After such an amazing day and night at the AASHE Student Summit on Sunday, I thought it would be difficult to match its quality for the second day. Fortunately, the Monday events undoubtedly matched the high standards set the previous day. Additionally, the presentations, workshops, and events were far more diverse than the Student Summit.

The first day of AASHE has been nothing short of amazing. What with the wide range of interactive workshops through the Student Summit to keep the 500+ university students active and engaged. It's been impossible for any attendant to slip into the corner and not participate.

With the AASHE 2011 Conference now two months behind me, it's a good time to reflect on the lasting insights and connections that the experience provided.

When I first found out that we were going to Pittsburgh for the (now) annual Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) conference, several thoughts crossed my mind.  First, as always, I was excited to check out a new city.  Second, I thought that there might not be much to check out.  Visions of a ghost town caused by the abandonment of the steel industry (and now facing the threat of hydrofracking for natural gas), similar to towns in MI abandoned by car industry, flooded my mind.