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Debra Rowe

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Debra Rowe
Alma mater
Employer

Debra Rowe is known nationally and internationally for her work in education and sustainability.[1] Through her work, she encourages people to create systems changes that can support a more sustainable future.[2] At the national level, Rowe is the President of the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development.[3] In the education sector, she focuses on the role of educational institutions in preparing a workforce capable of supporting the development of a green economy and meeting sustainability goals.[4] She also mentors groups such as Change the Chamber*Lobby for Climate, encouraging people to develop the skills to support and advocate for a sustainable future.[5] Rowe has worked as a consultant with both the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Energy.

Internationally, Rowe works with the Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI).[6] HESI is an open partnership between ten United Nations entities and the higher education community.[7][8][9] Rowe co-chairs HESI's Education for Green Jobs action group and its SDG Publishers Compact Fellows.[6][8] Rowe also works with the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM), an international partnership that supports clean energy policy and technology.[10] Through its Empowering People Initiative, Rowe works with governments, educators and employers to encourage the adoption of clean energy technologies and the development of a workforce with relevant education and skills.[11]

Previously, Rowe was the Director of the Sustainability Education and Economic Development Center at the National Council for Workforce Education (NCWE).[12] Rowe has also worked with the United Nations Youth Education Alliance (UNEP-YEA) and its Green Jobs Initiative.[13]

Rowe edited the two-volume encyclopedia Achieving Sustainability: Visions, Principles, and Practices (2014). She has co-authored reports, guidelines, and toolkits for use by governments, educators, employers and others, including Global Guidance for Education on Green Jobs (2021), the National Roundtable on the Workforce for a Green and Inclusive Economy (2021), Clean Energy Economy & Workforce Preparation (2023) and The Recruitment Toolkit (2024).

Rowe was a professor for forty-two years at Oakland Community College in Oakland County, Michigan where she taught classes in energy management, renewable energy, sustainable development and psychology.[14]

Early life and education

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Rowe attended Yale University, receiving her B.A. (1977), before going to the University of Michigan, from which she earned an M.B.A. in business (1988), an M.A. in psychology (1989), and a Ph.D. in business (1991).[15][16]

Career

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Rowe co-designed and taught Campus and Corporate Sustainability at the University of Vermont while also teaching at the Oakland Community College (OCC) in Oakland County, Michigan.[1][17] At OCC she taught classes in renewable energies, energy management and psychology.[18] She was a professor at OCC for 42 years, until her retirement in 2023.[19] She was active in a wide range of strategic and curriculum planning activities as well as teaching.[20][21]

In addition to addressing energy management, renewable energy and sustainability issues,[22] Rowe has focused on the role of higher education in educating people about sustainability and in creating a workforce that can support a green economy and meet sustainability goals.[4][23][24] As a consultant for the national Partnership for Environmental Technology Education (PETE), with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy, Rowe created a model for an energy management degree, designed for use in community and technical colleges.[25][26] Rowe also edited the encyclopedia Achieving Sustainability: Vision, Principles and Practices (2014).[27][22]

Rowe has been described as "a mover and shaker in the field of sustainability in higher education, and a consummate connector."[28] She is the President of the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development, based in Washington, DC[3] and serves on the advisory council of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).[3] In her work in the education sector, she focuses on the role of technical programs, schools, community colleges, universities and other higher education institutions as leaders in educating a population and a workforce that can support the development of a green economy and meet sustainability goals.[4]

Rowe has co-founded related networks of organizations including the Higher Education Associations Sustainability Consortium (HEASC, 2005)[29] and the Disciplinary Associations Network for Sustainability (DANS, 2006[30])[31][32][33][34]

Through the US Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development, Rowe mentors Change the Chamber*Lobby for Climate,[5] a “nonpartisan coalition of young adults, 100+ student groups, and other allied organizations”.[35] The youth network creates materials and educates people on how to support environmental and social well-being and advocate for a sustainable future. Its mission is to “educate for science-based climate action... pursue meaningful change towards an equitable, sustainable future, and empower others to do the same."[36]

Rowe has also been the Director of the Sustainability Education and Economic Development Center at the National Council for Workforce Education (NCWE), a council affiliated with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). There she co-created the National Clean Energy Workforce Alliance.[12][37] Rowe chaired the Technical Advisory Group for the national Sustainability Education & Economic Development (SEED) Center, originally created by the AACC[38][39] and later managed by the NCWE.[40] She co-authored the National Roundtable on the Workforce for a Green and Inclusive Economy: Recommendations to the White House and Federal Agency Staff (2021).[41][42] She has served as the AACC's designate to the World Federation of Colleges and Polytechnics.[43]

