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About

NDU Student Chapter of the Air & Waste Management Association

Affiliation

East Central Section of the Air & Waste Management Association

Association Website

https://www.awma.org/

Mission

AWMA mission is to assist in the professional development and critical environmental decision-making of our members to benefit society.

Who are we?

We are professionals & students from all over the world, working in the environmental and related industries, all learning and sharing to reach one common goal.

Who can join?

NDU students from all faculties.

How to join?    

Register at: https://www.awma.org/students

You may contact our board officers for further information and help:

 

Activities

January 2018

A waste management project is one of NDU’s most recent initiatives, and it includes the sorting and handling of general waste, hazardous waste, and e-waste products with the aim of redirecting the University toward the long-term “no-waste” path. In order to ensure high recovery efficiency, a campus-wide campaign was launched during fall 2017.
The Student Chapter delivered an impactful presentation to spread awareness about NDU’s waste sorting campaign, titled “Sort Properly – For All The Right Causes”, in the 50 most-populated classes. A follow up booth was set for two days.

March 2018

The Student Chapter organized a field trip to the wastewater treatment plant of Tyr (Sour), one of the biggest in Lebanon. The students had the chance to see conventional treatment units, such as screens, clarifiers and aeration tanks, as well as advanced treatment technologies, such as ultraviolet disinfection and anaerobic digestion.

March 2018

The AWMA student chapter at NDU organized a seminar by Mr. Hassan Ktaech, Senior Project Manager, Hazardous Materials and Building Waste Design, at ECOH, Canada: http://www.ecoh.ca/
The seminar addressed Asbestos: a hazardous material that became the leading cause of occupationally related cancer death, and the second fatal manufactured carcinogen (after tobacco). The attendees learned about this hazard that was once coined the “miracle mineral” for its remarkable range of properties, and more importantly, insight on how to manage this hazard at home and working place.

May 2018

The student chapter hosted a seminar entitled “Waste Management in Lebanon”, delivered by Mr. Antonis Mavropoulos, the president of the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA).
The seminar was attended by members of local and international entities, including Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform (OMSAR), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Ministry of the Environment. Also, representatives of local authorities (Federation of the Municipalities of Keserwan) and waste management companies (Ouvrages and Compost Baladi) were present. The seminar was visited by Dean of Student, Ms. Joyce Menassa, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, Dr. Michel El-Hayek, Chairperson of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Dr. Talal Salem, and faculty members and students from various faculties.
The seminar consisted of two main parts:
- The world’s worst five waste management cases (New Delhi, Cairo, Mexico, Napoli, and Netherlands)
- Discussion of the case of Lebanon in light of the failures observed in other countries

Definition of the CSA

The Department of Community Service and Awareness (CSA) was implemented at NDU as a subset of the Office of Student Affairs (SAO) the base of outreach for NDU students. It aims at providing students with opportunities to benefit their communities by working with non-profit organizations and by adopting, planning, and completing university-wide projects.

The NDU mission statement takes its spirit from the watchwords of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God: modesty, sacrifice, offering without limits, and working in silence. The CSA is then, from a university standpoint, an extension of this mission outside the university campus. It is also an affirmation of NDU's commitment to building generations that will act as vessels of social responsibility and to improving Lebanese society. The CSA, will provide a headquarters dedicated to community service for the students who want to be involved, and will expand in order to include as many students in the NDU spirit as possible. By implementing the CSA, NDU will contribute in optimizing the potential of the students by installing in them, ethics, faith and values.

CSA MOTTO: BELIEVING, CROSSING, ACHIEVING

Believing

At the heart of CSA activity lie several central beliefs. Each of us is inextricably linked to our environments, our country in the larger sense down to our families. A sense of responsibility comes with this link especially with the belief that each of us, students and staff, and with God's grace, has the potential of being a tool of positive change in our communities. The CSA also believes that each student has a unique talent, that there is room for everyone to contribute, each in his or her own way, and that all of these talents are equally valuable.

Crossing

Bridges are a central concern in the CSA work ethic. Bridges can bypass the deepest abyss. The CSA will consolidate already existing bridges in the form of non-governmental organization (NGO) activity and will pioneer new bridges in the form of the university's student-based projects. In addition, bridges are a team effort: a bridge is only as strong as the connections between its components. Finally, bridges form a bond between previously isolated locations. This aspect symbolizes that the efforts of the CSA will broach new channels of communication between NDU students and their communities. This relationship will be mutually beneficial and permanently alter the make-up of both parties.

Achieving

The nature of CSA activity is goal-oriented. It aims at providing real-life opportunities for students to actualize their potential in order to produce a qualitative change in the state of their communities. Perseverance in seeing a project through to the end will be emphasized. Difficulties will be anticipated during the course of student planning and overcome. Students will be able to follow up on the results of their projects to ensure that the improvement is maintained.

