Tag: Sustainability

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Need something to do in August? Check out a BSU event!

Nervous about visiting campus? Take a look at the Office of Community Engagement’s handy Getting to Campus resource for parking/public transit information!

Click the links for more information. Some events may be off-campus or have registration requirements.

Friday, August 4, 2023

EB & Bertha C. Ball Center: He Built This City: The Muncie Architecture of Cuno Kibele – 10 a.m.

Monday, August 14, 2023

EB & Bertha C. Ball Center: Dementia Friends – 2 p.m. at Westminister Village

Wednesday, August 16, 2023

EB & Bertha C. Ball Center: Cold Case Muncie – 6:30 p.m. at EB Ball

Thursday, August 17, 2023

EB & Bertha C. Ball Center: Sherlock Holmes and the Beginning of Modern Forensics – 6:30 p.m.

Friday, August 18, 2023

Charles W. Brown Planetarium: “We Are Stars” Planetarium Show – 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, August 19, 2023

Rinard Orchid Greenhouse & Nature Lab: Weeks of Welcome Program – 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Charles W. Brown Planetarium: “Eclipse: The Sun Revealed” Planetarium Show – 3:30 p.m.
Charles W. Brown Planetarium: “Summer Skies Live” Planetarium Show – 5 p.m.
Charles W. Brown Planetarium: “We Are Stars” Planetarium Show – 6:30 p.m.

Monday, August 21, 2023

EB & Bertha C. Ball Center: Presidential Mothers – 2 p.m. at Westminister Village

Thursday, August 24, 2023

EB & Bertha C. Ball Center: America’s Hometown Band – 7 p.m.

Friday, August 25, 2023

Charles W. Brown Planetarium: “We Are Stars” Planetarium Show – 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, August 26, 2023

Charles W. Brown Planetarium: “Eclipse: The Sun Revealed” Planetarium Show – 3:30 p.m.
Charles W. Brown Planetarium: “Summer Skies Live” Planetarium Show – 5 p.m.
Charles W. Brown Planetarium: “We Are Stars” Planetarium Show – 6:30 p.m.

Monday, August 28, 2023

EB & Bertha C. Ball Center: A Feeling of Justice: Mapping Civil Rights History in Indiana – 6 p.m.

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Spring 2021 Ball State Immersive Learning Projects

Student studying the back of a solar panel

Ball State faculty, students, and community partners worked together this spring on a number of immersive learning projects in and around Muncie.

Anthony Northside Neighborhood Living Quality
Faculty Mentor:  Jason Yang, Department of Geography
Community Partner:  Muncie Action Plan, Anthony Northside Neighborhood Association

Brightfield to Bright Future
Faculty Mentor: Sanglim Yoo
Community Partner: Sierra Club Hoosier Chapter

More to come!

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Brightfield for Bright Future

Students in PLAN 203: Regional Analysis and Design, conducted solar potential analysis for brownfields in Muncie. They applied Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to study the ownership of the brownfields, current land use and zoning ordinances, preexisting conditions, and then analyzed solar PV potentials using a publicly available PV watts tool developed by the US Department of Energy.

The project focused primarily on the reuse of brownfields for solar PV installation. Brownfields are previously developed land that former use, like the potential presence of hazardous substances, makes reuse complicated.  PLAN 203 students identified six brownfield sites in Muncie for potential solar PV installation. Together with brownfields, students also analyzed the solar PV potentials for city-owned facilities including fire stations and Muncie Sanitary District facilities. Two fire stations and two of Muncie Sanitary District’s water treatment facility sites were selected.

Explore the story map created for the project.

