Sustainable Cities and Communities
Developing safe, resilient and sustainable places to live.
Emissions free transportation, resilient urban centers, cities with walkable neighborhoods and no air pollution. All of these are necessary and attainable for a sustainable planet. The majority of people live in cities- that’s what makes this goal so important. Located in a metropolitan area, our university has a direct impact our region’s sustainability.
Adapting Buildings: Climate Resilience Primer Course [54:44]
This course provides an overview for New York State building professionals about the state of resilience research for the building sector. Build resilience with the new webinar series Adapting Buildings for a Changing Climate! Join the University at Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning Resilient Buildings Lab, in work contracted for and sponsored by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), for a series of webinars focused on understanding the impacts climate change has on the State’s building sector.
Synopsis: From Sandy to Snowvember: Climate Change and Buildings in New York State Symposium [2:36]
This symposium draws together academics and practitioners from the Northeast and Great Lakes regions to address critical questions in climate resilience applicable to New York State, including how built environment professionals respond to a changing climate; how building stock can adapt to climate change in New York State; and how resilience is currently being addressed by built environment professionals. Participants will also hear results from recent research conducted by UB, L&S Energy Services, and Weather Analytics and supported by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. (12/1/2016)
Going to School in a Segregated City [4:04]
What does urban segregation mean to you? Do you benefit from it? Suffer because of it? This conversation is about urban color lines, how they came into being, what they do to American society and how to change them. (University at Buffalo, 10/24/16)
Hurricane Florence in New Bern, NC (2018): An In-Depth Case Study of the Local Food Environment [59:16]
This is a virtual recording of CGHE's Brown Bag Seminar that took place on Tuesday, May 12th. This seminar features Dr. Lauren Clay, Assistant Professor, Department of Health Administration, and Public Health at D'Youville College. Her talk is titled "Hurricane Florence in New Bern, NC (2018): An In-Depth Case Study of the Local Food Environment".
Fifteen students receive SUNY Chancellor’s Award
4/18/24Fifteen students from UB have been recognized for their outstanding achievements in leadership, community service, campus involvement, or the arts, earning the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence, the highest student award offered by SUNY.
Repowering coal plants to fight climate crisis
3/1/22SUNY Distinguished Professor Andrew Whittaker is part of a cohort led by TerraPraxis, a non-profit focused on action for climate and prosperity, that is developing a digital platform to repower coal plants using advanced nuclear energy.
UB to train displaced workers for entrepreneurial success
2/15/22Hundreds of unemployed, laid-off and underemployed workers in the region will be able to explore entrepreneurial paths and participate in a robust training initiative offered by UB’s Western New York Incubator Network (WIN) and the School of Management’s Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership (CEL).
UB’s GRoW Home moves to North Campus to become clean energy center
6/30/20UB’s national award-winning GRoW Home has changed addresses once again, and this time it’s permanent. The 1,100-square-foot solar structure has relocated next to the Solar Strand near the Flint Road entrance to the North Campus, where it will serve as a clean energy center for the campus and the public.
Study examines the chemical GenX in water
3/16/22Last fall, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reported that GenX chemicals were more toxic than the “forever chemicals” they were developed to replace. Now, a new UB-led study examines what happens when GenX — chemicals used in food packaging, nonstick coating and other products — interacts with water.
Cycling trips take teaching beyond the classroom
2/14/22In the years after UB faculty member Noemi Waight moved to Buffalo from Illinois, she got to know her new home by bicycling with community groups. The experience gave her the idea to take graduate pre-service students on cycling explorations to learn more about their community and the science resources that can make classroom lessons more engaging.
Forward-thinking gym lifts weights, shifts attitudes
1/27/22A gym in Boston, Massachusetts, with an inventive vocational path that prepares students to work as personal trainers serves as a telling example for how community-based programs can develop anti-racism practices within organizations that contribute to the cultivation of racial unity, according to a paper published by a UB social work researcher.
Herbs, sunflowers and three sisters rise in South Campus garden
8/31/21If you have indigestion, stress, headache or inflammation, you might want to head over to the southwest corner of Cary Hall on the South Campus. There, at a new garden, you can take in the aroma of herbs believed to help with those ailments (respectively, lemon verbena, lavender, mint and tarragon).
