April 18, 2011

Environment-focused institute gets Earth Week kickoff

Top university administrators and two prominent guest speakers will participate in an inauguration event on Wednesday, April 20, to celebrate the establishment of The Johns Hopkins University’s Environment, Energy, Sustainability and Health Institute.

The event will take place in Mason Hall on the Homewood campus from 2:15 to 4 p.m., followed by a reception.

The institute’s purpose is to coordinate and encourage innovative research and teaching that address health, technology and sustainability challenges posed by the changing global environment. These projects are intended to involve Johns Hopkins faculty with a wide array of expertise, cutting across disciplines and divisions.

The institute, called E2SHI for short (and pronounced eh-shee), began taking shape late last year, when the Provost’s Office contributed startup funds. Then the deans at the Whiting School of Engineering, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences and Bloomberg School of Public Health approved E2SHI’s charter and agreed to provide financial support.

The official kickoff celebration was scheduled this week to coincide with Earth Week.

At Wednesday’s event, brief remarks will be delivered by Ronald J. Daniels, president of the university; Nick Jones, the Benjamin T. Rome Dean of the Whiting School; Michael Klag, dean of the Bloomberg School; and Katherine S. Newman, the James B. Knapp Dean of the Krieger School.

Guest speaker Kathleen Hogan, deputy assistant secretary for energy efficiency at the U.S. Department of Energy, will talk about nationwide efforts aimed at improving energy efficiency. A second speaker, Van R. Reiner, president and CEO of the Maryland Science Center, will discuss key environmental issues affecting the state of Maryland.

The kickoff event is open to the entire university community.