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Hot, Flat and Crowded Goes to the Greenest Campus in the World

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The Conversation

There’s something special about the environment at the Ohlone College Newark Center for Health Sciences and Technology.

The chairs are more comfortable than any others you’ve been in.  And they swivel.  The tables swivel too and the lighting is so cheerful and natural you think you’re still outside.  You recognize immediately that this is a place that’s conducive to learning.  And it’s also a place where the word green takes on a vital new meaning.

As a testament to the campus’s environmentally conscious status, it has earned the first LEED Platinum Campus certification by the U.S. Building Council and is the first in the world to attain this greener than green certification.

That’s why the Newark branch of Ohlone seemed a perfect place to hold a Hot, Flat and Crowded discussion session.   And Dr. Leta Stagnaro, Associate Vice President of this offshoot of Ohlone and the person who helped create and bring this dream learning environment to life, is the perfect person to lead such a book talk.

She discussed the book with about 35 AAUW Fremont Branch members and guests on Thursday, January 27, 2011 in a light and airy room just off the campus high-ceilinged lobby.

AAUW Fremont Branch’s Margery Leonard kicked off the session giving the history of the One Book, One Community program.   Shirley Gilbert followed with an introduction of Dr. Stagnara outlining her three great passions in life:  her love of learning and teaching;  her dedication and integrity in creating green educational spaces;  and her love of sports.

The teacher in Dr. Stagnaro believes in interaction and passionate debate and walked around with a portable keyboard asking questions and listening attentively to the answers.

Dr. Stagnaro reread Hot, Flat and Crowded on her Kindle for this get-together.  She has been a fan of Friedman’s book for quite some time (although she doesn’t agree with all of it) and heard echoes of Friedman’s messages and imperatives in President Obama’s State of the Union speech.

The questions she used as a guide for the discussion came from the author’s web site and elicited some spirited responses.

Here are some of the audience’s perspective as well as some of Dr. Stagnaro’s ideas.

• She asked what the history of the energy crisis from Carter to Reagan taught us.  The answers ranged from the knowledge that we are at the mercy of the oil-producing companies who hold us hostage, to the acknowledgement that this is not just a domestic problem, but a global one that affects us all.  Another attendee felt the history showed us that nothing changes unless there is a serious crisis.

• What, Dr. Stagnaro asked, is needed to turn things around and make green the new red, white and blue?  It’s a change of thinking that will permeate our whole society, it’s 10,000 people working in their garages to find a new source of clean and cheap energy according to one AAUW member.

• Dr. Stagnaro talked about the solar panels on the roof of the college.   It was expensive to start with but has lowered the college’s energy bills dramatically. She shared that, surprisingly, solar technology was invented in the 1800s.  Solar, she said, will only become popular when the demand goes up and the price goes down. There are some hopeful signs, she added.  Several companies in Silicon Valley are leading the charge to solar:  Google and Adobe are two.

• To the quote in the book:  better to change your leaders than your light bulbs, Dr. Stagnaro believes that it’s important to change both your light bulbs and your leaders.  “We can all become leaders,” she said, “we can all make important changes in our lives and push for changes in the way we do things.”

• She asked the participants how they came to the Newark campus.  Almost all came alone in cars, a few came in hybrid cars, five people carpooled and two came via public transportation (two Ohlone students).

The Tour

After the book talk, Dr. Stagnaro took the attendees on a short tour of the campus.  We saw the solar panels.  We heard about the geo-thermal heating and the cooling coils buried under the earth around the campus.  Most amazing for the group was to learn that the insulation is made of recycled jeans and cotton.

We also saw the large enthalpy wheels that arrange for air transfer to condition the air in the buildings so that it remains crisp and clear.  The use of natural light brings down the energy costs while making the environment bright and inviting.  Some members used the treadmill in the hallway upstairs to power a computer.  With this innovation, the students get some exercise and work on their school assignments at the same time.

The nursing labs are set up like a hospital ward and have mannequins that replicate many human bodily functions like a heartbeat and blood pressure.

There’s extensive exercise equipment and classes; a garden where vegetables, plants and flowers are grown, and an extensive green campus with room for growth and extension.  The college is a treat for both the eyes and the soul.

Dr. Stagnaro has been involved in every step of creating this ideal learning environment for community college students.   She also led an inspiring and informative book talk that elicited the thanks of all the discussion session participants.

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