Faculty Mentor: Sanglim Yoo
Department: Urban Planning
Community Partner: Sierra Club Hoosier Chapter
Students: Adam Coleson, Lauren Doppke, Michael Grossniklaus, Elise Jones, Kaelyn Leach, Enzo Lundy, Mattew Pytel, Kaylie Slate, Eric Snowden, and Christian Terrell

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VIDEO: Sanglim Yoo: Discovering New Ways to Improve Cities

Video screen shot

Ball State University Alumni magazine recapped the recent immersive learning work of CERES Affiliated Faculty Sanglim Yoo, Assistant Professor of Urban Planning.  Funded by Provost Immersive Learning grants, Dr. Yoo has led student teams in analyzing the potential of brownfields in Delaware and Grant Counties as sites for solar farms and in assessing and improving economic sustainability efforts in Muncie.  These projects also allow students to improve their skills in using socioeconomic and demographic data and the geographic information system (GIS) mapping tool.  Read more on the BSU Alumni Magazine’s website!

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Sustainable Muncie Project:  Assessing Sustainability for the City of Muncie

This spring, the Sustainable Muncie Project was implemented in Urban Planning’s Regional Analysis and Design Studio class. The students inventoried, assessed, analyzed, and mapped the social, environmental, and economic factors for Muncie, Indiana, to promote a more sustainable community and identify its vulnerable populations and areas. The students partnered with the Muncie Action Plan’s Task Force 2, which focuses on strengthening neighborhoods through organizing associations, building leadership, and fostering collaborations. The project produced a location-specific inventory and analysis of indicators for the City of Muncie.

See the StoryMap page | Read the final report (pdf – coming soon)

Faculty Mentor: Sanglim Yoo
Department: Urban Planning
Community Partner: Muncie Action Plan Task Force 2
Student Team: Lauren Bouslog, Sydney Fawcett, Dylan Gehring, Hannah Jones, Riley Jones, Andrew Kanwit, Laiha Lane, Will Snyder, Jeffery Tompkins, and Brett Willaman

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Study of Lead (Pb) in Muncie (ongoing)

 

Spring 2020: Urban Health in Muncie, IN:  Pb in the Soils

Lead (Pb) is a dangerous neurotoxin especially harmful to children,and residents in Delaware County have blood lead levels testing at three times the national average. A 2018 immersive project mapped locations where blood levels were high and sampled local soils.In this year’s immersive project,“Urban Health in Muncie, IN: Pb in Soils,”students looking for the location of potential lead sources. The goal of the project was for students and the United Way of Delaware, Henry, and Randolph Counties to better understand why, despite proven access to lead-free water, local children have higher-than average blood concentrations of lead.

Faculty Mentors: Carolyn Dowling, Jessi Haeft
Departments: Environment, Geology, and Natural Resources
Community Partners: United Way of Delaware, Henry, and Randolph Counties
Students: Emma Altimus, Brady Andres, Cameron Bell, Joseph Hall, Jordan Lee, Katryn Lods, Patrick Ollier, Erin Powell, Elizabeth Riester, Ignacio Rodriguez, Quentin Simpson, Matt Stickler, Drew Toombs, Luke Vanderveen, and Gunnar Young

Fall 2018: Preliminary Study of Lead (Pb) in Muncie (PSLM)

Lead (Pb) is a persistent neurotoxin, and over 7% of population tested in Muncie and Delaware County has elevated blood lead levels (BLL), ~3x greater than the national average (2.5%). Through research and analysis, students in this project hoped to find the source(s) of lead that is driving these high BLL in Muncie/Delaware County. The students wrote a final report that summarized their high-impact community research project and recommended the next steps to continue the project, and presented their findings to United Way of Delaware County.

Faculty Mentors: Carolyn Dowling, Jessi Haeft
Departments: Geological Sciences, Natural Resources and Environmental Management
Community Partners: United Way of Delaware County
Students: Ben Azar, Allison Bolser, Peter Danzl-Tauer, Chelsea Eickleberry, Maryssa Engstrom, Adeline Evans, Sam Fields, Kerragon Garab, Hannah Gastineau, Adrion Gibson, Henry David Isenberg, Tony Keller, Josh Kiler, Angela Lankford, Jennifer Loyal, Andy Riley,Rose Snyder, Sarah Wilber, Julia Ysidron