Environmental Studies and Sciences
Lewis Center for Environmental Studies
The Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies (AJLC) exemplifies our teaching philosophy, which recognizes that real world experience and practical engagement complement traditional coursework.
Photo credit: Rosalind Soltow
This solar-powered building has earned national acclaim as a showcase for green building technologies and operating systems. Photovoltaic panels on the center’s roof and parking pavilion capture renewable energy from the sun and south-facing windows allow for passive solar heating.
The Lewis Center’s layout integrates natural energy flows and the building’s energy needs, its use as teaching and public space, and the desire to blur the distinction between indoors and out. Large picture windows surround the two-story atrium and serves as the primary organizing space while acting as the southern campus’s town hall. Daylighting and natural ventilation enhance the atrium’s feeling of an outdoor room.
Indoors, a specially engineered wetland called the Living Machine purifies non-potable wastewater for reuse in toilets and the landscape.
The building is both a teaching and public space as campus and community members may reserve the Hallock Auditorium for lectures, panel discussions, student presentations, film screenings, and more.