Colorado State University is more green than gold April 20-25 as it celebrates Earth Week with a variety of events aimed at creating awareness and fostering sustainable practices community-wide.
This year’s Earth Week celebrates CSU’s recent achievement in becoming the first platinum rated STARS (Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System) institution in the world. STARS is considered to be the most comprehensive and prestigious sustainability performance measurement program in higher education.
“This year, CSU has so much to showcase and celebrate during Earth Week,” said Tonie Miyamoto, director of Communications and Sustainability. “We are proud to offer events and programs that highlight alternative transportation, career options in sustainability, sustainable research initiatives, and hands-on volunteer and service projects in our local community.”
April 20
Carpool to Coffee
Intersection of Pitkin St. and Meridian Ave.
7:30-9:15 a.m.
Students arriving in groups to lots 505 and 240 will receive free coffee as part of the event aiming to create awareness around CSU’s carpooling program.
Sustainable Futures Fair
LSC Ballroom A & B
2-5 p.m.
Stop by the Sustainable Futures Fair to discover what the sustainability field is like across all industries, and network with representatives from companies and organizations from throughout the region.
From 2-3 p.m. there will be a discussion panel with a representatives from several major industries who will address what it is like to work in sustainability at their respective organizations. Following the panel, there will be a Career Fair/Networking event from 3 to 5 p.m.
ASCSU Green Grocery Shopping
Booth outside of King Soopers on Elizabeth and Taft Hill
6-8 p.m.
Students looking to shop more sustainably can stop by King Soopers on Elizabeth and Taft for a free reusable bag and tips for being more sustainable.
April 21
Bus to Breakfast Bars
Transit Center
7:30-9:15 a.m.
To increase the use of sustainable transportation, University Parking Services will be handing out breakfast bars to students riding the Transfort Bus System.
Dining Plate Waste Audit
Braiden, Corbett/Pamelee, Durrell, and Ram’s Horn
11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.
Hosted by CSU Housing and Dining Services, the main purpose of the Plate Waste Audit is to bring awareness to plate/food waste. During the busy lunch hours, volunteers will be stationed in four of the dining halls (Durrell, Ram’s Horn, Corbett/Parmelee, and Braiden) collecting plate waste from students, staff, and faculty. The collected food waste will then be put on display during the Earth Day Festival on Wednesday, April 22.
ASCSU Sustainable Movie Night
ASCSU Senate Chambers, LSC 204
5-8 p.m.
Stop by the ASCSU Senate Chambers for free food, a movie about sustainability, and sustainability trivia with prizes!
April 22
Earth Day Festival
LSC West Sculpture Garden
10 a.m.-2 p.m.
The Earth Day Festival is an annual event that invites organizations from the Fort Collins and CSU community to highlight, encourage, and educate students, faculty, and staff on how to live a more sustainable lifestyle. Transfort, Student Sustainability Center, Warner College of Natural Resources, The Food CO-OP, City of Fort Collins, and live music will be at the festival.
Earth Day Festival Ride and Drive
Lory Student Center
10 a.m.-2 p.m.
Attendees have the opportunity to drive a variety of electric cars as well as learn about the mission of Drive Electric Northern Colorado.
Tree Campus USA Planting Ceremony
Danforth Chapel
2 – 3 p.m.
Stop by and visit the Campus Tree Advisory Committee at the Earth Day Festival booth at the Lory Student Center Sculpture Garden, where they will be leading Campus Tree Walks and discussing the value of our community trees prior to the planting event.
SoGES Public Lands GCRT Symposium Keynote Speaker
LSC Greyrock Room
4 p.m.-5 p.m.
This symposium will present the year-long work of a Global Challenges Research Team that has explored “Environmental History, Ecology, and Sustainability in Public Lands.” Funded by CSU’s School of Global Environmental Sustainability (SoGES), the team’s goal has been to advance global sustainability research and practice by creating synergies between the conceptual frameworks and methodologies of disparate fields of study. The keynote speaker, Dr. Ben A. Minteer, Arizona Zoological Society Endowed Chair at Arizona State University, will examine Edward Abbey’s legacy with regard to contemporary understandings of the wild.
