Heritageisation of the Sun Corridor: A Heritage Tourism Perspective

By Deepak Chhabra, PhD

The Sun Corridor, as the “New Heartland” of Arizona, has gathered unprecedented momentum in recent decades. It is one of ten megapolitan regions in the country and encompasses a total of four metropolitan areas in Arizona: Phoenix, Tucson, Prescott and Nogales. The primary purpose of the development of this corridor has been to link together cities, towns, villages and counties based on “goods movement, business linkages, cultural commonality and physical environments” (1). Several reports observe growth, recent trends and emerging industries in the region. However, a micro-level blueprint for a synergistic corridor product that can strongly tie the metropolitan areas together in a multi-sector, unified approach and provide opportunities and prosperity to the region and overall state is still lacking. … Continue Reading

Walking “the tightrope of existence”: E. O. Wilson’s Philosophy Comes to Life in the “Anthill Chronicles”

By Kaitlin Gowan

Anthill, renowned biologist and environmentalist E.O. Wilson’s first novel, follows Raphael Semmes Cody through a childhood mesmerized by the wonders of the Nokobee Tract and Dead Owl Cove to an adult life devoted to preserving the natural environment. … Continue Reading

Innovation + City = Prosperity

By Rider Foley

For thousands of years thriving cities have fostered inventors and creators from which wealth is generated (1). Yet, in some cases, once prosperous cities have receded into the annals of history by turning inwards, threatened by change (2). There are lessons here to be learned for Phoenix. … Continue Reading

Sonatas for Sustainability: How musical training imparts important qualities and skills for sustainability

By Chrissie Bausch

Sustainability addresses urgent, multi-scalar problems that cut across social, economic, and environmental domains, have long-term implications, and high potential for damage (1). Sustainability researchers and educators are continually discussing the content of and approach to sustainability education. They agree that it must foster a unique set of skills and qualities, including creativity, empathy, system analysis, interdisciplinary thinking and collaboration. All of these skills are developed and fostered in musical instruction, which suggests that music can contribute to sustainability education. … Continue Reading

Factors that Influence the Exit Rates of Sustainability Science: A Graduate Student’s Perspective

By Colin Kunzweiler

Sustainability has been called both a buzzword and the issue of our age, but the field’s explosive growth demonstrates that it is also an “infectious” concept and field. Through a population model that included states of susceptibility, exposure and infectiousness (Figure 1), two authors recently explored individuals’ introduction to and progression within the emerging discipline of sustainability science (1). … Continue Reading

Occupy Creation!: The Role of Religion and Ethics in Addressing Climate Change

By Rev. Doug Bland

Standing on the steps of the Newman Catholic Student Center across the street from ASU’s campus and the Global Institute of Sustainability (GIOS), Rev. Jan Olav Flaaten told the story of climate refugees in the Pacific island nation of Tuvalu.  As he recounted the story of rising sea levels, Flaaten grasped the blue shower curtain that encircled him and slowly raised it from his knees to his waist to his chest.  He finished the story with only his nose sticking above the rising cloth waves. … Continue Reading

On Listening and Being Heard at Occupy Wall Street

By Allain Barnett

It was a Saturday night, and I was glued to my computer screen, watching closely as a large line of police officers closed in on a group of citizens occupying a public park in Chicago. … Continue Reading

Occupy Sustainability: Is This a Special Moment?

By Charles L. Redman, PhD

About a month ago I sent out an email to School of Sustainability (SOS) students and colleagues posing the question of whether key elements of the Occupy Wall Street movement share important similarities with our own quest to encourage and implement a sustainability transformation in society. I received a dozen replies that supported further dialogue. My goal here is to stimulate discussion of these issues with the hope that we can learn from what is happening and, if you choose to do so, encourage you to contribute to the success of this movement.

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The Problem with “Sustainability”

By Robert Kutter

It might seem like a strange message from the soon-to-be former editor-in-chief of a publication on sustainability, but I don’t like the word “sustainability.” It hides the truly admirable part of what my classmates are trying to do: solve difficult problems with new approaches for the benefit of people and the environment. Actually, sustainability connotes keeping things the same, which is the opposite of what my classmates are trying to do: change things for the better.

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Skills for Sustainability Professionals

In response to a growing need to move the world toward sustainable development and sustainable practices, a whole new professional track has emerged in the last decade. In 2010, the International Society of Sustainability Professionals (ISSP)—the professional association that serves the needs of people working in this field—undertook a research study to answer the question, “What should a sustainability professional know how to do?” What we learned should inform everyone entering and working in this field.
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