In 1975, a pioneering Environmental Technology Center (ETC) was built at Sonoma State University, one of the 22 campuses in the California State University System. Originally the Center housed laboratories, instrumentation, resource materials for research and research training in energy management, renewable energy education, and sustainable development technologies applications. Determined as seismically unsound twenty years later, the center was demolished, severely curtailing research and training programs. Funding from the Academic Research Infrastructure Program will aid the institution in its endeavor to replace the facility. Specifically, funds will be used to replace the existing space dedicated to environmental science research. The project is unique in that it will not only provide research space, but will itself be the subject of on-going study. Faculty and students will evaluate the ETC's own sustainable architectural design and will evaluate the best available energy efficiency, renewable energy, and environmental technology. Designs include: -smart building+ control and management technologies, environmentally sensitive building materials, passive solar heating and cooling systems, and solar electric technology. The new facility will be located at the Sonoma State University's EarthLab, a site on campus that has been developed into an outdoor laboratory for the study of agroecology. The ETC and the EarthLab will complement each other, providing research opportunities consistent with the department's interdisciplinary approach. By emphasizing the connections of fundamental science and practical applications for a sustainable future, this project will assist the department in preparing graduates to participate in the diffusion of environmental science and technology.
