one week of discord between the U.S. and Europe, so it’s sort of at a manageable level," Concil said.

He argued that if the energy bill passed, every year "you might have a monthlong period where you have lousy connections, so from a traveler’s perspective it’s not going to be particularly good."

Airlines may ultimately feel the change where it hurts the most—on the bottom line.

"It’s going to be expensive for airlines," Concil added. "Particularly for U.S. carriers—and they are in a difficult climate right now—it’s a major issue, as well as for carriers traveling to and from the U.S."

In 2006, the State of Indiana required all of its counties to begin observing Daylight Savings Time consistently – previously, it was left up to the counties to determine whether or not to observe Daylight Savings. Researchers from the National Bureau of Economic Research took advantage of this law to study energy consumption changes in the state. In the abstract of their report, they state:

Our main finding is that—contrary to the policy’s intent—DST increases residential electricity demand. Estimates of the overall increase are approximately 1 percent, but we find that the effect is not constant throughout the DST period. DST causes the greatest increase in electricity consumption in the fall, when estimates range between 2 and 4 percent. These findings are consistent with simulation results that point to a tradeoff between reducing demand for lighting and increasing demand for heating and cooling. We estimate a cost of increased electricity bills to Indiana households of $9 million per year. We also estimate social costs of increased pollution emissions that range from $1.7 to $5.5 million per year. Finally, we argue that the effect is likely to be even stronger in other regions of the United States^[4].

An abolishment of Daylight Savings would likely have drastic impacts on our energy usage and consumption in the residential sector. Pairing an abolishment of Daylight Savings with a significant push for energy conservation and for companies to manufacture highly energy-efficient products could only help the state.

So, Mr. Eyman, I implore you – prepare our state for the future once again and throw your weight behind creating this initiative. Like many other initiatives that you have fathered, you can expect a good deal of healthy debate of the pros and cons of such an initiative; unlike your other initiatives, however, no matter what the result, you will have encouraged the citizens of our state to think seriously about energy conservation and use, as well as the practicality of observing an outmoded tool used for synchronizing train schedules.

With warmest regards,

Peter Ellis

Works Cited

1. Broom, J. (2008, October 25). "Federal transportation officials say Eyman’s initiative could be costly to state". The Seattle Times. Retrieved online November 2, 2008 from http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008309267_fedshov25m.html.
2. Handwerk, B. (2007, March 9). "Daylight Saving Change: Energy Boon or Waste of Time?". National Geographic. Retrieved online November 2, 2008 from http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/03/070309-daylight-saving.html.
3. Initiative 831. Retrieved online November 2, 2008 from http://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/billdocs/2003-04/Htm/Initiatives/Initiative%20To%20The%20People/INITIATIVE%20831.htm.
4. Kotchen, M. J. and Grant, L. E. (2008, October). Does Daylight Saving Time Save Energy? Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Indiana. Cambridge: National Bureau of Economic Research. Retrieved online November 2, 2008 from http://www.nber.org.offcampus.lib.washington.edu/papers/w14429.pdf.
5. Modie, N. (2003, March 15). "A bum rap? Eyman initiative is ruled out". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved online November 2, 2008 from http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/112731_initiative15.shtml.
6. Vernon, J. (2008, October 31). "Daylight Saving Time History in the U.S.". National Geographic. Retrieved online November 2, 2008 from http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/10/081031-daylight-saving-time-history-facts.html.

Orientation Notes

• Infocamp: Power to the people.  Enable the user to use technology (but what’s technology?)
• Disciplines represented: IA, Libraries, HCI, usability, user centered design, technical communication.
• 2 days, 45 minute presentations - we can react to stuff happening NOW (WaMu)

