City of Dubuque Microgrants Awarded to UD Projects

DUBUQUE, Iowa - Three of the nine microgrants awarded by the City of Dubuque for its participation in Bloomberg Philanthropies' Youth Climate Action Fund (YCAF) are associated with the University of Dubuque. The projects exploring vector-borne diseases, waste reduction, and air quality are meant to help the city achieve its climate action plan goals.

"I am thankful to Mayor Brad Cavanagh and the city's Director of Sustainability Gina Bell for making this opportunity available to Dubuque," said Kelly Grussendorf, PhD, head of UD's Department of Natural and Applied Resources and associate professor of biology.

Dubuque was one of 100 cities globally selected to participate in YCAF, a program that provides funding and technical assistance for young people to design, produce, and govern urgent climate solutions. The city received $50,000 to award to the microgrant recipients to achieve their goals.

"Nothing gives me more joy than seeing students get excited about nerdy, scientific topics," Grussendorf said. "The cherry on the top is being able to watch students go from the point of working in the field and seeing them giggle when they slip in the mud, having a hard time pronouncing the difficult scientific terms they are studying, to the complete opposite when they travel to conferences to present their research, looking sharp, not covered in mud, and are experts in their topic - it is truly one of the favorite parts of my job. And this funding opportunity gives students the financial support to do just that."

YCAF PROJECTS ASSOCIATED WITH UD

Sharing Research and Increasing Awareness About Vector-Borne Diseases in Dubuque County

Paige Manning, a junior biology major from Mendota, Illinois, looks forward to educating the public on something she has become passionate about. Through her research, she will analyze and share how prevalent Lyme disease is in Dubuque parks.

"I believe this topic is important because Lyme disease, along with many other vector-borne diseases, can change someone's life quickly," Manning said. "It's important to know what to look for so we can attempt to prevent vector-borne diseases."

Manning is interested in pursuing a doctor of philosophy in disease ecology, and she feels this research project will only help in furthering that desire.

"Disease ecology interests me because it is a perfect mix between lab work and field work, which is something I was interested in," Manning said. "Also, it's a way to work with human and animal health, which are both extremely important to me."

Grussendorf is Manning's mentor throughout the research project.

"I'm excited and honored to participate in this project," Manning said. "The City of Dubuque has decided to be part of something that can make a difference in the world."

Moving to Zero Waste at UD

Ashley Noonan, MS, stewardship and sustainability coordinator at UD, will serve as a mentor to student leaders as they assess the impact of waste reduction efforts across campus.

"It's a privilege to play a role connecting UD student leaders to funding and other resources as they complete a YCAF funded project in the community," Noonan said. "In addition to support through the City of Dubuque, it leverages a national assessment model and expertise through the Post Landfill Action Network (PLAN) and local support from the University of Dubuque and the Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid Waste Agency (DMASWA). It's exciting to be part of this collaborative project that can have a lasting local impact."

Student research fellows Joey Wohlers (C'24), a graduate student in the master in management - organizational diversity and inclusion leadership program at UD from Beebeetown, Iowa, and Olivia Rosenberg, a sophomore environmental science major at UD from Racine, Wisconsin, will explore different aspects of policy and practice relating to waste. They will be able to connect with a cohort of other students completing the same assessment on campuses across the U.S. through PLAN.

"This will give UD a lens to celebrate what we are doing well and use data-driven methods to examine opportunities to grow in UD's commitment to stewardship of resources," Noonan said. "We can also share insights from the process locally with other institutions of higher education through the Dubuque Sustainable Colleges Coalition."

As Noonan shared, source-level waste reduction and landfill diversion are priorities for City of Dubuque and DMASWA officials - and part of a larger movement for reduction globally.

"This project furthers UD's role as an active participant in those priorities and conversations," Noonan said.

Solution to Recognizing Air Pollution

Maddie Hoffman, a senior at Dubuque Senior High School, is excited for the opportunity to participate in the YCAF program and help inform the community about air quality. Her mentor on the project is also her dad, Adam Hoffman, PhD, professor of environmental chemistry at UD.

"My dad has helped me gain a better understanding of ways to study air quality and helped deepen my understanding of how it can affect people and the Earth," Hoffman said.

By using equipment to detect air pollution at various locations throughout Dubuque County, Hoffman will measure the particulate matter levels in public spaces. She said it can be dangerous if people are exposed to high levels of particulate matter.

"The goal of my project is to really try and inform the population about the air quality that they may be exposing themselves to every day," Hoffman said.

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