INSPIRATION

Patron Saints

The patron saints of the CSA are Mother Theresa of Calcutta, Pope John Paul II, and Abouna Yaacoub. Mother Theresa of Calcutta, who dedicated her life to caring for the poorest of the poor, stands as the firmest example that all it takes to change the world is love for our fellow human beings and the desire to serve in God's Grace. Pope John Paul II focused on the universal call to holiness, reminding us that we should all live holy lives and spread holiness to others, for we are under the same standard that is applied to saints. As a result, Pope John Paul II empowered the world youth and encouraged them to lean on the Virgin Mary, to whom he was especially devoted. Abouna Yaacoub is an example of wise thinking and achieving social projects. He founded numerous hospitals and outreach center. He reminds us also that Lebanon still maintains its ties to sainthood.

Mascot

The CSA takes the white elephant as its mascot. The elephant is tough and useful and was even involved in the construction of the pyramids. It is also clever and compassionate and has the distinct ability of dive right into the dirt to accomplish its work and then wash itself off with its trunk. The color white symbolizes purity and happiness and also relates to John Paul II.

 

Climate change presents a real threat that has environmental, social, economic and political impacts worldwide especially in the Middle East and Mediterranean region. The debate is no longer about: Will our climate change? but rather about 'How will it change, how can we cope with its impacts (adaptation), and how can we limit future climate change (mitigation)?

 

Today, climate change education depends on interdisciplinary knowledge and practice. The minor in Climate Change and Sustainability Policy (CLIMASP) will offer you the necessary knowledge, skills, and attributes to tackle challenges of climate change and become agents of change locally and globally. Choosing the CLIMASP minor combined with any major degree will give you the opportunity to pursue a second area of interest that can open significant career opportunities, besides building knowledge and skills in the area that fulfills your personal interests. For more information, you can visit http://www.ictinesd.org/unescochair/climasp/

 

If you are an NDU student and you would like to earn a Minor degree in CLIMASP and a EURO- ARAB PASS diploma, read well this site!

 

How To Register

To register in CLIMASP minor programme, you need to register for courses offered by the CLIMASP project. You can organize your program of study with the following faculty members depending on your major:

• Omar Sakr, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics (osakr@ndu.edu.lb);
• Talal Salem, Faculty of Engineering (tsalem@ndu.edu.lb);
• Tanos El Hage, Faculty of Applied and Natural Sciences (thage@ndu.edu.lb);
• George Labaki, Faculty of Law and Political Sciences (glabaki@ndu.edu.lb).

 

Students will be provided a formal credential through transcript documentation (Euro-Arabpass) adapting the Europass diploma to certify that they have developed leadership in the field of climate change and sustainability policy.

  

Why Choose the CLIMASP Minor

• Open for you significant career opportunities;
• Provide you with more hands-on experiences;
• Help you shape your future path;
• Enrich your major study programmes;
• Add depth and breadth to your studies.

Minor Requirements

To satisfy the requirements for the CLIMAP minor, the student must complete a minimum of 27 – 36 credits, including 9 credits of a capstone course. The capstone course provides the necessary background and research experience to students planning to work in national and regional environmental management initiatives and ventures or pursue graduate degrees and indulge in scientific research.

The interdisciplinary CLIMASP courses will consist of core courses, elective courses, and the required capstone course in the three Concentration Areas, namely:

• CA1: Climate Change, Environment and Society
• CA2: Climate Change, Economics and Public Policy
• CA3: Climate Change, Science and Technology

 

Students are required to take 3 core courses from the 1st Concentration Area (CA). Such courses should be oriented to social, environmental, economic and cultural aspects of climate change. Students from the 1st CA have to take at least 2 courses from the 2nd CA and 2 courses from the 3rd CA, according to their preferences (electives). The capstone course will be equivalent to 9 credits that will focus on an independent study/internship. Students will choose the concentration area upon which they want to work for an independent study/internship that merges theory with praxis, applying problem-based learning and service learning methodologies.

Upon completion of the minor along with their major, students will be granted the Euro-Arab Pass Diploma provided they complete from 27-36 credits in relevant topics. It is suggested that courses taken for the Bachelor degree of the student may count towards fulfilling the CLIMASP components of their programs of study.

Upon completion of the minor along with their major, students will be granted the Euro-Arab Pass Diploma provided they complete from 27-36 credits in relevant topics. It is suggested that courses taken for the Bachelor degree of the student may count towards fulfilling the CLIMASP components of their programs of study.

 

Minor Eligibility

The CLIMASP minor is interdisciplinary. There are no special admission requirements for NDU students except for a satisfactory GPA (as per NDU regulations). Students can enroll in the minor during their second year of study. Though four faculties (Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Engineering, and Faculty of Law and Political Science) participated in the CLIMASP project, the minor is open to any student from any NDU faculty.