Keynote - Jacob Wobbrock

• Degree in HCI
• dub: University of Washington HCI/design group, stands for “design, use, build” - combines computer sciences, info school, technical communications, school of arts
• Disability: contrast w/ ability.  Contrast standard parking handicapped sign with other graphics
• Accessibility: not just for people in wheelchairs, curb cuts: bikers and strollers assist as well.  Curb cuts if built from the beginning save money.  Anticipating accessibility saves money in the long run.
• Person pushing cart through sliding doors: situationally impaired
• accessible design: talking about everyone, in different circumstances (situational components)
• accessibility is usability for all.  It’s not about disability, it’s about what you can do.
• We have a standard interface for computing that presents challenges to someone with non-standard abilities - we usually adapt the user to the technology, creating specialized technologies.  The assistive technology is a mediator.  But why?  Why not design smarter or adapt existing everyday input devices?
• EdgeWrite: creates a limited input area to assist with drawing letters
• Can leverage the properties of edges for more than just text entry - playing with using different input methods along edges of mobile devices, trying to aim for a specific spot in a screen
• Isn’t the stylus dead due to multitouch?  Weellllll….
• Reading screen with finger is much different than actually using a screen reader
• “Why can’t my computer just do the right thing when I type?” - person with peripheral neuropathy
• Demo TrueKeys: live spell checking as typing occurs.  Challenge: How do you allow someone to not have to verify that a corrected word was done properly?  Is there a way that you can always correct a miscorrected word without feeling pressured?
• Let’s burden the machine: SUPPLE++ - can we automatically generate UI customized to a person’s individual abilities?  Yup.  Issue low-level tasks, model it, then generate an interface that minimize cost and user errors.
• Forgotten input device: the microphone!  It can be used in creative ways.  Person painted with his voice using Dragon NaturallySpeaking and MS Paint!
• Vocal Joystick - voice/vowel map so that vowel sounds force cursor to move in a specific direction.  Can map pitch or loudness.
• Angular deviation for cursors: create larger or smaller targets for clicking as people use the computer.
• Why don’t we see targets that expand as we approach them, gravity wells, “slippery slope” guidance to common targets?
• “The world is a button” - Jake Wobbrock
• “What if the world was a switch?”  Buttons we need to acquire a confined area - switches, not so much - we can overshoot a switch, it doesn’t change the interaction so long as the interaction crosses the plane of the switch.  The world we’ve created is all totally fake when it comes to technology.
• Can we get rid of pointing and use something called “goal crossing”?
• Why do we have to assume desktops are x/y grids?  What about polar coordinates or reels?
• Start from center, when crossing an icon, bring up specific interactions
• “Flipping the burden”/ability-based design - allow software to adapt to people’s ability.  Think about accessibility as a potentially better design for everyone.
• Challenge: it takes a company with developers and infrastructure to really push stuff out!

Session 1: Help Me Turn Data into a New Design (Kristen) - Room 106

• Wanted to learn what problems people were trying to solve using library web site and tried to figure out how to find that out
• Used chat with a librarian feature transcript to get feedback on current layout
• Generated lists of tasks performed and problems people encountered (tasks: locate something vs. searching for something, access a specific database, search for specific piece of information, etc.; problems: people can’t find information, people don’t know what they want, did not understand a policy or service, library doesn’t own resource, etc.)
• Possibilities: tweak search results and training curricula for searching databases, federated search, map out “task paths” for the most common ways of doing certain tasks, overview of resources available, come up with vocabulary based on chat transcripts, make the main page more visual - MORE WHITESPACE!  If people are stuck, give them an “out” - a way to get help.  Create profiles of users so that professors can “target” content to users that they want to see used.

Session 2: Knowledge Management (Room 102)

Topics:

• Research (gleaning new ideas)
• tacit KM - preserving knowledge in the workplace
• expertise location
• knowledge sharing
• knowledge boundaries
• information verification and security
• capture verification
• value page
• Jeff Smith: How track experts and make findable, not just a tool?  How expose what you don’t know that you wish you knew?
• defining wwdk
• data visualization
• personalization - tailoring how people receive or record knowledge

Notes:

• some of the items in the list above could be treated as inputs into the knowledge management process - information verification, security
• what is a knowledge management system?  It may not be a system at all…
• What is a knowledge management system, really? It may not even be a “system” per se - it may be an interaction between elements.
• In fact, knowledge management isn’t systematic - capturing it is, but knowledge management is CULTURAL.
• KMS are now just generic systems trying to model particular things.
• explicit knowledge: universal, tacit knowledge: something that’s inside, can’t be vocalized/translated
• sometimes we need to be able to push knowledge into the background, but it still needs to be accessible and actionable
• KMS: what these systems try to achieve can be done much more efficiently by changing the culture to allow a daily interchange of information
• Knowledge needs context
• “Modern Society is Document Decadent”
• knowledge management talked about in the context of organizational goals
  
• Knowledge Management Maturity Model: http://www.kmmm.org/model.html
• what is the difference between information and knowledge, or do we actually even care?

