Cell phone recycling booth at Earth Day.
“Progress and Service” --- official motto of Georgia Tech
The Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems is less of a center where all paths converge, but more of a node in a vast network. As such, the BBISS is not an isolated cooperative, but part of a larger community of people, ideas, and interests. And while it strives to lead, its purpose is to serve.
Service is inherent to everything the BBISS does. Its research mission serves the needs of people, preserves the integrity of natural systems, and conserves the resources on which all earthly life relies. Its education mission strives to imbue the next generation with a sense of purpose that the world can be made better by being made more sustainable. Its campus mission is to use the State of Georgia’s resources wisely and to ensure the long term function and viability of Georgia Tech as a leading technological teaching and research university.
We offer our expertise and experience to advance the goals of sustainability especially when such service can be leveraged into lasting and significant impact. From this perspective, influencing how young people are educated about sustainability is a leverage point like no other. From 2007 to 2009, BBISS Director, Professor John Crittenden, served on the National Science Foundation's Advisory Committee for Environmental Research and Education (AC-ERE). In September 2009, the AC-ERE released its report: Transitions and Tipping Points in Complex Environmental Systems.
On top of this innate service mindset, the BBISS also has been a significant financial or in-kind supporter of the following service related activities in 2009 and 2010:
Finally, the BBISS recognizes the strength and power in joining other like minded universities and colleges to jointly promote and joys and benefits of sustainability. This is recognized through active membership in organizations like the Center for Sustainable Engineering and the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.