Below, Roberta Brandes Gratz--urban critic and author most recently of The Battle for Gotham--signs books at the SyracuseCoE Symposium 2010, accompanied by Ed Bogucz, SyracuseCoE Executive Director. Next to Gratz and Bogucz, an Air Innovations HEPAiRx air conditioner/air purifier is demonstrated. More than 250 attended the Symposium over two days--Sept. 27 and 28--where Gratz was one of six plenary speakers who addressed topics relating to the Symposium's theme of "Restoring Sustainable, Healthy Communities." Said Gratz, reviewing the city's sustainability initiatives, "Here in Syracuse, you are demonstrating that you don't have to leave this city to live in a better one." Excerpts from Gratz's lecture have been published by The Post-Standard.

On Sept. 21 environmentalist and green jobs guru Majora Carter (below) gave a lecture entitled "Green the Ghetto and How it Won't Cost Us" at Hendricks Chapel on the campus of SyracuseCoE Platinum Partner Syracuse University (SU). Carter spoke about the growing green economic sector and green-collar jobs and their potential positive effect on poverty in the US. Earlier in the day, Carter toured the SyracuseCoE HQ and met for a working lunch with representatives of community groups and initiatives working on the green revitalization of the city, such as the Near Westside Initiative. For more, click here.

The Environmental Finance Center at Syracuse University (EFC) has launched GreenProjectExchange.org, a place where communities can share projects that support healthy communities in New York State. GreenProjectExchange.org features case studies on water quality, waste management, and energy efficiency that offer information such as project funding, challenges, and community engagement processes. Users have access to reports, budget summaries, photos, and other supporting files. Membership, which is free, is required to make submissions.

A team of aquatic scientists at SyracuseCoE Platinum Partner SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry has been awarded a $1.47 million grant by the National Science Foundation to renovate aquatic laboratories and expand research into topics such as fish disease, invasive species, and water quality. The funding will also provide a digital infrastructure to establish connections between SUNY ESF's campus and a biological station on Governor's Island in the St. Lawrence River. For more, click here.

SyracuseCoE Platinum Partner Herman Miller has garnered its seventh consecutive placement on the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, an international stock portfolio that evaluates the annual performance of the world's largest 2,500 companies using economic, environmental, and social criteria, known as the "triple bottom line" of sustainability. For more, click here.

SyracuseCoE Platinum Partner O'Brien & Gere has relocated its offices to downtown Syracuse's newest green building. The 132,500-square-foot Washington Station building cost $28 million and took just over a year to construct. The project utilizes multiple green technologies and practices, such as daylighting; sustainable furniture and fittings; stormwater management; low VOC paint, adhesives, and sealants; and more. For more, from The Post-Standard, click here.

SyracuseCoE Platinum Partner Carrier Corp. has launched its AdvanTE3C Solutions Center, a new global group of Experts in Efficiency and Environment focused on developing sustainable building solutions. The AdvanTE3C Solutions Center will support Carrier's customers around the world in developing strategic, energy efficient, and custom-engineered building solutions. To learn more,

SyracuseCoE-affiliated researcher Dacheng Ren, assistant professor at SyracuseCoE Platinum Partner Syracuse University's L.C. Smith College of Engineering and Computer Science, has been named the 2010 College Technology Educator of the Year by the Technology Alliance of Central New York (TACNY). For the whole story, click here.

CenterState CEO and New York's Creative Core have announced that SyracuseCoE Silver Partner Air Innovations is one of four recipients of the latest round of Grants For Growth. Air Innovations and SyracuseCoE Platinum Partner Clarkson University currently are performing clinical tests of the HEPAiRx, a superior ventilating air purifier especially effective for patients with severe asthma. Applications for the next round of Grants for Growth are being accepted through Nov. 9. For more, click here.

A case study has been developed by SyracuseCoE headquarters building vendor ARUP, featuring the design and installation of radiant chilled/heating panel technologies in the LEED-Platinum designed building, which was opened in March 2010. The study, featured in September's issue of Engineered Systems Magazine, highlights the radiant heating panels' function within the HQ's overall energy efficient HVAC system. To read the article, click here.

New York's Creative Core will hold a "Syracuse Tech Meetup" on Oct. 13 at The Tech Garden in Syracuse. The event will feature a tech demonstration of "something cool" and of interest to the creative technological and entrepreneurial community in Central Upstate New York. Inventors, creators, investors and entrepreneurs are invited to the meetup. It begins at 5:30 p.m. For more information, click here.