Rose hosts ‘Focus the Nation’ panel discussion

By Brian M. Boyce

TERRE HAUTE — Optimism, pessimism, realism and hope bounced around the stage of Rose-Hulman’s Hatfield Hall auditorium Wednesday evening as a panel of citizens batted about the concept of sustainability.

Rebekah Forsyth, a Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology senior and member of the recently-formed Sustainability Club, said after the hour-long panel discussion she was pleased with the event, part of the Green House Network’s national “Focus the Nation” educational program.

“We’re trying to raise awareness,” she explained.

Sustainability was operationally defined for the discussion as protecting the needs of future generations without compromising the needs of those in the present.

The topic thus lent itself to everything from environmental concerns to economic and any relationship therein.

“What will a sustainable Terre Haute look like?” asked panel leader Tuesday Strong, stretching the question out from five to 25 years.

Danny Tanoos, superintendent of the Vigo County School Corporation, and one of the 11 panel members, offered that any discussion pertaining to the sustainability of Vigo County would have to include attracting more jobs and businesses to the area.

Mark Minster, assistant professor of English at Rose-Hulman, agreed on that point, adding that fighting Indiana’s ongoing brain drain where college graduates are exported to other states is crucial to that end.

Paul Stanley, representing the Terre Haute Rotary Club, said sacrificing environmental concerns for new business is counter-productive. “The cleaner our environment is, the more attractive our county will be to business,” the former investment banker said.

Other panel members discussed the importance of finding ways to make initiatives such as recycling and composting economically feasible, as well as noting the lack of community preparation for “green” transportation such as bicycling.

The second question lent itself to more detailed discussion — what steps are your organization taking to reach these goals?

Pete Mobley, part of Rose-Hulman’s maintenance staff, explained that the school has been focusing on recycling and other environmental issues for a number of years. Mobley, along with other members of the panel, added that while some see green technology as being higher cost, in point of fact, much of the drive to find new systems is aimed at bringing costs down.

Mobley said after the discussion that Rose-Hulman’s electric bill alone runs $100,000 per month. Forsyth and fellow student Mariah Walton said many of their classmates remain in the dark about the expenses related to staying in the light.

“I think it’s all about getting the campus involved,” Walton said, noting that one of their club’s goals is letting students know how much it’s costing them when they leave the dorm lights on unnecessarily.

Tanoos pointed out that area schools have been utilizing strategic plan initiatives to reduce energy consumption for many years.

Stanley advocated a “town hall meeting” where numerous Wabash Valley civic groups can reduce the “duplication and fragmentation” of their efforts because they get “more power with our punch if we work together” in recycling efforts.

Both Minster and Michael Robinson, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at Rose-Hulman noted the incorporation of energy sustainability topics into regular classroom and engineering projects.

The final question of the night drew the most consensus — what obstacles stand in our way?

“Money,” Walton said to laughs and applause.

Tanoos agreed, saying that long-term benefits have to be weighed against short-term costs, particularly in areas such as public education where funding is tax-driven.

Robinson and Minster both said education and awareness are crucial obstacles in the discussion relating to money.

“I think our biggest challenge is education,” Robinson said.

When the panel was opened up to the audience for questions, one member asked what kind of paradigm shift is needed to make people change their behavior regarding energy consumption.

Robinson expressed his doubts. “I am very pessimistic,” he said. “People only respond to crisis.” Gasoline prices have risen to $3 a gallon and people are still buying SUVs and driving just as much, he said, noting that something drastic has to occur before people change their behavior.

Minster expressed a little more optimism, but agreed that change is tough.

Strong said “true leadership” can and does make a difference, noting the school’s Presidential Climate Commitment and other projects undertaken locally.

Another audience member asked how the country can really decide between new technologies when, for instance, ethanol usage potentially cuts food production, and battery usage produces toxic acid.

Walton said, “that’s our responsibility as engineers and scientists to figure that out.”

Brian Boyce can be reached at (812) 231-4253 or brian.boyce@tribstar.com.