 

Suggested Structure and Courses

The structure of the CLIMASP Minor at NDU shall be according to the following:

 

Core Courses:

 

Courses in Concentration Area 1:

 

Courses in Concentration Area 2:

 

Courses in Concentration Area 3:

 

Courses Description

 

Core Courses

ENS 201 Introduction to Environmental Science (3.0); 3 cr. Introduction to the basic environmental global problems facing the Earth with emphasis on pollution and the use of energy resources. Prerequisite: Sophomore Standing.

ENS 205 Environment, Society and Ethics (3.0); 3 cr. Introduction to the environmental goods and services. Impacts of population growth and economic development on the environment, the evolution of societies, community organizations and the quality of life are presented. Special focus is given to the value types and existing moral relationships between human beings and their environment, environmental ethics views, their evolution and effects on the environment and wildlife protection. Sustainability principles and the impacts of international policies, environmental management worldviews and legally binding agreements on natural resources, societies and the world’s economic balance are emphasized.

BAD 431 Ethics in Business (3.0); 3 cr. A practical rather than philosophical approach to the ethical dimension of business actions. The course deals with the ethical problem and dilemmas of individuals, managers, and organizations. Prerequisite: Senior Standing.

 

Courses in Concentration Area 1

PAD 421 Fiscal and Budgetary Policies of Lebanon (3.0); 3 cr. A study of the budgetary process from a legal and economic perspective. Topics include, among others, the public debt, taxation, and financial policy.

BAD 429 Operations Management (3.0); 3 cr. Introduction to the concepts, techniques and methodology of modern operations management. Topics covered include: forecasting; production planning and scheduling; facility location and layout; quality control; productivity; inventory systems; process design; maintenance and reliability. Prerequisite: Senior Standing

ECN 439 Economics of Developing Countries (3.0); 3 cr. A study of the economics of developing countries. Topics covered include: meaning of underdevelopment; historical patterns of economic change in the developing countries; population problems; obstacles to development; role of industry and agriculture; inequality of income and wealth distribution; economic planning; foreign aid and indebtedness. Prerequisites: ECN 211, ECN 212

IAF 239 Elements of Globalization (3.0); 3 cr. This course analyzes the multitude of factors that have increasingly been leading to the phenomenon of globalization in the international system: political, economic, technological, communication, cultural, organizational, financial, legal, and structural/ political among others. The course focuses on case studies in the various dimensions of globalization worldwide, and on directed individual and group research.

TTM 326 Domestic Travel and Tourism Development (2.2); 3 cr. The course provides a complete description and geography of domestic tourism from the view-point of the traveler and the travel/tourism entrepreneur. Students will gain a solid practical understanding of local travel and tourism development, and potentials from a specific destination and potentials. Field trips and projects are part of this course. Junior Standing.

 

Courses in Concentration Area 2

BAD 428 Global Logistics, Supply Chain Strategies and Sustainability (3.0); 3 cr. The main objective of this course is to explore how companies define and manage supply chain strategies in globally networked economies by relying on a network of suppliers and customers to provide products and services. Just-In-Time Delivery (JITD), Build-To-Order (BTO) business models, Vendor-Managed Inventory (VMI), and outsourcing strategies are pervasive in current economies thus presenting complex problems that require new tools and novel approaches to address them. This course combines a study of concepts and tools with case studies culminating in a project whereby students will address a business problem related to logistics efficiency for a company of their choice. This course will address issues facing global supply networks and the transition from product suppliers to service suppliers including the concept of sustainability and its role in Supply Chain Management. Case studies will cover multiple industries such as electronics and high tech (EHT), pharmaceuticals, apparel, consumer packaged goods (CPG), fast moving consumer goods (FMCG), and retail. The classes involve discussions emphasizing issues in logistics and supply networks and how to Make a business case for sustainable SCM using typical concepts and practical examples.

ECN 333 Managerial Economics (3.0); 3 cr. Application of economic analysis to business problems. Topics covered include: risk analysis; theory of consumer choice; estimation and analysis of demand, production and cost functions; forms of competition; pricing techniques; profits; game theory. Prerequisites: ECN 211, STA 206 or STA 210.

ECN 434 Environmental and Natural Resource Economics (3.0); 3 cr. An introduction to the natural resource and environmental economics, and sustainable development. Topics covered include: introduction to resource and environmental economics; ethical foundations of environmental economics; economic concepts and analysis for examining natural resource use; the valuation of environmental resources; the population problem; sustainability and sustainable development; depletable, recyclable, non-recyclable, replenishable, storable, renewable and reproducible resources; the efficient and optimal use of environmental resources; the economics of pollution and pollution control policy; international and global environmental pollution problems. Prerequisites: ECN 211.

