The Alliance for Sustainability is a network of community colleges formed in the fall of 2009 under a grant from the Ford Foundation to collaboratively develop new or better ways to educate, train, promote, and support sustainable rural development, particularly where associated with industry clusters. This “learning and innovation” network meets, shares ideas, learns from one another and from external experts, and it works collectively to introduce new ideas into the curricula and community that involve forms of renewable energy, energy conservation, and local production aligned with local talents and markets.
The goals include:
- expanding or improving programs that support employment in sustainable, wealth retaining companies, paying particular attention to local business clusters
- attracting and retaining students in programs that lead to employment opportunities within businesses that support sustainability
- supporting entrepreneurial education and opportunities in businesses such as green building, energy conservation audits, local food markets, sustainable agriculture, aquaculture, or forestry, ecotourism, or historic preservation
- developing and offering programs to local businesses on the economics of sustainability and social inclusion
- integrating knowledge of renewable energy, conservation, and preservation into all of the college’s business and industry programs
- building or expanding partnerships with local government agencies, community based organizations, and extension services to strengthen programs and services in support of sustainable growth
- increasing use of energy efficiency and renewable energy in college facilities
The Alliance held its first meeting in Charleston, West Virginia, second in Knoxville, Tennessee, and third in Rome, Georgia. Experts from agricultural extension, community college chancellors, and environmental organizations discussed issues that community colleges might address. The Institute for Virtual Enterprises at Kingsborough Community College in Brooklyn conducted a workshop on teaching entrepreneurship in sustainability. Teams of colleges are working with other non-profits to develop projects in four key areas: (1) weatherization and career pathways; (2) strategies for sustainability; (3) green building; and (4) educating for sustainable agriculture.
This network is part of a larger effort supported by the Ford Foundation to generate wealth in underserved rural communities, with a focus on central Appalachia and the Mississippi Delta regions, in ways that produce triple bottom line outcomes.