Internationally, Debra Rowe co-chairs the Education for Green Jobs action group for the Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI).[6] HESI is an open partnership between United Nations entities and the higher education community. UN partners in the initiative include UN DESA, UNESCO, the UN Global Compact’s Principles for Responsible Management Education initiative, and the United Nations Academic Impact initiative, among others.[7] Rowe has worked with the UN Youth Education Alliance (UNEP-YEA) on its Green Jobs Initiative, and is a co-author with Mari Nishimura of Global Guidance for Education on Green Jobs (2021).[13][44]

Rowe also works for the Clean Energy Ministerial’s Empowering People Initiative (EPI) which organized a series of virtual cross-sector Solutions Summits for governmental policy and program staff, educators and clean energy employers. With participants from over 90 countries, the initiative encouraged the acceleration of the adoption of clean energy technologies and workforce development policies for an inclusive clean energy transition.[11] Rowe facilitated EPI's project for Integrated Policymaking and Empowering Communications for the Clean Energy Economy and Workforce (IPEC)[45] and authored the Clean Energy Economy & Workforce Preparation (2023) toolkit.[46]

Rowe also co-chairs HESI's SDG Publishers Compact Fellows,[47][48] an action group that develops tools, strategies, initiatives and recommended actions for connecting practitioners, policymakers, researchers, educators, students and the public, and helping communities to address challenges related to the United Nations sustainable development goals.[8]

As a consultant, Rowe has worked with the U.S. Department of Education to develop a project on how “Sustainability Improves Students Learning”.[1] She works with higher education organizations, teachers and students to integrate sustainability through both professional and program development.[38][49][50] One initiative provides curricula and other resources relating to the solar, wind, green building, energy efficiency and sustainability education sectors, through the AACC's SEED Center.[38] Other projects have been developed to connect those teaching, learning and working in the field. "Projects That Matter" is a free nonprofit website for connecting people with projects and activities.[51][22][52] "Beyond Doom and Gloom: Engage in Climate Solutions" works to increase engagement and advocacy.[51][22][53][54]

Rowe has also worked with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory as a consultant.[55] One project connects textbook publishers with open-source resources about technologies such as decarbonization to encourage their adoption in textbooks.[56] Another project created a toolkit for recruiting students to enter trades involving energy efficiency, renewable energy, building electrification and decarbonization, areas with a significant shortage of trained workers.[55][57]

Selected publications

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  • Rowe, Debra, ed. (2014). Achieving Sustainability: Visions, Principles, and Practices. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA. ISBN 9780028662046.
  • Nishimura, Mari; Rowe, Debra (2021). Global Guidance for Education on Green Jobs: Connecting Higher Education and Green Opportunities for Planetary Health. United Nations Environment Programme.
  • Rowe, Debra; Nicholson, Amber; Leland, Hannah (2021). "National Roundtable on the Workforce for a Green & Inclusive Economy: Recommendations to the White House and Federal Agency Staff" (PDF). The SEED Center.
  • Rowe, Debra (2023). Clean Energy Economy & Workforce Preparation (PDF). Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) Empowering People Initiative.
  • Carey, Kelly; Rowe, Debra; Son, Angela N.; Hill, Sarah (2024). The Recruitment Toolkit: Recruiting Employees and Students for Residential Building Energy Efficiency & Heat Pumps (PDF). Building Performance Institute; US Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development.

Awards and honors

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External videos
video icon Education Leadership Award: Debra Rowe, C3E Women in Clean Energy Symposium, 2014

