SUSTAINABILE DEVELOPMENT


Shell Center for Sustainability
The Shell Center for Sustainability was launched by EESI in 2003 with a $3.5 million gift from the Shell Oil Company Foundation.  The Center supports the efforts of Rice University's faculty, staff and students to better our planet's economy, society and environment and has funded research on such critical matters as understanding ozone formation, the impact of invasive species on biodiversity, the formation of methane trapped within ice deposits below the sea floor, the interaction of stakeholders concerned with energy development, the development of new technologies such as membranes for water treatment, and nanotechnology for renewable energy.  The Center also seeks to provide the public with information critical to their individual and collective sustainability through seminars and conferences on such topics as climate change and carbon management, meeting ozone and particulate matter air quality standards, improving water quality and developing new supplies through advances in such technology as desalination, and the development of scenarios related to Houston's future.