Session 3: Flat File vs. CMS (Room 106)

• wants something simple and easy to maintain
• plone - cms, has problems with web host providing it
• task: figure out whether to stay with flat files or to move into cms
• what’s the difference between the two methods?
• theory: a lot of people want to be able to create and maintain content - what to do with volunteers?
• “flat”: one HTML page per site
• CMS: more refined management structure
• 10-12 pages
• sections of site may be more dynamic
• 2-3 days reasonable turnaround time on changes
• 3-4 people updating
• consider using templates

Another simplified CMS/Flat file:

• time consuming to maintain and update
• 12 pages not dynamic
• 3-4 people updating
• jobs - HTML templates
• knowledge of HTML
• Seamonkey - HTML Mozilla editor
• richer experience = more admin time
• social media
• users are STC, other orgs
• share resources
• timely info and info update problem - users news and events and jobs
• updates w/o CMS

CMS:

• WYSIWYG editor
• easy to change
• anyone can do updates
• events: time/place fields
• content control and security control
• set permissions correctly
• CMS outlive person or person outlive CMS?
• Instructional overhead/longer learning curve
• CMS doesn’t necessarily imply web 2.0
• content and system lives on
• organizational commitment
• institutional memory/institutional history of docs
• distributed users***
• resource limitations: time, $

Cross-boundary considerations:

• Google Analytics
• Culture of content sharing
• Overall vision
• users have certain expectations
• Free stuff? Open source?
• Do I need this NOW or forever?

Session 4: Structured vs. Unstructured Data (Room 102)

• Goal of product: search through metadata, find metadata in certain systems and create different views of the information out of the system
• Created series of products that allows metadata findability, but doesn’t work for unstructured information
• Structured v. unstructured information definition: structured: database has fields and tables and schemas, the Sematic Web, etc.; unstructured: info that you don’t have access to or that isn’t ordered - photos, video, etc.
• http://www.sapdesignguild.org/editions/edition2/sui_content.asp
• Types of unstructured data: photographs (inc. print), sound files, text, user input, files, logs, video, animation
• Structure has to have meaning to someone; something can be very well structured, but if you can’t make sense of it, it’s useless.  You need to be able to UNDERSTAND information.
• Context makes a big difference on how information ends up being structured.
• Transforming physical unstructured data: requires physical interaction with objects to add structure on top of the physical data
• virtually all user input is unstructured unless you can limit inputs

Well, it’s official (at least on the iSchool side) - I’m doing my internship with the Washington State Department of Information Services over the summer, starting June 30th. That’s four credits of registration, with an additional three credits devoted to this summer’s Information Architecture Summer Institute, June 23rd to 27th:

The institute is intended for professionals working in situations requiring a solid knowledge of the foundational structures and techniques used in information architecture, in corporate, educational, government or nonprofit organizations. The workshop will provide theoretical and practical knowledge that can be used by project managers, taxonomists, Web designers and anyone who needs to successfully design large information structures to meet user needs and business requirements.

I’m mostly just waiting on DIS to send me the official offer of employment and starting to consider places to live.  I still have connections in Oly, so I’ll probably start contacting them soon.

I went down to Olympia yesterday to interview for an internship with the Washington State Department of Information Services. This position would essentially be working with DIS to help them roll out services from their development to production environments; most notably, this would involve work with SharePoint and allow me to have fairly decent exposure to a lot of different projects across state agencies. I wouldn’t be dealing with “end users” per se - at least not in the traditional sense of “non-technical everyday people”. The work would support system administrators and developers in their efforts to use the offerings put forth by DIS.