References

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  1. ^ a b c Sengupta, Enakshi; Blessinger, Patrick; Yamin, Taisir Subhi (19 June 2020). University Partnerships for Sustainable Development. Emerald Group Publishing. p. 181. ISBN 978-1-78973-643-4.
  2. ^ Rowe, Debra (20 July 2007). "Education for a Sustainable Future". Science. 317 (5836): 323–324. doi:10.1126/science.1143552. PMID 17641184.
  3. ^ a b c "Meet the AASHE Advisory Council Members Today!". The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  4. ^ a b c Martin, James (14 March 2012). The Sustainable University: Green Goals and New Challenges for Higher Education Leaders. JHU Press. pp. 145–147. ISBN 978-1-4214-0459-2.
  5. ^ a b "Begin Here: Introduction & Orientation" (PDF). Change the Chamber. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
  6. ^ a b c Nuthall, Keith (22 July 2023). "UN initiative pushes integration of SDGs in rankings". University World News.
  7. ^ a b "Forum Examines Evolving Role of Higher Education in Achieving the SDGs - Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability". United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability. July 19, 2023. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  8. ^ a b c Worthington, Roger P.; Lough, Derek; Lad, Nikita; Gardner, Victoria (11 March 2022). "Supporting research and education stakeholders in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals: practical advice from the Higher Education Sustainability Initiative SDG Publishers Compact Fellows" (PDF). Under the UNESCO World Higher Education Conference (WHEC2022) Section for Higher Education.
  9. ^ "Higher Education Sustainability Initiative | Department of Economic and Social Affairs". United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
  10. ^ "Clean Energy Ministerial". Energy.gov.
  11. ^ a b "Clean Energy Workforce Preparation for an Inclusive Green Economy". Mission 4.7. 2023-06-14. Retrieved 2024-07-04.
  12. ^ a b Dembicki, Matthew (24 May 2022). "Q&A: Cultivating a diverse clean energy workforce - Community College Daily". Community College Daily. American Association of Community Colleges. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  13. ^ a b "Education for Green Jobs | Department of Economic and Social Affairs". United Nations United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Sustainable Development.
  14. ^ "Campus Sustainability Leadership Instructor Biographies" (PDF). University of Vermont.
  15. ^ "Debra Rowe – Curriculum for sustainability". Sustainability Curriculum Consortium.
  16. ^ "Dr. Debra Rowe" (PDF). Live Green.
  17. ^ a b "OCC Faculty Honored for Energy Leadership". Oakland Community College Spirit. 19 September 2014.
  18. ^ "Officers". The U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development.
  19. ^ "Board of Trustees Regular Meeting Agenda" (PDF). Oakland Community College. February 21, 2023.
  20. ^ Leone, Katie; Komisar, Simeon; III, Edwin M. Everham (21 May 2021). Making the Sustainable University: Trials and Tribulations. Springer Nature. ISBN 978-981-334-477-8.
  21. ^ Barlett, Peggy F.; Chase, Geoffrey W. (2 April 2004). Sustainability on Campus: Stories and Strategies for Change. MIT Press. ISBN 978-0-262-25071-9.
  22. ^ a b c d e "Debra Rowe". The Clean Energy Education & Empowerment (C3E) Initiative.
  23. ^ Rowe, Debra (20 July 2007). "Education for a Sustainable Future". Science. 317 (5836): 323–324. doi:10.1126/science.1143552. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 17641184.
  24. ^ Pronto, Lindon N. (2012). Exploring German and American Modes of Pedagogical and Institutional Sustainability: Forging a Way into the Future. Pitzer Senior Theses.
  25. ^ Martin, James (14 March 2012). The Sustainable University: Green Goals and New Challenges for Higher Education Leaders. JHU Press. p. 317. ISBN 978-1-4214-0459-2.
  26. ^ "Partnership for Environmental Technology Education - WTP Cooperative Agreement Awardee". National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
  27. ^ Eflin, James (1 March 2015). "Debra Rowe (Ed.): Achieving Sustainability: Visions, Principles, and Practices, 2 volumes (Gale/Cengage Learing)". Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences. 5 (1): 85–86. Bibcode:2015JEnSS...5...85E. doi:10.1007/s13412-014-0209-5. ISSN 2190-6491.
  28. ^ Walton, Judy (February 2020). "Interview with Judy Walton, an AASHE Lifetime Achievement Award Winner". Sustainability. 13 (1): 26–31. doi:10.1089/sus.2020.29180.jw. ISSN 1937-0695.
  29. ^ Jacobs, Bruce A. (17 April 2012). Enhancing Sustainability Campuswide: New Directions for Student Services, Number 137. John Wiley & Sons. pp. 9–10. ISBN 978-1-118-34580-1.
