KALAMAZOO – Kalamazoo Valley Community College’s version of Odyssey Day 2008 will go beyond the focus on hybrid vehicles and alternative fuels to showcase the college’s initiatives into educating the public and training technicians in the emerging field of renewable sources of energy. The celebration is scheduled for Oct. 4, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on KVCC’s Texas Township Campus.

In addition to linking with the biennial National Alternative Fuel Vehicle Odyssey Day as KVCC did in 2006 at the Arcadia Commons Campus, the event features forums, presentations and demonstrations, including:

Vehicles that are powered by bio-diesel, electricity and other forms of alternative fuels, as well as an assortment of hybrid vehicles available to test drive.

KVCC?s instructional programs and initiatives in wind energy, bio-diesel fuel, geo-thermal energy, solar energy, and the growing inventory of equipment that complements those initiatives.

Connection to a Southwest Michigan tour of solar-powered homes.

Training courses for first-responders who must know how to deal with vehicular accidents involving these types of vehicles, and how to extricate trapped occupants.

An overview of the evolving technology that is bringing alternative-fuel vehicles into the mainstream.

The economic ramifications if energy alternatives can replace petroleum, and why the nation should take those steps anyway.

Displays of commercial vehicles that are powered by non-petroleum sources of energy, as well as ?Smart cars? that promote optimum gas mileage and a minimum of harmful emissions.

A bicycle-like mechanism that can be pedaled to produce enough electrical energy to light a bulb.

Among the door prizes and give-aways will be tire gauges, compact fluorescent light bulbs, tote bags made from corn products, Kalamazoo Metro Transit passes, and dinner passes. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality will also be taking part in the daylong event.

The solar home tour, organized by the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association, is slated for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. that day. Participants will be able to visit residences and commercial buildings located in Hastings, Plainwell, Schoolcraft, Lawrence, Bangor, and the Kalamazoo area. For more information about that, contact Bob Kildea at (269) 372-2496.

The 2006 observance centered on what?s already available and what?s coming down the road in future modes of personal transportation, along with the fuels that will power them. People were able to check out the current generation of vehicles designed to free Americans from a dependence on foreign oil and take the sting out of high gasoline prices.

Southwest Michigan auto dealerships provided more than 30 vehicles for the display as well as representatives to answer questions. Many of the hybrids were available to be driven. Owners of alternative-fuel and hybrid vehicles were there to discuss their experiences. These features will be part of the 2008 Odyssey Day as well.

Odyssey Day 2006 also offered a seminar designed for fire fighters and emergency personnel who are dealing with different scientific and chemical principles when they respond to accidents involving hybrid vehicles and those using forms of alternative fuels.

KVCC is one of 29 sites in North America aligned with the National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium.

The one-of-its-kind consortium, based at West Virginia University, was established in 1992. Over the last 16 years, it has fashioned instructional courses focusing on ethanol and flex-fuel vehicles, biodiesel and natural-gas vehicles, propane-powered vehicles, emissions testing, alternative-fuel applications for a variety of machinery, electric and hybrid vehicles, and hydrogen fuel cells.

This will be the training consortium?s fourth national Odyssey, with the first two staged in 2002 and 2004. The day of awareness to showcase alternative technologies in transportation was held at 54 sites in 34 states.

For information about Odyssey Day 2008 events and activities, contact Lauren Beresford, director of operations at the M-TEC of KVCC, at (269) 353-120 or email [email protected]

For information about the college?s automotive technology program, contact Larry Taylor at (269) 488-4179 or email [email protected]

For information about the college?s initiatives in alternative forms of energy and renewable energy sources, contact Dean Deborah Dawson at (269) 488-4219 or email [email protected]

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