Full story from UMass Carbon Zero news: When undergraduate student Emma Cady first began applying to colleges, she was unsure of what she wanted to do for her academic career. When the UMass iCons Program was introduced to her at UMass Amherst’s Accepted Students Day, a lightbulb went on in her head, powered by a new passion – the ability to tackle real-world environmental problems through practical application. Even so, one question lingered as she pursued her education: how do I, a young college student, actually solve real world problems and make a difference? For Emma and many students like her, the Clean Energy Living Lab provided the answer.
During the 2022-2023 academic year, the UMass iCons Program is collaborating with the Clean Energy Extension to create the first-ever Clean Energy Living Lab at UMass Amherst. The Clean Energy Living Lab is a two-semester, six-credit course that bridges the gap between UMass Amherst and surrounding communities interested in going solar to reduce carbon emissions. By working directly with local towns and focusing on solar planning, this Living Lab provides students with necessary tools to achieve carbon mitigation and improve overall environmental awareness.
Darci Maresca, Assistant Director for the School of Earth and Sustainability, is the lead for Living Lab programming here at UMass Amherst; she is an avid supporter of this newly formed program. Maresca describes living labs as “transdisciplinary units working to create spaces for people to come together around sustainability and its various real-world challenges.”
Whether classes are focused on clean energy, equity, or food security, Living Labs create spaces for complex problem-solving and provide innovation opportunities for every student. As a co-creative environment for students and faculty alike, Living Labs grant students access to resources and relationships not found in traditional classrooms.
As noted by Maresca, Living Labs succeed when they help students develop confidence and knowledge that directly feed into their careers. In a competitive workforce, experience sets candidates apart from one another, further adding to their credibility as employees. By providing students with hands-on training experiences, the Clean Energy Living Lab increases students’ knowledge and develops skill-building techniques. Skills developed in the Clean Energy Living Lab go beyond the classroom, laying the foundation for the next generation of change-makers.
Taught by River Strong, Associate Director of the Clean Energy Extension; Dr. Zara Dowling, Post-Doctoral Research Fellow for the Clean Energy Extension; and Erica Light, iCons Biomedicine Lab course instructor, the development of the Clean Energy Living Lab is a significant step towards championing carbon mitigation, especially as UMass Amherst works to be carbon neutral by 2032.
Next year, the Clean Energy Living Lab plans to bring solar planning to additional towns in Massachusetts. In addition, the Living Lab will turn inward to the UMass campus by supporting its Carbon Zero initiative with student research projects on topics including geothermal systems and building energy efficiency studies.
Strong says that “in this class we’re working to create a collaborative student-centered learning environment in which we’re all learning from each other, on a practical, hands-on, needed service.” Students work closely with their peers, with officials from Massachusetts municipalities, and with their local legislators. Specific skills that students develop in the Clean Energy Living Lab include learning how to perform Graphic Information System (GIS) analyses on their assigned towns to identify land resources for solar installations.
According to Zara Dowling, The Clean Energy Living Lab class provides an opportunity for students to “produce something that is extremely practical and useful for communities in surrounding towns, especially in a professional capacity.”
When I asked Emma why other students should be a part of the Clean Energy Living Lab, she emphasized that this class is unlike most on campus. Throughout their college career, many students don’t get to work alongside their local communities in any capacity, much less to this extent. Students looking to support and elevate UMass’ infrastructure projects should consider being a part of a class like The Clean Energy Living Lab, due to its hands-on approach, real-world application, and substantial skill building.
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