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The Refinishing Touch

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Education gears up to meet demand for sustainability students: Arizona and Columbia add to lessons

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The Refinishing Touch has always had a strong commitment to education – from working with colleges and education facilities across North America to supporting these organizations in how they share, teach and implement sustainable practices.  With Campus Sustainability Day approaching on October 22, it seems perfect timing that a number of colleges and universities have added new sustainability programs to their higher education offerings.  These include the University of Arizona which has added an Executive Master’s for Sustainability Leadership. The program is offered by the Rob and Melani Walton Sustainability Solutions Initiatives in conjunction with the School of Sustainability.  Over in New York, Columbia University is offering a new Masters of Public Administration in Environmental Science and Policy.

Education AheadThese new programs reinforce the importance of having all future leaders that are well-versed in sustainability and apply them into their day to day business practices. What is taught in these classes combined with hands on experience, culminate in a project that features a real-world solution to a sustainability challenge.

For example, when talking about the demands for sustainable education, Michael M. Crow, president of Arizona State University said: “When a company hires a professional with a higher education in sustainability, they’re hiring someone who is up to date on relevant topics and best practices, and will have the leadership and communication tools needed to make a business case for sustainability and help to embed sustainability into their organization’s overall strategy.”

And it’s a need that isn’t being driven by the colleges – it’s market demand as green jobs require green skills.  The National Career Development Association wrote about this last year and not only shared some interesting insights, including this amazing list of job resources and organizations for those green students.

In our upcoming blog posts we hope to speak to some of the education organizations that are looking to shape our green future – so watch this space!

The environment calls for a more involved government

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Government sustainabilityIn a recent post on the Huffington Post Green blog, Steven Cohen of Columbia University’s Earth Institute outlined the roles today’s federal and local governments must play in the building of a more sustainable economy.

As a company immersed in the sustainability of assets in both public and private sectors – including government, hospitality and higher education – The Refinishing Touch echoes the need for a rise in nationwide environmentalism.

Cohen’s outline of governmental responsibilities included ‘investment in sustainability infrastructure’, among others. As the population continues to grow, the need for green from the ground up only increases.  When government edifices, and buildings in any realm, are built with sustainability and the eco-system in mind, green practices typically remain instilled in the community and the building itself throughout its life.

Down the road, furniture assets will be weathered and facility managers whom have immersed themselves in eco-conscious behavior from the start will look towards refurbishment rather than replacement.

With refinishing, reupholstery and remanufacturing services such as ours, existing pieces receive a more modern look and feel, restored durability and drastically reduce environmental effects. By implementing furniture asset management, trees and unnecessary waste are saved from the landfill and carbon emissions are cut by as much as 124 tons.

To learn more about The Refinishing Touch’s past government work, please visit www.therefinishingtouch.com. To learn more about what we can do for your, please email us at [email protected].