New Year’s Resolutions for the Planet
1/14/21In December, we asked the readers of our newsletter Climate Fwd: and our Twitter followers what they were planning on doing differently in 2021. We got some amazing responses. If you’re thinking of making a “green” New Year’s resolution, here are a few ideas, collected from those replies.
UB receives $10 million gift for diversity initiatives
3/2/21Thanks to the entrepreneurial success of the late Carl V. Granger, founder of Uniform Data System for Medical Rehabilitation (UDSmr), a venture he created in partnership with UB and the UB Foundation, the university has received a $10 million gift to its Boldly Buffalo campaign.
Radiative cooling and solar heating from one system, no electricity needed
2/17/21Recently, researchers have been exploring how to turbo charge a passive cooling technique — known as radiative or sky cooling — with sun-blocking nanomaterials that emit heat away from building rooftops. While progress has been made, this eco-friendly technology isn’t commonplace because researchers have struggled to maximize its cooling capabilities.
More than 400 discuss ‘How We Change the Black East Side’
3/11/24At one of the largest public gatherings ever hosted by UB's medical school, over 400 East Side residents, academics, and community advocates gathered to discuss the East Side Neighborhood Transformation Project, a novel approach for neighborhood revitalization aimed at radically transforming communities located on the Black East Side.
UB to install 30 air monitors on Buffalo’s East Side as part of EPA grant
4/18/24Thanks to grant funding provided by the EPA, researchers at UB will soon be able to monitor air quality on Buffalo's East Side more thorouhgly than ever before. Data collected by the 30 installed air monitors will be able to pinpoint specific areas where quality is the worst, empowering communities in this area to take action.
UB, partners awarded $2.8 million grant to improve nation’s power grid
3/14/24A UB research team has secured a nearly $3 million grant from the Department of Energy to enhance semiconductor technology, aiming to upgrade the nation's power grid. This grant, among the $48 million in projects unveiled by the energy department in February, will drive the development of advanced high-voltage power switches for better management of electricity flow and a reduction in energy usage, ultimately improving grid resilience against unforeseen outages.
UB experts, grad students contribute to NYS climate change report
2/29/24New York State officials released a groundbreaking climate change report featuring crucial contributions from the University at Buffalo. In partnership with UB's Resilient Buildings Lab, the report offers vital strategies for safeguarding against climate impacts, showcasing UB's leadership in climate resilience research. UB's pivotal role underscores its commitment to addressing climate change, aligning with Vice President Kamala Harris's recognition of UB's sustainability research as a national model.
Sustainable Courses
- ARC 121: Introduction to Architecture.
- ARC 122: Architectural Sketching & Environment.
- ARC 211: American Diversity & Design.
- ARC 241: Intro to Building Tech.
- ARC 280: Environment & Landscapes.
- ARC 352: Structures 1.
- ARC 362: Architectural Theory.
- ARC 426: Site Planning & Development.
- ARC 442: Construction Tech.
- ARC 448: Building Project.
- ARC 475: Environmental Controls: Sound & Light.
- ARC 488: Seminar in Design Theory.
- ARC 526: Site Planning & Design.
- ARC 541B: Intro to Building Tech.
- ARC 544: Building Technology Systems.
- ARC 550: Advanced Architecture Materials.
- ARC 558: Design Inclusive Environment.
- ARC 565: Urban Design: Understanding Form.
- ARC 566: Urban Design: Case Studies.
- ARC 575: Environmental Controls: Sound & Light.
- ARC 605S: Arch Design Studio Abroad.
- END 102: Intro to Urban Environment.
- END 212: Urban & Environmental Planning.
- END 275: Environment & Landscapes.
- END 279: Explore Design Buffalo Niagara.
- END 301: Perspectives on Land Use & Development.
- END 302: Sustainable Urban Environments.
- END 305: Environmental Education & Urbanism.
- END 308: Health & Urban Environments.
- END 360: Environmental Design Workshop 2.
- END 402: Real Estate Development Fundamentals.
- END 403: Strategies Property Management.
- END 406: Housing & Community Development.
- END 422: Economic Development Planning.
- END 428: Found Historic Preservation.
- END 450: Environmental Design Workshop 3.
- END 467: Legal Issues Planning & Development.
- END 494: Visions of the City.
- END 498: Research Projects Environmental Design.
- AAS 293: Race, Law, and Society.
- AMS 111: Hip Hop and Social Issues.
- AMS 114: American Lives and Environments.
- AMS 145: Cities of the World.
