An ACG 150 event organized on the occasion of the
World Environment Day 2021

 

 

Organized by
Environmental Studies Program, Department of Science and Mathematics, Deree-ACG
ACG Center of Excellence in Sustainability, Office of Public Affairs

In collaboration with
Environmental Studies Society, Deree-ACG
ACG Sustainability Leaders

When: June 7-8, 2021  | 17:00-18:30 (Greece)

Where: Online event free and open to the public

Day 1

Day 2

About the Event

On the occasion of the World Environment Day 2021, the current event is aimed at celebrating the environment, the planet and its offerings to humankind and species. It is an event about an environmentally sound vision for the future, as well as ideas and efforts to address environmental concerns through coordinated multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches towards environmental restoration. The event stresses the environmental education, initiatives and youth involvement at ACG.

PROGRAM

DAY 1 | June 7, 17:00 – 18:30

17:00 | Welcome remarks
Mrs. Claudia Carydis
Vice President, Public Affairs, The American College of Greece
Prof. Loren J. Samons II
Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and Executive Director, ACG Institute for Hellenic Culture & the Liberal Arts and Professor of Classical Studies at Boston University

17:10-18:20 | Panel Discussion

Global Environmental Concerns: the need for integrated multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary action
Moderator
Dr. Stella Apostolaki
Associate Lecturer I, Environmental Studies Program Coordinator, Chair of Academic Advisory Board of Center of Excellence in Sustainability, The American College of Greece

Topics

• International initiatives to address Biodiversity Loss. How Deree-ACG science programs fit in.
• Water Resources Management at a changing world
• Holistic approaches to environmental protection & human health
• Climate change and the World Heritage
• Sustainable Cities and Environmental Justice
• Environmental approaches in the food, tourism and leisure sectors
• Main environmental challenges and opportunities in the shipping, transportation and logistics sectors
• Business and Greenwashing
• Research and digital innovation in environmental protection: needs and priorities

Panelists (alphabetical)

Dr. Georgios Kokosalakis
Executive Director, Center of Excellence in Logistics, Shipping & Transportation and
Assistant Professor, School of Business and Economics, Deree-The American College of Greece

Dr. Athanasios Krystallis
Executive Director, Center of Excellence in Food, Tourism & Leisure and Associate Professor of International Business, Deree-The American College of Greece

Dr. Christina Marouli
Associate Professor of Environmental Studies, Department of Science and Mathematics; Founder and ex-Director of the Center of Excellence in Sustainability, Deree-The American College of Greece

Dr. Constantinos Papadias
Executive Director, Research, Technology & Innovation Network (RTIN), The American College of Greece

Dr. Paraskevi Papadopoulou
Professor of Biology and Head, Department of Science and Mathematics & Biomedical Sciences Program, Deree-The American College of Greece

Dr. Pavlos A. Vlachos
Associate Professor of Marketing, ALBA Graduate Business School, The American College of Greece

18:20-18:30 | Wrap-up and closing
Dr. Stella Apostolaki
Associate Lecturer I, Environmental Studies Program Coordinator, Chair of Academic Advisory Board of Center of Excellence in Sustainability, The American College of Greece

 

DAY 2 | June 8, 17:00 – 18:30

17:00 | Opening remarks
Dr. Stella Apostolaki
Associate Lecturer I, Environmental Studies Program Coordinator, Chair of Academic Advisory Board of Center of Excellence in Sustainability, The American College of Greece

17:05-17:25 | Environmental education at ACG

Introduction of the Department of Science and Mathematics – Environmental Education Resources 
Dr. Paraskevi Papadopoulou
Professor of Biology and Head, Department of Science and Mathematics & Biomedical Sciences Program, Deree-The American College of Greece

Presentation of the Environmental Studies program
Dr. Anastasia Misseyanni
Associate Professor of Environmental Studies, Department of Science and Mathematics, Deree-The American College of Greece

