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Columbia U. and Volvo Develop Environmental Education Partnership

3 February 1999

Columbia University and Volvo Develop Unique Environmental Education Partnership

    TUCSON, Ariz., Feb. 3 -- In a joint effort to promote
responsible stewardship of the earth, Columbia University and Volvo have
entered a unique international partnership which links education and industry
for the benefit of students around the globe.
    "This is not a sponsorship activity by Volvo, it is a true partnership
where all partners enter with their respective competences and resources to
accomplish tasks together," explains Dr. George Rupp, President of Columbia
University.
    The two partners share an interdisciplinary approach to all environmental
efforts, as well as a belief that environmental sustainability will only come
about through increased awareness and knowledge.  Each of the organizations is
investing intellectual capital toward the development of a cutting edge
curriculum that includes both academic and real-world approaches to
environmental education.
    "To learn about environmental practice is important," explains Volvo
President and CEO Leif Johannson.  "With this collaboration, we offer young
people opportunities for practical, real-world learning that prepares them to
act consciously and skillfully in their future roles."
    Additionally, ten college students each semester will be selected as Volvo
Environmental Scholars and receive full scholarships to Earth Semester, a
half-year program of hands-on, interdisciplinary environmental education at
Biosphere 2.  The first Volvo Scholars began their Earth Semester this
January.
    Not only college students will benefit from the partnership.  On February
3, a new exhibit on transport and the environment opens at Biosphere 2 Center,
Columbia University's Arizona-based research and educational facility.  The
center is visited by over 200,000 people each year.  Other public outreach
efforts are also in the works.
    "Great public benefits are rapidly materializing as a result of these
organizations' visions of a healthier planet," says Ed Bass, founder of the
Biosphere 2 Center.
    A complete press kit on this partnership is available upon request.
Information about the partnership is also available on Internet, at the
websites of Columbia University's Biosphere 2 Center (http://www.bio2.edu) and Volvo
(http://www.volvo.com).