Director, Center for Sustainable Communities

Jon Jensen

jensjo01@luther.edu
563-387-1696
Valders 372D

Jon Jensen is the Director of the Center for Sustainable Communities and a faculty member in Environmental Studies.  He provides oversight to all areas of sustainability at Luther as well as working to expand the Center's outreach to the community and region.  Jensen is a member of the board of directors for AASHE and on the steering committee for UMACS (the Upper Midwest Association for Campus Sustainability).  He works to promote sustainability in the curriculum at Luther, in the Midwest, and throughout the country and teaches courses on Environmental Philosophy, Food and the Environment, Environmental Leadership, and Sustainable Communities.  He holds a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Professor of Religion

Jim Martin-Schramm

marschja@luther.edu
563-387-1251
Valders 372G

Jim Martin-Schramm is Professor of Religion and coordinates the Energy and Climate Program for the Center for Sustainable Communities.  He recently completed a term of service on the board of the Iowa Wind Energy Association and is currently chair of the board of Iowa Interfaith Power & Light and the Winneshiek Energy District.  He also serves as Secretary of Luther College Wind Energy Project, LLC.  Jim joined the Religion faculty of Luther College in 1993.  Most of his research has focused on ethics and public policy.  He is the author or co-author of four books including Climate Justice: Ethics, Energy, and Climate Policy (Fortress Press, 2010).  He holds a doctorate in Christian Ethics from Union Theological Seminary in New York City.

Visit him at his website: http://www.luther.edu/marschja/

Sustainable Foods Educator

Maren Stumme-Diers

stumma01@luther.edu
563-387-1722
Valders 372C

Maren Stumme-Diers works with the Northeast Iowa Food and Fitness Initiative and Luther College as a Sustainable Foods Educator.  At Luther Maren works on Edible landscaping, campus gardens, community gardens and the facilitation of education opportunities related to food. On behalf of Food and Fitness she is providing support to school gardens and food service directors throughout the region as they work to incorporate more local food into the menu.  Maren graduated from Luther College with degrees in Environmental Studies and Spanish.

Energy and Waste Steward

Erika Kambs

kamber01@luther.edu
563-387-1219
Valders 372K

As the Energy and Waste Steward, Erika coordinates both the student recyclers and the student-led Sustainability Reps program.  In addition, she works to further promote and implement energy education on campus by guiding tours of Luther's wind turbine and solar array, visit with faculty and staff to address means of energy conservation through Energy Office Visits, and assists with data collection for Luther's Carbon Footprint.  Erika is a 2008 graduate of Luther College, holding degrees in Philosophy and Spanish.

Director of Outreach

Emily Neal

nealem01@luther.edu
563-387-2138
Valders 372F

Emily Neal is the  Director of School Outreach.  She has over 18 years of experience teaching people of all ages about integrating concepts of wellness, sustainability and stewardship into their lives. Emily is responsible for supervising FoodCorps and AmeriCorps members that serve in over 18 districts throughout Northeast Iowa. Together, they help districts foster healthy environments for students, staff and the communities they serve. She has a Masters in Science Education and an undergraduate degree in Exercise Science, both from the University of Iowa.

Student Workers

At Luther we provide nearly 50 students the opportunity to be sustainability leaders through a variety of work study positions.  Students have the opportunity to work as sustainability reps, recyclers, gardeners and project managers.