Sustainability at ACG
Mrs. Rania Assariotaki
Senior Manager for Sustainability, Office of Public Affairs, The American College of Greece

17:25-18:20 | Student work and engagement at ACG: presentation of Environmental Studies Program student projects

Creative projects with environmental focus

• Home-made paper – video – Anna Christodoulou, Honors student, Deree-ACG

ACG Winning environmental competitions

• Climathon 2018 – Zoi Moragli, Environmental Studies Major (Deree ’18)
• Climathon 2019 – Hayley Turner, Environmental Studies Major, President of the Environmental Studies Society, Deree-ACG

Student research projects on the environment and sustainability

• Project on research methods in water analysis – Hayley Turner, Environmental Studies Major, President of the Environmental Studies Society, Deree-ACG & Eva Toufexi, Environmental Studies Major, Deree-ACG
• Factors affecting the populations of Sea Turtles, Caretta caretta in Greece – Georgia Sarakinou, Environmental Studies & Biomedical Sciences Major, Deree-ACG
• Population of monk parakeets in Athens – Lydia-Iris Papageorgiou George, Environmental Studies Major, Biology Minor (Deree ’19)
• Mapping plant species at the ACG campus forest – Pinelopi Savvidou, Environmental Studies Major, Biology Minor (Deree ’19)
• Food waste management at ACG – Haralambos Gkikas, Environmental Studies Major (Deree ’19)

Sustainability initiatives at ACG

• Sustainability leaders at ACG – Dionysis Tzavaras, Psychology Major, ACG Sustainability Leader, Vice-President International Honors Society, Deree-ACG (pre-recorded)

18:20-18:30  | Wrap-up & closing
Dr. Stella Apostolaki
Associate Lecturer I, Environmental Studies Program Coordinator, Chair of Academic Advisory Board of Center of Excellence in Sustainability, The American College of Greece

 

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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Dept of Sciences and Maths_Dr.P.Papadopoulou

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Bios of the Speakers

Prof. Loren J. Samons II
Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and Executive Director, Institute for Hellenic Culture and the Liberal Arts,
The American College of Greece and Professor of Classical Studies at Boston University

Loren J. Samons II is Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and Executive Director of the Institute for Hellenic Culture and the Liberal Arts at The American College of Greece and Professor of Classical Studies at Boston University.

Born in Arkansas and educated at Baylor University and Brown University, Samons has taught ancient history and classical languages at Boston University for more than 25 years, winning many teaching awards including the university’s highest honor, the Metcalf Award for Excellence. He has published numerous books and articles on classical Greece, including Empire of the Owl: Athenian Imperial Finance (2000), What’s Wrong with Democracy? From Athenian Practice to American Worship (2004), and a biography of ancient Greece’s most famous statesman (Pericles and the Conquest of History) that appeared in 2016 from Cambridge University Press.

Professor Samons’ scholarly work has centered on the relationship between Athenian democracy and imperialism, the issue of national character, the relevance of ancient history for the modern world, the political careers of Pericles and his sometime rival Kimon, and analysis of the historians Herodotus and Thucydides. As Vice President for Strategic Initiatives at the American College of Greece, Professor Samons helps to implement the college’s strategic plan to utilize education and research for economic and social impact in Greece.

 

Mrs. Claudia Carydis Benopoulou
Vice President, Public Affairs, The American College of Greece

Claudia Carydis Benopoulou is Vice President of Public Affairs at The American College of Greece (ACG) since June 2012. Her responsibilities include government relations and cultivating mutually beneficial relations with key stakeholders of both the private and public sector. She also supervises College Events and the work of three separate ACG entities: The Institute of Global Affairs, the Institute of Public Health and the Center of Excellence in Sustainability. Under her leadership, in 2020, ACG was awarded with the Gold STARS rating by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. Claudia has been working at ACG since 2005 and was initially head of Alumni Relations & College Events. Before joining ACG, Claudia worked in leading private companies as a marketing and communications executive. She also worked for the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Department of European Affairs, for the period 1988-1992.

