Jan 16
Crane Week has come and gone! Mr. Scott and his crane lifted 3600 lb pallets of cement block and 2400 lb pallets of solar panels up to the roofs of the Gateway and STEM buildings.
Dave Chandler, DA Drone Master, documented the whole process . Here’s what it looks like on the rooftop as a technician receives and guides a 2400 lb pallet of solar panels into place.
Continue readingDec 11
Durham Academy is taking its biggest step yet to fulfill the goal of reducing carbon emissions from daily operations by putting solar panels on its two largest buildings. Let’s geek out about the details!
This single action of installing solar panels will reduce our
annual carbon footprint by 7%.
On the Gateway building, Southern Energy Management will install 221 panels that will generate 130 kW-DC. On the STEM and Humanities building, 241 panels will generate 142 kW-DC. Inverters at each site will convert DC current to AC for a total of 366,308 kWh of electricity in their first year. That’s 10% of the school’s total use! The amount will decline slightly over the 30+ year life of the panels (about .5% per year) but is guaranteed not to dip below 293,000 kWh.
Maybe you heard the sweet sound of drilling back in November, when the electrician installed wiring and conduit in and around the Gateway and STEM electrical closets. Next you’ll see a huge crane beside the buildings
Continue readingJun 08
Our bodies and our sanity are under attack following recent rains. Slap as we may, it’s hard to beat the mosquitos. There are lots of companies ready to step in (for a hefty price) with expensive applications of “mosquito spray.” Unfortunately, there’s no such thing as a specialized chemical application for mosquitos; the spray kills fireflies, butterflies, native bees, honeybees–all kinds of insects that we like to see and need to have in our environment.
Continue readingMay 12
Getting children to school and back is a big, daily challenge for for most parents and caregivers of DA students. Moreover, the commute generates 25% of Durham Academy’s carbon emissions. There can be benefits, of course, of regular time together in the car, but most adults are enthusiastic about reducing driving time.
What do people who already carpool to DA say about the experience?
Apr 30
Saturday, April 12th was a big day for DA Sustainability! After months of mulching and prep work, the whole school was invited to help plant a half acre of trees, shrubs, grasses, and other plants. We began by spreading out topsoil for the garden beds. The weather was cool and cloudy, and there was lots of mud from recent rains, but we were glad it wasn’t too hot and or actively raining. The mud, despite messing up my sneakers, made it easier to dig holes for the plants.
Continue readingApr 14
Editor’s note: On Saturday, April 12, eighteen volunteers from the DA community were joined by landscape designer Preston Montague and Extension Master Gardener student Kevin Westfield to plant five hundred shrubs, trees, grasses and other native plants at the corner of Pickett and Ridge Rds. This work began the long-planned conversion of a grassy expanse to a biodiverse environment on campus. Upper School Director Lanis Wilson participated and wrote this reflection in his weekly newsletter, Yo La Tengo.
Good Sunday Morning all and Chag Pesach Sameach to those celebrating Passover this weekend.
I hope this message finds you enjoying this pleasantly cool weekend. As the sun filters through the newly green canopy this morning, I find myself reflecting on yesterday’s Elder Oak Commons planting event. What a profound experience it was to work alongside fellow faculty and their families, our hands in the soil, planting native plants and saplings that many of us may never see reach their full majesty.
Continue readingFeb 17
Thursday, February 27No school for students next day! Parent-teacher conferences are Friday, February 28.
Have you ever wondered what DA looks like under starlight? Do you want an opportunity to connect to a community of people with brilliant new ideas for ways to care for the world around us?
The Sustain-In is the perfect place to answer these questions, and so many more you haven’t even asked yet! The Student Government Sustainability Committee invites ALL members of the DA community to learn and play together, create art, solve problems, and talk to people at DA and across the world about sustainability. Come for all or any part of the time.
Who can participate?
Continue readingDec 04
Why is sustainability such a center of innovation and entrepreneurship? How do people make money in this field? How are carbon emissions calculated, and how do organizations like DA try to reduce them? These topics and more will be addressed in this special, one-day learning experience that is open to all Upper School students. There will be particular attention to offsets: does paying to plant trees or develop renewable energy systems legitimately reduce a business’s carbon emissions?
Continue readingNov 21
In this season of giving thanks, I would like to express gratitude to many people in the DA community.
I’m personally grateful to those who pass me in cars when I’m riding my bike on Pickett Rd. I hear lots of people say how dangerous it is to ride there, but in fact, I rarely have even a mildly annoying experience. Thanks to everyone who gives me space on the road!
Professionally, I believe Sustainability offers hope for the future, but it requires change in the present. That’s not always a welcome ask in the midst of our fast-paced everyday activities in school, yet the support is overwhelming.
Here are some of the many people I’m grateful to:
Continue reading