SUNY Oswego - Alumni Association - August E-Newsletter

August 2010 • Vol 6 No 5

Oswego to Generate Power, Education with Campus Wind Project

A wind power project will provide energy to the electrical system of a building regularly exposed to Lake Ontario’s energetic air stream.

The Powair wind turbine gets turning on top of Lee Hall in July The project aims to use a wind turbine with a small footprint to provide an estimated 40,000 kilowatt hours of electricity a year from atop the campus heating plant in Lee Hall.

Impact Technologies Group of Syracuse, which already has recruited Destiny USA and the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry for demonstration projects, has teamed up with SUNY Oswego, its professors and students to perfect the powAir Sail’s design.

“They’re looking to optimize their design so they can take it to the next level and offer this as a commercial product,” said John Moore, the college’s director of engineering and sustainability.

Moore estimated the turbine would produce enough energy in less than 12 years to pay back the estimated $50,000 initial investment. The college will look for federal and state funding for small wind projects to help make the purchase.

As with the geothermal project that will help heat and cool the college’s future sciences complex, Moore emphasized the educational benefits of monitoring and studying this alternative energy project.

“I’m looking forward to it,” Moore said. “Our earth sciences faculty are excited.” He said meteorology professor Dr. Robert Ballentine helped envision the proposal and the potential learning experiences for students. Moore also anticipates interest from other departments such as physics and technology.

— Jeff Rea '71

PHOTO CAPTION:
The patent-pending powAir Sail from Image Technologies Group of Syracuse is the type of small-footprint, vertical-axis unit was installed on Lee Hall in July.

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Who doesn’t want to save the world? Michael Kite ’02 does that for a living through World Wildlife Fund.

As marketing specialist for one of the world’s leading conservation organizations, Kite and his team of three work to raise more than $5 million each year. The majority of that money comes from licensing partnerships and promotions with the likes of Barnes & Noble, Gap, Hewlett-Packard, Dial and Coinstar.

Retail partnerships help WWF spread its message to the general public and raise funds for its conservation work around the globe. For example, Bank of America contributes $100 for every special Visa account opened and Nabisco is supporting WWF’s “Year of the Tiger” initiative with special packaging and a $100,000 donation. The new CVS Green Bag Tag program rewards reusable bag-toting customers, and generates five cents for WWF for each tag sold.

All support WWF’s mission of protecting the future of nature, down to the finest details, Kite said.

“We like to see that the product is made from recycled material and is recyclable itself, and somehow ties into our mission,” Kite said. The Green Bag Tag, for instance, is made from a corn-based material and features a 100 percent recycled silicone lanyard.

As a broadcasting major at Oswego, Kite got involved with WRVO-FM and WNYO-FM.

“I think it gave me a lot more confidence in talking to people,” he said. It was an important part of his early career in broadcast sales and remains an important piece in the message he “sells” today.

“The best part of my job is seeing a product in the store with the WWF logo after months of working with a company to launch it,” said Kite, who joined the organization in 2006. “It’s rewarding to give people a fun, unique way to protect our planet.”

— Shane M. Liebler