
Newly-installed stations to charge up electric vehicles
Charging stations to also boost curriculum on Âgreen technology
ChildrenÂs Center
is eco-friendly
The Anna Bing Arnold ChildrenÂs Center at CSULA recently embellished its lobby area with new ECO Green area rugs. Purchased from Consolidated Plastics, the top of the rugs are made from 100-percent recycled bottles.
Also, this past week the children celebrated Earth Day by recycling paper, picking up trash, and reusing old cardboard as canvas for their art projects.
The Center is designated as an Eco-Healthy Child Care Program. The designation was awarded last year by the Oregon Environmental Council in recognition of the CenterÂs commitment to provide a healthy, safe and green child care setting for the children and families.
Here are five easy tips to go green and stay green (excerpt from a poster displayed at the CenterÂs lobby):
1. Choose safe cleaning products
2. Keep indoor air clean
3. Provide non-toxic art supplies
4. Use and choose plastics with care
5. Remember to always reduce, reuse and recycle!

L-r: Professor David Blekhman demonstrates how to activite the newly-installed electric vehicle charging stations to his students Rolando Elvira, Mark Anthony Aguilar and Fakhrul Shawaludin.
In an effort to help improve air quality by offering an alternative fuel source, Cal State L.A. recently installed two new electric vehicle charging stations in Lot 10 for commuters and campus guests.
Funded partly by a U.S. Department of Energy grant through the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, the 240-volt, level 2 charging stations also serve as an educational tool in CSULA Professor David BlekhmanÂs clean transportation classes and research.
Blekhman said, ÂIn our lab, we utilize two electric vehicles for our Power, Energy and Transportation curriculum. This is one example of how the University provides our students with hands-on learning and prepares them for careers in Âgreen industries.Â
The electric vehicles currently in use on the CSULA campus include utility carts and two passenger shuttles. Though they prevent the emission of most exhaust pollutants, these clean vehicles are not driven off campus because they are only Âstreet legal to 25 mph.
The stations, installed with support from the UniversityÂs Parking and Transportation Services, utilize the new SAE J1772 charging connector. All late-model electric and plug-in vehicles are built to accept the connector. These include Nissan Leaf, Ford EV Focus, Chevrolet Volt, 2012 Toyota Prius, CODA, Fisker Karma, and Smart ForTwo.
The stations are free to the public as long as users register for a ChargePoint® RFID smart card on the Coulomb Technologies website: https://www.chargepointportal.net. (The key card itself is a $10 one-time fee.) The UniversityÂs Parking and Transportation Service Center currently has a few cards available for CSULA faculty, staff and students.
The ChargePoint smart card activates the electric outlet and charging cable for use by electric car drivers. According to Blekhman, ÂOne hour of charging will typically power the vehicle to travel for 20 miles.Â
Due to its advanced network system, ChargePoint allows drivers to find unoccupied charging stations via web-enabled cell phones, or they may locate other charging stations at http://www.afdc.energy.gov/afdc/locator/stations/state.

CSULA adopts a beach
On Saturday, April 16, a group of CSULA students, professors and friends joined together to clean up Dockweiler Beach in Playa Del Rey.
The University adopted Dockweiler Beach as its own last fall, as part of the California Coastal CommissionÂs Adopt-A-Beach Program.
The Adopt-A-Beach Program is an educational project that gives people of all ages the opportunity to learn about and participate in the conservation of the coastal resources.
Heal the Bay facilitates the program in Los Angeles County by providing all the clean-up supplies (trash bags, data cards, pencils and gloves) for volunteers to carry out the work.
View a video clip of CSULA faculty Lollie Ragana talking about the clean-up efforts: http://www.youtube.com/csulosangeles#p/a/u/0/zlwEdKx9dJ4.
For more information, go to /univ/ppa/newsrel/csula-adoptabeach.htm.
Find out more at the following links:
- ChargePoint:
http://carcharging.com/media/pdf/NA-ChargePoint-Jan2010-highres.pdf - U.S. Department of Energy:
http://energy.gov/ - CSULAÂs Power, Energy and Transportation Lab:
/academic/ecst/tech/itec/
FacilitiesLabs/PowerEnergyTrans/powerenergytranslab.php - CSULA Parking and Transportation Service Center:
/univ/police/pt_center.php - Department of Technology at CSULA:
/academic/ecst/tech/ - College of Engineering, Computer Science, and Technology at CSULA:
/academic/ecst/ - CSULA Associated Students, Inc.Âs Project Go Green:
http://www.asicsula.org/gogreen - American Communities Program panel discussion: ÂMediating Environments (April 27):
/univ/ppa/newsrel/ACP-sustainability.htm - Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Education Project at Cal State L.A.:
/univ/ppa/newsrel/doe-hydrogenrank.htm - CSULA Sustainability Projects (2009):
/univ/ppa/spotlight/archive/2009/campus_sustainability.php - The CSU Commitment to Sustainability Report (2011):
http://www.calstate.edu/pa/documents/CSU_Sustainability_Report_2011.pdf