The interview went about as perfectly as I could hope - after getting signed into the building and getting a visitor badge, I was shown upstairs and talked with the group about my previous experience in SharePoint and answered a few questions about what I thought the internship might entail. As it turns out, one of the people I would be working with in that position was actually an MSIM student in the past, so there was also a smaller conversation about the program itself. The next step is figuring out who I would report to, since there’s some deliberation as to who would be most effective. After the interview, I was given a brief walkaround to meet a couple of other individuals in the office.

On this one, I’m optimistic.

There is, however, still my original discussion with the Washington State Department of Ecology, which has turned into something of a hassle. While Ecology’s project is fascinating - involving working directly with the state’s sustainability initiatives - there are a couple major problems that are causing red flags to pop up in my head left and right:

1. Communication. I get very random e-mails from Ecology, and not just from a single person - from multiple people, and it’s often fairly clear that they’re not talking to each other internally at all. While I was very comfortably dealing with multiple people at DIS, I have always had a primary contact at each step of the way, which moved from their HR department to a high-level supervisor to a supervisor closer to the work that I would actually be doing. I know at this moment exactly who to talk to and who to work with within DIS to make an internship happen. With Ecology, I have no idea who’s in charge of coordination or who I’d be reporting to. On top of that, they can’t seem to figure out the difference between a capstone project and an internship.
2. Vetting. Whereas DIS put me through a state application process, the usual requests for references, and an in-person interview, Ecology has done nothing of the sort (and in fact, unless I’ve been misreading the last couple e-mails, seem to be assuming that they’ve already brought me on as an intern!). As important as the vetting process is for an employer, it’s actually almost as important for an employee - it tells me that DIS is taking this seriously and putting me through a standard process for hiring. Ecology hasn’t even so much as requested a resume, to my current recollection.

In short, regardless of what happens with DIS, I’m likely to withdraw my interest in an internship with Ecology - it doesn’t matter how great the project is if the planning process itself isn’t executed well, and at this point, it doesn’t feel well-executed in the least. I’ve had a couple e-mail conversations with people within the MSIM program who have both recommended talking to Ecology either over the phone or in person, but with the DIS interview having gone well (and, quite frankly, sounding like it’ll offer many more opportunities to get involved in different areas), I’m not sure it’s worth the effort.

I’ve now registered for Spring, which makes my Thursdays really freaking long, but that’s alright. The lineup is as follows, for 13 credits total. Descriptions are taken from the UW Course Catalog:

• IMT 520A: Information Services and Resources (Metoyer, 4 credits)
  Description: Concepts, processes, and skills of information involving creation, production, distribution, selection, collection, and services to facilitate access. Analysis of the information mediation process, including determining information needs; searching for, evaluation and presentation of appropriate results; and modalities for delivery of services.
• IMT 541A: Principles of Database & Semi-Structured Data Systems (Boiko, 5 credits)
  Description: Introduction of database management systems for teh storage and access of structured and semi-structured information. Examines the relational model, Structured Query Language (SQL), Entity-Relationship modeling, database design methodology ) conceptual, logical, and physical design), and Extensible Markup Language (XML) for storage, retrieval, and interchange. Prerequisite: IMT 540.
• IMT 582A: Strategic Planning and Evaluation (Coker, 4 credits)
  Description: Studies and applies strategic information initiatives within an organization, including: readiness assessment, organizational mandates, information inventories, content management, information audits, and information architecture initiatives. Focuses on building business cases for and leading information initiatives in organizations.

It should be an interesting quarter, since I’m not sure at this point how these will end up connecting together (which is something that isn’t always obvious - another post on that later, more than likely).

Hmm, if it weren’t in the middle of the second or third week of Spring, this would be freaking awesome. Registration would be fairly cheap, since I happen to have recently become a student member of The Information Architecture Institute.

The iSchool held a panel of practitioners in the field of Information Architecture as part of iCareer Week at the beginning of the quarter. These are my notes from that panel (interpreted without quite as much of the fresh context in my head as I usually like, I must admit).