Claudia holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Deree-The American College of Greece and a Master’s degree in International Relations & Communication from Boston University, US.

 

Dr. Stella Apostolaki
Associate Lecturer I, Environmental Studies Program Coordinator, Chair of Academic Advisory Board of Center of Excellence in Sustainability, The American College of Greece

Dr. Stella Apostolaki is Associate Faculty – Lecturer I and Program Coordinator of the BSc/(Hons) in Environmental Studies, Department of Science and Mathematics, Deree-The American College of Greece (ACG). She is Chair of the Academic Advisory Board of the Center of Excellence in Sustainability (ACG). She holds a BSc/(Hons) in Environmental Science, MSc in Urban Water and Environmental Management and PhD on sustainable urban drainage systems and river management options, obtained from the Abertay University, U.K., under funding received by the Environment Agency for England & Wales, in collaboration with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), and by HR Wallingford Consultants. She has a wide research experience; she has worked for several years as a researcher in collaboration with Universities, Research Institutions and Authorities. Her main research interests include: integrated water management and innovation, sustainable development, sustainable stormwater management, climate change, conservation of biodiversity, ecosystem restoration, public awareness – stakeholder engagement methods and public education, green urban planning with emphasis on amenity and biodiversity, the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

 

Mrs. Rania Assariotaki
Senior Manager for Sustainability, Office of Public Affairs, The American College of Greece

Rania Assariotaki joined the American College of Greece in 2008. She currently holds the position of Senior Manager for Sustainability, Office Public Affairs. She has previously occupied the position of the first Sustainability Manager at ACG. Previously she has served in the field of customer service. She holds an MSc in Marketing from ALBA at The American College of Greece. Since September 2020 she participates as a mentor for sustainability issues in the mentorship program of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). In February 2021, she was appointed by AASHE to serve as a member of the AASHE Advisory Council for her constant commitment and support to promoting sustainability best practices and culture on and off campus. The Advisory Council is an advisory body whose input often has a significant impact on staff and board decisions of AASHE. In February 2020 she became a member of the Corporate Responsibility Committee of the American – Hellenic Chamber of Commerce. In 2015 she was certified as a GRI G4 reporter and in July 2016 received her certification as a Sustainability (CSR) Practitioner approved by the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA). Also, she has received certifications in: Carbon Reduction Strategy, Sustainability Reporting, Social Impact Assessment & SROI.  In August 1019, she has been certified as a Sustainability Management professional and on High Impact Leadership from the Institute for Sustainability Leadership, University of Cambridge.

 

Dr. Georgios Kokosalakis
Executive Director, Center of Excellence in Logistics, Shipping & Transportation and Assistant Professor, School of Business and Economics, Deree-The American College of Greece

Dr. Georgios Kokosalakis is the Executive Director of the Center of Excellence in Logistics, Shipping & Transportation, while he holds an Assistant Professor position at ACG. Dr. Kokosalakis graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology holding Doctorate and Master’s degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering along with parallel studies in business administration. A shipowner, manager, and entrepreneur himself with broad experience in the industry, Dr. Kokosalakis has also worked as a consultant for other firms, while continuing his work as a researcher and scholar. Interdisciplinary areas always attracted his attention, working professionally and scholarly in areas combining management, operations, engineering, monitoring, energy conservation, and environmental preservation.