ECN 444 Climate Change Economics and Sustainability Policy (3.0); 3 cr. Introduction to the complex world of climate change economics and sustainability policy. Environmental issues are inter-related in complex ways and have important ethical, political, economic, social and technical dimensions. This course examines how human decisions affect the quality of the environment; how human values and institutions shape our demands for quality improvement; and, how to design effective economic and development policies to bring about these improvements.

LAW 264 Environmental Law (2.0); 2cr. This course examines Lebanese and Comparative Environmental Law and serves as a useful introduction both to the particular complexities of Environmental Law and to the skills necessary in mastering any complex area of regulation. The first part of the court considers the character of environmental disputes, the problems inherent in fashioning legal rules for their resolution, and the history of the emergence of modern comparative Environmental Law. The second part of the course reviews several specific Lebanese and comparative environmental statues. All the statues serve as illustrations of the different regulatory approaches to environmental problems: “command and control,” information disclosure, and market-based instruments.

IAF 401 Public International Law (3.0); 3 cr. A study of the sources of Public International Law and its application in interstate relations.

POS 201 Introduction to Political Science (3.0); 3 cr. Covers the basic concepts in political science. Prerequisite: ENL 107

PAD 312 Regulatory Politics (3.0); 3 cr. Studies the development and implementation of governmental policies regulating business activities, consumer and labor.

Courses in Concentration Area 3

BIO 314 Ecology (3.0); 3 cr. Principles of ecosystems; the interaction of organisms & their environment. Food web, energy flow & nutrient cycling in ecosystems. Factors which affect the distribution & abundance of species: Wildlife resources & extinction. Prerequisite: BIO 212, also listed as ENS 303.

BIO 324 Plant Physiology (3.2); 4 cr. Basic principles of plant physiology; the physiological processes of green plants and the effect of the environment on these processes. Prerequisites: BIO 212, BIO 227.

CEN 461 Water Pollution control and treatment (3.0); 3 cr. Fundamental principles and engineering application of physical, chemical, and biological processes (like sedimentation, filtration, coagulation, flocculation, membranes, aerobic, anaerobic biological processes) are discussed. Prerequisite: CEN 462 or instructor’s approval.

CEN 462 Environmental Engineering (3.0); 3 cr. Quantitative evaluation of the environmental, economic, and technical problems involved in control of pollutants of the air, water, and land. Prerequisite: MEN 215.

CEN 560 Air pollution Engineering (3.0); 3 cr. Characterization of sources, emissions, transport, transformation, effects, and control of air pollutants. Prerequisite: CEN 462, or instructor’s approval.

CEN 262 Environmental Remote Sensing and GIS (3.0); 3 cr. Introducing the concepts, science, and theory of geographic information systems (GIS) and remote sensing (RS) technology with their various environmental applications while having a hands-on computer experience to stress the critical concepts.

CEN 466 Environmental Pollution and Control (3.0); 3 cr. Concepts and principles to identify and control water, air and noise pollution. This course also provides knowledge on solid waste and hazardous waste management, and the effects of pollution to general health.

MEN 518 Renewable Energy Systems (3.0); 3 cr. Renewable energy resources and systems: Solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, biomass, etc. Applications in buildings and power generation. Prerequisite: MEN 310.

 

Capstone Course (15 ECTS)

The capstone course enables students to apply and synthesize the material learned in other courses, develop expertise on a specific topic related to the student concentration; work closely with experts in the field of study; and advance professional recommendations and solutions for implementation of climate change and sustainability policy. In the semester prior to conducting the capstone course, students must identify a project topic and a faculty advisor who is both familiar with the selected topic and willing to guide and oversee the project. The student can also have a co-advisor from the student's place of work or any expert with appropriate credentials. Course topics can be faculty or student initiated. Faculty members can post project topics for students to select from or receive project proposals from students. The project work can be individual or group project as approved by project advisor and program coordinator. Formal proposals must be submitted at least two weeks prior to the start of the semester in which the project is to be completed. The proposal must be approved by the program coordinator prior to enrollment in the course. Students working to complete the Euro-Arab pass diploma need to complete a 15-ECTS project (Internship). The project takes place over the course of one-semester.

By the completion of the capstone course, students will gain a fundamental understanding of alternative green technologies in their area of concentration and will be able to:
 

• Develop a case study of climate change and sustainable policy;
• Integrate knowledge and use various streams of knowledge and skills acquired in various courses, and concentrations;
• Describe the business requirements and success; and/or;
• Critique past and current policy and codes.

The capstone course could include an internship component or professional experience through training in the execution of real-life climate change and sustainable policy problems and projects.