
Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - For the final time on Friday, University at Buffalo President Satish K. Tripathi will stand before members of the UB community and deliver his annual State of the University address. It will be Tripathi’s 14th such speech.
Tripathi, UB’s first international-born and longest-serving president since the university joined the SUNY system in 1962, announced last week he will step down next July and return to his faculty role in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
This year’s speech will be a university-wide celebration of UB’s many achievements during Tripathi’s 14-year plus tenure.
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The University at Buffalo will get $68 million from the state to decarbonize energy sources on campus.
The funding is part of a $1 billion “sustainable future” program, according to an announcement Wednesday from Gov. Kathy Hochul. UB will use the money to decarbonize its central utility plant, “create thermal energy networks and build geothermal wells” in an effort to move away from fossil fuels and toward electric systems.
The announcement comes after Hochul promised $12 million in February to begin UB’s initiative to build a thermal energy network.
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BestSelf Behavioral Health has received a $250,000 grant from the Patrick P. Lee Foundation to fund supplemental improvement projects at the BestResponse Intensive Crisis Center. These enhancements will improve the experience for both visitors and first responders and include upgrades to access control and security systems.
Opening this fall at 430 Niagara Street in Buffalo, the new 24/7 facility is designed to support individuals of all ages experiencing mental health or substance use crises. BestResponse will offer a calm, supportive place where people can stay for up to 23 hours and 59 minutes, receiving immediate help from trained professionals through counseling, medication support, and connections to follow-up care in a welcoming, trauma-informed setting.
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The Aquarium of Niagara will welcome an estimated 120 runners, walkers, and strollers this Saturday to complete its annual Sea Lion 5K race.
The certified course will start and end at the Aquarium’s second building, Great Lakes 360, and will utilize the New York State Parks trail along Niagara Gorge.
This year’s race is expected to gross more than $10,000 in revenue for the Aquarium. Proceeds from the Sea Lion 5K directly support the care and wellbeing of the Aquarium’s rescued/non-releasable sea lions.
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