 

Dr. Athanasios Krystallis
Executive Director, Center of Excellence in Food, Tourism & Leisure and Associate Professor, School of Business and Economics, Deree-The American College of Greece

Dr. Athanasios Krystallis is Executive Director of the Center of Excellence in Food, Tourism & Leisure (CoEFTL), and Associate Professor in the American College of Greece (ACG). Professor Krystallis also holds the position of Adjunct Researcher at the Department of Management, Athens University of Economics and Business. Prior to that, he was Professor of Food Marketing in Aarhus University School of Business, Denmark. Professor Krystallis specializes in the development of market research designs to study customer behavior towards differentiated products/services and customers’ buying attitude & choice. His particular expertise lies in product/service differentiation and the development of new offerings incorporated into a wider customer-centric logic. His work comprises +100 international peer-reviewed research publications, most in ASB and ISI-ranked Journals. Professor Krystallis has a strong fund-raising record, participating in numerous scientific research projects funded by the EU or national funds in countries including Greece, Scandinavia, Brazil and China. Athanasios also acts as a marketing consultant, having designed and implemented numerous projects in all areas of marketing research in Greece and abroad, in industries like food and drink, wine, tourism, pharma, cosmetics, manufacturing, high-tech, ICT, retailing, transportation etc. Professor Krystallis is a Marie-Currie fellow and member of numerous scientific associations, such as the European Marketing Academy (EMAC), the Academy of Marketing Science (AMS), and the American Association of Wine Economists (AAWE), among others.

 

Dr. Christina Marouli
Associate Professor of Environmental Studies, Department of Science and Mathematics; Founder and ex-Director of the Center of Excellence in Sustainability, Deree-The American College of Greece

Dr. Christina Marouli is teaching at the Environmental Studies B.Sc. program of Deree – the American College of Greece, where she also founded and directed (for 7 years) the Center of Excellence in Sustainability. In addition, she has extensive experience as a consultant and a free-lance researcher on environmental and occupational safety health issues in the private sector, as well as an expert of EU funded environmental projects (under LIFE or Urban Innovative Action initiatives). She has worked with NGOs focusing on women’s and children’s issues (i.e. Director of Save the Children, Greece; responsible for development education programmes at the YWCA, Greece), while she was a co-founder of the Emergency Research Center (NGO).

She has studied biochemistry (B.A.), Urban and environmental policy (M.A.) and sociology (PhD) in the United States, with a specialisation on the urban environment, health and social inequalities. She has been the recipient of a Fulbright award during which she collaborated with a Turkish professor from Bogazici University and did research on multicultural environmental education programmes. Her research interests include sustainable – healthy – smart cities, food waste, Education for Sustainability and education for behavioural and social change, and environmental health.

 

Dr. Anastasia Misseyanni
Associate Professor, Environmental Studies, Department of Science and Mathematics, Deree – The American College of Greece

Anastasia Misseyanni holds a Chemistry degree from the University of Athens, as well as a DEA (MSc equivalent) from the University of Paris 7 and a PhD from the University of Marburg, both in the field of Biochemistry. She also has an academic background on ecology and conservation of biodiversity. In her long career in teaching she has developed and taught many undergraduate courses in natural sciences and environmental studies, ranging from chemistry and biological chemistry to environmental science, ecology, water resources and methods in environmental analysis. Her present research interests center around education for the environment and sustainability, Mediterranean biodiversity, green roofs, environmental health issues, active and experiential learning, and innovative teaching and learning strategies in STEM disciplines. In the early years of her career, she conducted research on protein-DNA interactions, hormone-regulated and tissue-specific gene expression. She contributed significantly to the development of the Deree-ACG Environmental Studies (2010) and Biomedical Sciences (2019) undergraduate programs. She served as program coordinator for Environmental Studies in the period 2010-2020 and as Head of the Department of Science and Mathematics from 2014 to 2020. She has also been serving as advisor to the Deree Environmental Studies Society and has contributed to efforts and initiatives to promote sustainability at ACG. She is actively engaged in environmental education programs as member of a nongovernmental organization.