- AMS 179: Intro to Native American History.
- APY 105: Intro to Anthropology.
- APY 106: Into: Cultural Anthropology.
- APY 107: Intro to Physical APY.
- APY 275: Culture, Health, and Illness.
- APY 476: Health Care in US.
- APY 604: Culture & Disability.
- CL 113: Myth & Religion Anc World.
- COM 202: Intercultural Communication.
- COM 380: Health Communication.
- DMS 331: Social and Mobile Media.
- DMS 333: World Cinema.
- DMS 448: Games, Gender, and Culture.
- ECO 181: Intro to Macroeconomics.
- ECO 182: Intro to Microeconomics.
- ECO 208: Intro to Environmental Economics.
- ECO 211: Intro to Health Economics.
- ECO 416: Economic Development.
- ECO 421: Urban Economics.
- ECO 435: International Economics.
- ECO 440: Economics of Education.
- ECO 443: Labor Economics.
- ECO 609: Macroeconomic Theory 1.
- ECO 610: Macroeconomic Theory 2.
- ECO 725: Economic Development.
- ECO 743: Labor Economics.
- ECO 535: International Economics.
- ECO 543: Labor Economics.
- ECO 564: Economics Public Sector.
- ECO 569: Industrial Organization.
- ECO 595: Topics International Economics.
- ECO 708: Advanced Topics Macroeconomics.
- ENG 276: Literature and Law.
- ENG 383: Studies in World Literature.
- EVS 330: Sustainability and Community.
- EVS 414: Grantwriting Nonprofits.
- EVS 417/517: Sustainability and American Culture.
- GEO 366: Urban Geography.
- GEO 435: Conservation Biogeography.
- GEO 445: Restoration Ecology.
- GEO 460: Geography of Development.
- GEO 515: Conservation Biogeography.
- GEO 545: Restoration Ecology.
- GEO 570: Integrated Environmental Management.
- GLY 102: Climate Change.
- GLY 597: Volcanology Seminar.
- PHI 234: Environmental Ethics.
- RSP 113: Myth & Religion Anc World.
- SOC 315: Sociology of City Life.
- SOC 341: Environment & Society.
- SOC 551: Social Stratification.
- SOC 576: Race, Ethnicity, and Residence.
- UGC 111: World Civilization 1.
- UGC 112: World Civilization 2.
- CIE 340: Environmental Engineering.
- CIE 416: Civil Capstone.
- CIE 423: Structural Engrg 3.
- CIE 436: Traffic Ops & Design.
- CIE 440: Travel Demand Forecasting.
- CIE 469 / 569: Hazardous Waste Management.
- EAS 202: Impact on Society.
- EE 336: Fundamentals of Energy Systems.
- EE 471: Sustainable Energy Systems.
- EE 482: Power Systems Engineering 1.
- EE 470 / 570: Renewable Distributed Generation & Storage.
- EE 583: Power Systems Engineering 2.
- IE 421 / 521: Sustainable Manufacturing.
- MAE 464: Manufacturing Automation.
- MAE 554: Road Vehicle Dynamics.
- MAE 564: Manufacturing Automation.
- CEP 412: Diversity & Human Relations.
- ELP 200: Education Policy & Leadership for Social Justice.
- ELP 201: Education and Social Policy in Action.
- ELP 405: Sociology of Education.
- ELP 501: Higher Education in US.
- ELP 513: Cultural Diversity in Higher Ed.
- ELP 575: Education & Globalization.
- ELP 582: Multicultural Ed: Theory & Practice.
- LAI 520: Intro to Social Education.
- LAW 567: Greening Buffalo.
- LAW 695: Land Use Planning.
- MGT 797: Environmental Policy Research.
- PGY 300: Human Physiology.
- CHB 522: Refugee Health.
- CHB 550: Public Health Population Wellbeing.
- CHB 601: Principles of Com Health & HB.
- CHB 602: CHHB Interventions.
- EEH 500: Intro to Epidemiology.
- EEH 501: Principles of Epi.
- EEH 521: Global Health.
- EEH 538: Intro to Health Economics.
- EEH 539: Business of Health Care.
- EEH 550: Environmental Health.
- EEH 551: Adv Environmental Health Science.
- EEH 536: Health Policy in the US.
- EEH 573: Epi of Infectious Disease.
- EEH 575: Epi Appl to Environmental Health.
- ES 210: Behavior Driven Disease.