Sustainable Saunders, The HUB (Help Us Bridge)

2007-2008, 2008-2009 Graduate Student Organization, Treasurer

2007 UHM Sierra Club, Treasurer

Biofuels Reseach, Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Presting Lab

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http://sustainability.hawaii.edu/group/sustainable-saunders/press/in-the-news/200704xx_audrey_magazine.pdf

With a monthly bill of $1.5 million, the University of Hawaii is the second-largest (the military ranks first) electricity guzzler on Oahu. That was the startling announcement last year, which mobilized a group of students to conduct an experiment in sustainability. Norman Wang is one of those hoping to make his campus building, Saunders Hall, into a more economical and ecologically sound facility. Recently, the all-volunteer group completed a trash audit on the building, sorting through a week’s worth of garbage, a total of 860 pounds. What came up the most? Paper … lots of it. They also unearthed a sizeable amount of half-used toilet paper rolls which they figured janitors had a habit of replacing out during routine cleanups. Wang plans on compiling the audit findings into a report which will be used to persuade private industries about the economic benefits of recycling. The group will also place “worm bins” around the building to make compost from the food and paper found in the trash. The soil enricher will be used for a garden to be created around Saunders Hall. To tackle the issue of energy consumption, they brought in an independent consultant to conduct an energy audit to figure out such things as the total cost savings of installing solar panels. Of course, any changes to the building must first be discussed and decided by university administration. Though as the catalysts for change, the role played by Wang and the other volunteers is key. Born and raised in Irvine, Calif., Wang came to Hawaii last fall for his doctorate in molecular biosciences and bioengineering. He made good money working in the pharmaceutical industry, but decided life could be better fulfilled in other areas. At the University of Hawaii, Wang wants to find ways to derive biofuel from algae, a producer of oil. The campus is home to one of the biggest algae collections in the country, offering a treasure trove of resources. “I see a lot of growth possibilities in alternative energy research,” says Wang. “A lot of companies are jumping into this field and I just felt like things needed to change.” Especially for Hawaii, change is necessary to keep the island state from giving in to its own ecological frailty. The tourism-dependent island uses its natural resources to attract visitors, but the more who visit, the fewer resources will remain. “Hawaii needs to be more self-sustaining,” says Wang. “You go to Honolulu and you see a modern city with skyscrapers, but what you see here is created by imports. It’s not sustainable in the long-term.” Right now, Wang is reading Collapse, a book that examines the ways societies throughout time have rendered themselves extinct because of the poor mismanagement of natural resources. Fondly referring to the 50th state as his home, Wang will see to it that Hawaii doesn’t succumb to that fate.