 

Dr. Constantinos Papadias
Executive Director, Research, Technology & Innovation Network (RTIN), ACG, and Professor, Information Technology, Deree & Alba

Constantinos B. Papadias is the founding Executive Director of the Research, Technology and Innovation Network (RTIN) of The American College of Greece (ACG), in Athens, Greece and the Head of RTIN’s Smart Wireless Future Technologies (SWIFT) Lab, since 2020. He is also Professor of Information Technology at ACG’s Deree College and Alba graduate business school and the Scientific Director of the American College of Greece Research Center (ACG-RC). Prior to these, he was the Dean of Athens Information Technology (AIT), in Athens, Greece, where he was also Head of the Broadband Wireless and Sensor Networks (B-WiSE) Research Group. He currently holds Adjunct Professorships at Aalborg University and at the University of Cyprus. He received the Diploma of Electrical Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) in 1991 and the Doctorate degree in Signal Processing (highest honors) from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Télécommunications (ENST), Paris, France, in 1995. He was a researcher at Institut Eurécom (1992-1995), Stanford University (1995-1997) and Bell Labs (as Member of Technical Staff from 1997-2001 and as Technical Manager from 2001-2006). He was also Adjunct Professor at Columbia University (2004-2005) and Carnegie Mellon University (2006-2011). He has published over 215 papers and 4 books and has received over 9800 citations for his work, with an h-index of 45. He has also made standards contributions and holds 12 patents. He was a member of the Steering Board of the Wireless World Research Forum (WWRF) from 2002-2006, a member and industrial liaison of the IEEE’s Signal Processing for Communications Technical Committee from 2003-2008 and a National Representative of Greece to the European Research Council’s IDEAS program from 2007-2008. He has served as member of the IEEE Communications Society’s Fellow Evaluation and Awards Committees, as well as an Associate Editor for various journals. He has contributed to the organization of several conferences, including, as General Chair, the IEEE CTW 2016 and the IEEE SPAWC 2018 workshops. He has acted as Technical Coordinator in several EU projects such as: CROWN in the area of cognitive radio; HIATUS in the area of interference alignment; HARP in the area of remote radio heads and ADEL in the area of licensed shared access. He is currently the Research Coordinator of the European Training Network project PAINLESS on the topic of energy autonomous infrastructure-less wireless networks and the Technical Coordinator of the EU CHIST-ERA project FIREMAN on the topic of predictive maintenance via machine type wireless communication systems. His distinctions include the Bell Labs President’s Award (2002), the IEEE Signal Processing Society’s Young Author Best Paper Award (2003), a Bell Labs Teamwork Award (2004), his recognition as a “Highly Cited Greek Scientist” (2011), two IEEE conference paper awards (2013, 2014) and a “Best Booth” Award at EUCNC (2016). He has also been shortlisted twice for the Bell Labs Prize (2014, 2019). He was a Distinguished Lecturer of the IEEE Communications Society for 2012-2013. He is a Fellow of IEEE since 2013 and Fellow of the European Alliance of Innovation (EAI) since 2019. He is currently a member of Greece’s sectorial scientific council of Engineering Sciences, which supports the country’s National Council for Research and Innovation.

 

Paraskevi Papadopoulou, Ph.D.
Professor of Biology and Head, Department of Science and Mathematics and Biomedical Sciences Program, Deree-The American College of Greece

Paraskevi Papadopoulou is Professor of Biology and Head of the Department of Science and Mathematics and the Biomedical Sciences Program at Deree-The American College of Greece (Deree-ACG). She obtained her Ph.D. in Biology from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (1993), her Bachelor of Science in Biology from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (1985), and her Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of California, Los Angeles, (UCLA) (1983).  She teaches Introduction to Biology, Human Consciousness: From Brain to Subjectivity, Human Genetics, Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology, as well as courses in Research Methods for the Environmental Studies and Biomedical Sciences programs. She has served as Head of the Department of Science, Technology and Mathematics at Deree-ACG (2008-2014). She made a significant contribution to the development of the Environmental Studies program and the Information Technology (IT) program at Deree-ACG (2010-12). She has coordinated the development of the Biomedical Sciences (BMS) program at Deree-ACG (2017-2019) and has served as the Program Coordinator of BMS (2020).