April 23
Bike to Breakfast
University Avenue outside of Natural Resources
7:30-9:15 a.m.
University Parking Services will hand out breakfast burritos to any bicyclist who stops at the station located on University Avenue outside the College of Natural Resources Building.
SoGES Public Land GCRT Symposium
LSC Rooms 382
9 a.m.-5 p.m.
This symposium will present the year-long work of a Global Challenges Research Team that has explored “Environmental History, Ecology, and Sustainability in Public Lands.” Funded by CSU’s School of Global Environmental Sustainability (SoGES), the team’s goal has been to advance global sustainability research and practice by creating synergies between the conceptual frameworks and methodologies of disparate fields of study.
Longboard to Lunch
Meridian and University Ave.
Noon-1 p.m.
University Parking Services will hand out hot dogs to any long boarder/skateboarder who stops by the station located at the northeast corner of Meridian and University.
Earth, Sun, and Fire Tour
(solar array, composter, and biomass boiler)
Foothills Campus
1-3 p.m.
The tour includes a tour of the 5.3-megawatt, 30-acre solar plant; the in-vessel composter; and the biomass boiler. CSU will be providing round-trip bus transportation from the Lory Student Center Transit Center to the Foothills campus. Reservations are required.
ASCSU Sustainable Movie Night
ASCSU Senate Chambers, LSC204
5-8 p.m.
Stop by the ASCSU Senate Chambers for free food, a movie about sustainability, and sustainability trivia with prizes!
Women, Population, and Environment with SoGES Environmental Justice GCRT panel discussion
Avogadro’s Number
5:30-6:30 p.m.
Panel features two speakers: George Middendorf, professor of biology at Howard University, and Charlie Nilon, professor in the Fisheries and Wildlife Science Department at the University of Missouri. Middendorf will speak about examining environmental justice issues in urban areas, in implementing the Environmental Justice Section of the Ecological Society of America, and in developing interdisciplinary and environmental studies programs at Howard. Nilon will speak about how physical, ecological and socioeconomic factors influence the abundance and composition of vertebrate species.
April 24
ASCSU Bring Your Own Cup Event
LSC Sweet Sinsations, Morgan’s Grind, BSB Sweet Temptations
8:30-10:30 a.m.
The Bring Your Own Cup Campaign aims to reduce waste at coffee shops on campus. Free reusable coffee thermoses will be handed out at Morgan’s Grind in the library, Sweet Sinsations in the LSC, and Sweet Temptations in the Behavioral Sciences Building. Come grab your morning coffee/tea and get a free thermos!
Compost Giveaway and Ewaste Collection
Moby Parking Lot
1-3 p.m.
Hosted by Housing & Dining Services and Facilities Management, participants can bring their own buckets (limit two buckets per person) and pick up free compost created from food waste generated in the campus dining centers. The compost is given away on a first-come, first-served basis. The event is sponsored by Housing & Dining Services.
SoGES Biodiversity Working Group Workshop “Pollinator Landscaping for Urban Sustainability”
Fort Collins Old Town Library
2:30-5:30 p.m.
A panel of researchers will provide information on pollinator plants for urban landscaping, urban agriculture and pollinators, and the different bees and butterflies of Colorado.
April 25
CSUnity
8 a.m.-4 p.m.
CSUnity is an event where thousands of students engage in a one day volunteer event serving businesses, government agencies, non-profits, and local residents. Participants will receive a t-shirt and local lunch discounts.
April 29
Colorado State University: Walking the Walk in Sustainability
Avogadro’s Number, 605 S. Mason Street
5-6 p.m.
The final Managing the Planet panel of the academic year zooms in on CSU and our own sustainability efforts. Acknowledged as one of the most sustainable universities in the nation, CSU claims many accomplishments from operations to academics. This panel of experts will discuss the sustainability research, education, engagement, operations and facilities management at the University, focusing on accomplishments to date and goals for the future. Panelists include: Tonie Miyamoto, CSU Housing & Dining Services; Jacob Kimiecik, Student Sustainability Center; Carol Dollard, Facilities Management; and Dale Lockwood, School of Global Environmental Sustainability.