  30. ^ Calder, Wynn; Dautremont-Smith, Julian (2009). "Higher Education: More and More Laboratories for Inventing a Sustainable Future". In Dernbach, John C. (ed.). Agenda for a Sustainable America (PDF). Washington D.C.: Environmental Law Institute. pp. 93–107.
  31. ^ Desha, Cheryl; Rowe, Debra; Hargreaves, Doug (3 July 2019). "A review of progress and opportunities to foster development of sustainability-related competencies in engineering education". Australasian Journal of Engineering Education. 24 (2): 61–73. doi:10.1080/22054952.2019.1696652. hdl:10072/394416. ISSN 2205-4952.
  32. ^ Desha, Cheryl; Hargroves, Karlson 'Charlie' (8 October 2013). Higher Education and Sustainable Development: A model for curriculum renewal. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-66565-5.
  33. ^ Koehn, Peter H.; Uitto, Juha I. (7 April 2017). Universities and the Sustainable Development Future: Evaluating Higher-Education Contributions to the 2030 Agenda. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-315-44995-1.
  34. ^ "HEASC". The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. 2 November 2016.
  35. ^ "8 Intergenerational Climate Action "Learning from Stories for Change"" (PDF). Environmental Justice Task Force Newsletter. June 2024.
  36. ^ "About Change the Chamber". Change The Chamber.
  37. ^ Brown, Gwen (8 December 2021). "IREC Launches Cross-Sector Alliance to Grow a Diverse Clean Energy Workforce". Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC).
  38. ^ a b c Pulaski, Jane (13 April 2011). "The SEED Center helps community colleges build green workforce development programs". Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC).
  39. ^ Ashford, Ellie (28 August 2020). "New toolkit helps colleges meet job demand in renewables - Community College Daily". Community College Daily.
  40. ^ "About". The SEED Center. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  41. ^ "National Roundtable on the Workforce for a Green & Inclusive Economy: Report". The SEED Center.
  42. ^ National Roundtable on the Workforce for a Green and Inclusive Economy (2021). "National Roundtable on the Workforce for a Green and Inclusive Economy: Recommendation to the White House and Federal Agency Staff" (PDF). Washington DC.
  43. ^ "Five Questions: What's Happening on the International Environmental Education Scene?". The National Wildlife Federation Blog. March 7, 2012 [May 6, 2009].
  44. ^ Nishimura, Mari; Rowe, Debra (2021). Global Guidance for Education on Green Jobs: Connecting Higher Education and Green Opportunities for Planetary Health 2021 (PDF). United Nations Environment Programme.
  45. ^ "Clean Energy Economy and Workforce Preparation: IPEC Solution Summits". Clean Energy Ministerial.
  46. ^ Rowe, Debra (2023). Clean Energy Economy & Workforce Preparation (PDF). Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) Empowering People Initiative.
  47. ^ "Debra Rowe". SDG Compact Fellows.
  48. ^ "HESI Action Group webinar - SDG Publishers Compact 09.30 – 10.45 AM (EDT), 22 March 2023, virtual" (PDF). United Nations. 22 March 2023.
  49. ^ Rowe, Debra; Gentile, Susan Jane; Clevey, Lilah (3 April 2015). "The U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development: Progress and Challenges Ahead". Applied Environmental Education & Communication. 14 (2): 112–120. Bibcode:2015AEEC...14..112R. doi:10.1080/1533015X.2014.978048.
  50. ^ McKeown, Rosalyn; Nolet, Victor (26 July 2012). Schooling for Sustainable Development in Canada and the United States. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 978-94-007-4273-4.
  51. ^ a b Sustainability Report: Council for Sustainable Futures (PDF). Council for Sustainable Futures (CSF). 2022. pp. 17–18.
  52. ^ "Leadership and Advisors". Projects That Matter.
  53. ^ "Beyond Doom and Gloom: Climate Solutions". The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. 11 July 2017.
  54. ^ "Beyond Doom and Gloom: Engage Students in Climate Solutions". The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. 15 April 2019.
  55. ^ a b "The Recruitment Toolkit: Recruiting Employees and Students for Residential Building Energy Efficiency & Heat Pumps" (PDF). Building Performance Institute and US Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development. 2024.
  56. ^ Alexander, Bryan (26 October 2022). "Live-blogging the Dickinson College International Climate Symposium, day 3". Bryan Alexander.
  57. ^ "Clean Energy Job Creation and Growth". Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy.
  58. ^ "Mid-Career Award Winners". The Clean Energy Education & Empowerment (C3E) Initiative.
  59. ^ "Clean Energy Education & Empowerment (C3E) Initiative" (PDF). Clean Energy Ministerial.
  60. ^ "Association of Energy Engineers Awards Winners | AEE®". AEE Center. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
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