Student Project: Open Passive House

by Katherine Gloede Silverman

The True Cost of Passive House: Making a business case for multifamily affordable Passive House Objective:  There exists a highly compelling case for promoting Passive House building standards for the affordable multifamily sector in New York City. In addition to deep energy and carbon reductions that align with the goals of New York City’s Climate Mobilization Act, increased occupant comfort and climate resiliency will greatly benefit some of New York City’s most vulnerable populations. There is great interest in Passive House on both the supply side (designers and developers) and the demand side (customers, HPD), but there is a lack …

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Alumni Profile: Ben Leer, Class of 2015

by Katherine Gloede Silverman

My name is Ben Leer, I am a sustainability consultant, designer, builder and educator. I currently teach in the Building Science department at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and am a NAPHN trainer for the international Passive House Tradesperson Certification. My path has been unconventional and at times challenging, but my various experiences have given me a broad perspective on what it means to create a sustainable future.   As an undergrad at Hunter College I studied environmental science. This is where I was first introduced to the many problems that plague our planet. Armed with the scientific knowledge that things had …

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Faculty Profile: Professor Jim Biles

by Katherine Gloede Silverman

James Biles is a newly affiliated faculty member in the MS Program in Urban Sustainability. An Associate Professor in the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership since 2009, Jim is also affiliated with CCNY’s International Studies Program and the PhD Program in Earth and Environmental Sciences at the CUNY Graduate Center.  As an economic geographer, Jim’s research and praxis are situated at the confluence of social and economic processes, development policy, and local livelihoods, primarily in Mexico and Latin America. In light of the deep-seated changes in the role of government and the prevailing ideology of development, his …

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Alumni Profile: Logman Arja, Class of 2016

by Katherine Gloede Silverman

My name is Logman Arja, I attended the City College of New York as a Fulbright scholar from Sudan, where I earned a Master of Science in Sustainability in the Urban Environment, graduating in 2016.  I also now hold a Master of Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley.   I am currently a lecturer in Architecture at the University of California, Berkeley, College of Environmental Design. I am also the founder and CEO of TRIPLE C (Clean Clay Cookstove), a San Francisco based design company committed to delivering ceramic 3D printed smokeless stoves to address household air pollution in …

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Honoring the Class of 2020

by Katherine Gloede Silverman

On May 27th, the Sustainability in the Urban Environment Program convened graduates over Zoom alongside CCNY’s President, Sustainability faculty, friends, family, current students, and alumni to honor the very resilient Class of 2020. Vanessa Ventola and Jenny Lin were honored as class Valedictorian and Salutatorian, respectively. Below is the downloadable slideshow of photos shared by the graduates of themselves and of their experiences in the Sustainability Program.

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Student Project: Environmental Education Program Evaluation

by Katherine Gloede Silverman

As part of the requirements for completing the capstone for the Program, students must present a video mid-year review documenting progress so far and research directions for the next semester. Students Carolina Salane and Navida Rukhsha Vignoles present their work in the video below on evaluating botanic garden children’s education programs across New York City.

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Student Project: Green Burial in NYC

by Katherine Gloede Silverman

Students Debbie Einhorn, Bryant Cupidore, and Alex Young are working on the yearlong capstone project with Professor Christina Staudt of the Columbia University Death Lab. As part of the capstone process, students are required to present at the mid-year point to show their work to date and plan for the next semester of research and deliverables. Below is a video recording of their mid-year review, which was held online over Zoom due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Alumni Profile: Paul Celicourt, Class of 2011

by Katherine Gloede Silverman

I am currently pursuing postdoctoral research at the Faculty of Agriculture and Food Sciences at Université Laval in Quebec, Canada. I hold a Bachelor of Science in Electromechanical Engineering (2009) from the Université d’Etat d’Haiti (Haiti), a Master of Science (2011) in Sustainability in the Urban Environment and a Ph.D. (2017) in Civil Engineering (Hydroinformatics) from the City College of New York.  As an undergraduate student, I was interested in natural resources management with a focus on energy resources. However, the capstone project that I had the opportunity to work on in the Urban Sustainability program at CCNY shifted my …

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Video Student Profile: Varsha Halarnkar

by Katherine Gloede Silverman

I worked as a junior architect for almost two years and working on residential redevelopment projects in the suburbs of Mumbai, India. I learned a lot from on-site experiences, coordinating with consultants, and working with an amazing team. Since my time in architecture school I was inclined towards learning more about sustainable design and construction but Mumbai as a city had very limited options to focus on this field. After contemplating it for almost a year I decided to go back to school and get a master’s degree in sustainability.  I came across the program during my research for schools …

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