SUNY Chancellor King Announces Second Cohort of Sustainability Faculty Fellows
September 23, 2026
12 Fellows from Across SUNY's Campuses Will Strengthen Knowledge of Climate and Sustainability for Students and Faculty
Albany, NY — State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today announced the second cohort of SUNY's Sustainability Faculty Fellows. The 12 fellows, representing 10 SUNY campuses, will strengthen curricular programs on climate and sustainability for students and faculty across SUNY's 64 colleges and universities. While visiting Farmingdale State College, Chancellor King and SUNY Board Trustee Stanley Litow met with two of the fellows, Professor Orla Smyth LoPiccolo, from Architecture and Construction, and Professor Jing (Betty) Feng, from Business. Photos from the visit are available here.
"SUNY is leading the way in helping New York State achieve its climate and sustainability goals," said SUNY Chancellor King. "Through the work of SUNY's Sustainability Faculty Fellows, we are inspiring our students to build a resilient and sustainable future. Our students are eager to lead the way in tackling global challenges like climate change, and I am proud of the work of our dedicated faculty members to prepare the next generation of climate-conscious individuals."
The SUNY Board of Trustees said, "SUNY is committed to providing our students with the tools they need to be knowledgeable about climate change and sustainability, and we are proud to be a leader in New York State's sustainability efforts. We applaud the faculty members selected to be Sustainability Faculty Fellows for their leadership in this field."
The inaugural cohort of Sustainability Faculty Fellows, announced in September 2025, worked to advance climate literacy in the curriculum throughout the SUNY system by providing webinars and resources, including support for the discipline-specific incorporation of sustainability topics in readings, case studies, and problem sets.
This year's Sustainability Faculty Fellows will build on the success of last year's program and will continue to work to assist faculty across the system in incorporating sustainability and climate topics into a wide range of courses. This year's fellows are:
- Ahmad Almomani, Associate Professor, Mathematics, SUNY Geneseo
- Michelle R. Eades-Baird, Associate Professor, Education, SUNY Empire State University
- Jing (Betty) Feng, Professor, Business, Farmingdale State College
- Nick Henshue, Associate Teaching Professor, Environment and Sustainability, State University of New York at Buffalo
- Gabriel Hetland, Associate Professor, Africana, Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies, State University of New York at Albany
- Md Imranul Islam, Associate Professor, Textile Development and Marketing, Fashion Institute of Technology
- Eric G. Keeling, Associate Professor, Biology, SUNY New Paltz
- James Leopard, Professor, HVAC/R, Suffolk County Community College
- Orla Smyth LoPiccolo, Professor, Architecture and Construction, Farmingdale State College
- Caterina Panzeca, Associate Professor, Marine Environmental Science, Department of Science, SUNY Maritime College
- Page Quinton, Associate Professor, Earth and Environmental Science, SUNY Potsdam
- Julian R. Silverman, Assistant Professor, Science and Mathematics, Fashion Institute of Technology
The second cohort of Sustainability Faculty Fellows will continue to advance climate literacy and knowledge of sustainability topics throughout the SUNY system by developing pedagogical resources and providing support for faculty as they develop and teach courses across a broad spectrum of disciplines and levels of study from microcredentials through doctoral programs. For this year, the Fellows will also work to provide support for SUNY faculty who are teaching future teachers to meet the New York State Education Department's requirement for the inclusion of climate education in the P-12 curriculum. The Fellows were selected following an open call for nominations.
SUNY Empire State University Associate Professor Michelle R. Eades-Baird said, "This recognition means a lot to me, and I'm looking forward to digging into this work alongside colleagues across SUNY who share the same commitment to a more sustainable future."
Farmingdale State College Professor Jing (Betty) Feng said, "Higher education plays a critical role in preparing students to address economic, social, and environmental sustainability challenges at every level—from local communities to the global stage. My ongoing teaching and scholarship explore the intersection of sustainability and AI in organizations. After serving as a SUNY AI Fellow last year, I chose to continue as a SUNY Sustainability Fellow because I see tremendous potential in integrating these fields across disciplines to advance the public good and help shape a more sustainable future."
Farmingdale State College Professor Orla Smyth LoPiccolo said, "I am delighted to be named a SUNY Sustainability Faculty Fellow again, along with Dr. Nick Henshue of the University at Buffalo. I greatly enjoyed being part of this very productive group last academic year, and I look forward to continuing our work with all of the Fellows. Sustainability touches every discipline and our daily lives like a web, connecting the decisions we make in our classrooms, professions, communities, and homes. I am excited to build on the work we began last year and to help advance sustainability across SUNY as we work toward our new goals."
SUNY Geneseo Associate Professor Ahmad Almomani said, "I am honored to join the SUNY Sustainability Faculty Fellows and collaborate with colleagues from diverse academic disciplines across the SUNY system. Sustainability challenges require creative, interdisciplinary solutions, and I look forward to developing practical approaches that integrate sustainability into teaching, research, and student engagement."
The Sustainability Faculty Fellows initiative builds on SUNY's work to advance leadership in sustainability and climate solutions. In April, SUNY celebrated progress in achieving the goals of its inaugural Climate and Sustainability Action Plan, which was adopted at the beginning of 2025 and provides a framework for decarbonizing the SUNY System, and for creating the next generation of climate leaders through education, experiential learning, research, workforce development, and civic engagement. The plan includes 156 specific actions and strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, doubling climate research, strengthening climate education, increasing green workforce development, and expanding engagement and applied learning opportunities for students.
To further advance climate and sustainability, SUNY announced the recipients of the SUNY Sustainability Awards, which recognize undergraduate students throughout the SUNY System for the work they have done to advance sustainability on their campuses, in February. In October 2025, SUNY announced the launch of SUNY's "Outdoors for All" program to promote inclusive engagement with the environment, fellow students, and wellness. In March 2024, SUNY announced a uniform policy to phase out single-use plastics across the SUNY system including plastic bags, beverage bottles, food service products, utensils, plastic wrap, and packaging films.
About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state's only college of optometry, 12 Educational Opportunity Centers, over 30 ATTAIN digital literacy labs, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.7 million students across its portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and annually one in three New Yorkers who earn a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit suny.edu.
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