• Recommended courses: 530/540 (taxonomy/technology); project management; research methods and analytical skills; coollaboration/teamwork; 580s; User Centered Design (UW Extension/UW Educational Outreach)
• When in class, always ask the question: “What’s the point of this?’ Also ask, “How can I communicate the value of this to someone not familiar with the concept?”
• What kind of information architect do you want to be?
• “What other value can I add to the degree?” (ask this)
• Mike Crandall: What functional subspecialties are there in IA? What is IA?
  • metadata, user experience, user research, usability, analytics, wireframes, data modeling, interface/interaction design, evaluation
  • Major groupings within IA: taxonomy, HCI, design (visual and interaction)
  • There are also “innies” vs. “outies”: internal and external consultancies in IA. The contrast here is one of a mother who takes care of the kids and an ER doc who does triage. This is the contrast between a consultant for a company and a consultant for an agency.
  • If you want to get into programming as part of the MSIM degree, go for concepts, not languages
  • It’s difficult to be a developer and an information architect.
  • It’s important to be able to talk to people who understand how the system is built - hence why programming can be important.
• Mike Crandall: What kinds of tools do you use?
  • Outlook/Excel/Office, mind mapping software, Illustrator (some), InDesign, workflows
  • “We’re consultants first” - need to be able to advertise and deliver IA. How to express that? “Deliverables, wireframes…”
  • “Tools were not a big concern [in work] - I had the underpinnings.”
• Mike Crandall: Looking for a job - what did you do in your job search? How did you find IA-related jobs?
  • Join a professional organization related to IA and stay informed
  • Look for a job using your own personal network - go through the people you know
  • Make your own projects while you don’t have a job and build it. Create your own portfolio.
  • Get into a company that needs what you want to do and do it (note that this may not match your “official” job title!)
  • Brush up on resumes and cover letters
• Audience question: how do you present stuff that’s not really done?
  • Get to the level of “I feel good about this piece of work” and give the context of the assignment
  • Depends on the type of IA you want to do
  • You’re attempting, in your portfolio, to show how you synthesize a large amount of work
  • Mike Crandall: process is the important thing: you sell the process, not the work.
  • Don’t be afraid to say you don’t do something because it isn’t your strength!
• Mike Crandall: What is your next career step?
  • CEO! Getting more of the science behind the ideas, getting more in front of clients, practicing current work, “getting good”, balance design with working with people, create a collaborative process, start their own company, become web director, learn business skills, learn team management, work on motivation (self and others), get more management/oversight experience, work on client/account management
• Audience question: What do you hate?
  • Being rushed, repetition, wireframes (sort of)
• wireframes are breaking down - high level of interaction
• Special Interest Group lists are valuable
• Audience question: when did you finally feel confident?
  • When working with first client
  • Focus on the user is your selling point
  • Fake it - say stuff with confidence, even if you have no clue what you’re doing
  • Know how to figure things out

information professional: someone who has the ability to make decisions with regards to information.

– Joseph Tennis, IMT530, January 31, 2008

Even though this is posted on my internal wiki, I figured I’d post it here for posterity.

This document outlines my personal career goals as they currently stand, as well as related academic goals that inform these goals.

General Goals

1. Apply my personal mantra, “everything is interconnected”, to information management and sustainability and understand how these fields infiltrate and influence everyday decisions.
2. Work in a collaborative rather than an isolated environment.
3. When possible, incite change. When impossible, make possible.

Academic Goals

1. Serve as teaching assistant for an undergraduate course.
2. Assist in the learning process of my fellow students; learning is not competition.

Topic-Specific Goals: Information Management

1. Understand how information is ethically and professionally handled and embody these standards in my own work.
2. Understand the paradigms behind information organization.
3. Actively consider issues of information fragmentation, information overload, and information sustainability.
4. Place human use of information first.
5. Promote information accessibility.
6. Participate in relevant national professional associations.

Topic-Specific Goals: Environmental Sustainability

1. Significantly contribute to thinking and dialog about environmental sustainability and environmental policy.
2. Understand the relationship between information and sustainable action.
3. Promote corporate and public environmental stewardship.
4. Recognize that sustainability is not achieved in a void. Promote cross-political and interdisciplinary sustainable initiatives.

   “I never saw a Democratic mountain or a Republican glacier.” - Daniel J. Evans

5. Influence organizational thinking and action around sustainable ideals.