Her research activity covers a wide range of subject areas with a main focus in the fields of structural biology/molecular biophysics and bioinformatics and on structural and self-assembly studies of fibrous proteins. She has also contributed to the development of genetic testing protocols for genetic diseases, such as Tuberous Sclerosis and Neurofibromatosis type 1. Her current research engagement expands on environmental health issues, on big data analytics in bioinformatics, medicine, health and healthcare, the evolution of consciousness plus on Mediterranean biodiversity and green roofs, and innovative ways of teaching and learning in STEM disciplines. Her research work has been reflected in over 45 scientific articles and book chapters as well as in 3 books. She has served as book editor and as manuscript reviewer in a number of high impact journals. She serves as Review Editor in Frontiers in Digital Health (Personalized Medicine).

 

Dr. Pavlos A. Vlachos
Associate Professor of Marketing, Alba Graduate Business School, The American College of Greece

Pavlos A. Vlachos (Ph.D) is Associate Professor of Marketing at Alba Graduate Business School, The American College of Greece [with Tenure]. He is teaching Marketing Strategy & Analytics, Research Methods and Corporate Social Responsibility topics. His current research interests include (macro and micro) Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and organizational social evaluations (organizational reputation, organizational stigma). He serves on the editorial board of Journal of Business Research (CSR section). He is also a member of the academic network of Truvalue Labs™ an awarded fintech that applies AI onto massive volumes of unstructured data resulting in real-time firm ESG performance measurement. His work has appeared or is in press in Harvard Business Review, Human Relations, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Business Ethics, California Management Review (Insights), Industrial Marketing Management, and Journal of Business Research among others.

 

Alumni & Students

Anna Christodoulou, Accounting and Finance Major, Honors student, Deree-ACG
Lydia-Iris Papageorgiou George, Environmental Studies Major, Biology Minor (Deree ’19)
Haralambos Gkikas, Environmental Studies Major (Deree ’19)
Zoi Moragli, Environmental Studies Major (Deree ’18)
Georgia Sarakinou, Environmental Studies & Biomedical Sciences Major, Deree-ACG
Pinelopi Savvidou, Environmental Studies Major, Biology Minor (Deree ’19)
Eva Toufexi, Environmental Studies Major, Deree-ACG
Hayley Turner, Environmental Studies Major, President of the Environmental Studies Society, Deree-ACG
Dionysis Tzavaras, Psychology Major, ACG Sustainability Leader, Vice-President International Honors Society, Deree-ACG

 

About the Organizers

About the Environmental Studies Program, Department of Science and Mathematics, Deree-The American College of Greece

The Bachelor of Science in Environmental Studies (ES) is an interdisciplinary program that provides the students with a sound background and skills, necessary to address the global environmental problems. In this increasingly complex world, there is urgent need for sustainable solutions and for mitigation and adaptation options to address the global problems at multiple levels, environmental, social, economic, and political. The students of this program obtain skills that make them competitive in the pursuit of green and sustainability-related careers and can undertake graduate studies in environment-related fields.

The American College of Greece’s Approach to Sustainability

Following US best practices and as also reflected in its President’s 2025 vision, The American College of Greece (ACG) is gradually developing an ever-growing number of sustainability best practices. ACG is committed to systematically addressing issues from sustainability focus in academic programs and research and reducing its carbon footprint while improving its energy efficiency, to enhancing its social impact and increasing transparency and accountability in its daily operations. For all its relevant activity, ACG has been awarded the STARS Gold Rating, in recognition of its best practices in five categories: Academics, Engagement, Operations, Planning & Administration and Innovation & Leadership. ACG is the only academic institution in Greece to have received a distinction by the US AASHE – an internationally acclaimed association. Through its membership in the UN Global Compact, the UN Academic Impact and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), ACG has committed to always operate in support of the UN SDGs – and most importantly, Goal No 4: Quality Education. In this context, the ACG Center of Excellence for Sustainability (CES), officially established in 2011, is a collaborative initiative, operating under the Office of Public Affairs, which leads all sustainability-related activity, bringing together education, research and operations to advance sustainability on campus.