Campus to observe Earth Week with symposium, clean cars and 16th annual river cleanup
The National Environmental Education Week, often called Earth Week, will be observed at the University of St. Thomas April 18 to 22 with events that include an annual symposium, sustainable car exhibit and a spring cleaning of the Mississippi riverbank.
Earth Day, on April 22, is being celebrated nationally for the 36th time this year. St. Thomas, meanwhile, will be cleaning the banks of the Mississippi for the 16th consecutive spring.
The St. Thomas Green Team has helped organize these Earth Week events:
Global Warming Awareness Day will be observed Tuesday, April 18. Faculty members have been sent background materials on global warming and have been encouraged to discuss the issue in their classes that day.
The annual Environmental Symposium will run from 7 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 19, in O’Shaughnessy Educational Center auditorium. Free and open to the public, the symposium will feature speakers from St. Thomas, and from Macalester and Carleton colleges, who will discuss “Campus Sustainability.”
From St. Thomas, Bob Douglas will discuss recycling, Mike Klein will discuss fair trade coffee, and Greg Mowry and Steve Hoffman will discuss energy; from Macalester, Brett Smith will discuss sustainability.
In connection with the symposium, campus, community and government organizations will host environment-related displays and tables in O’Shaughnessy Educational Center.
Refreshments will be served, and St. Thomas student Pat Zimmerman and his jazz ensemble will provide entertainment.
Thursday, April 20, will feature a Sustainable Car Expo. Environmentally friendly cars will be displayed on campus.
You can celebrate the official Earth Day on Saturday, April 22, by participating in the annual spring river cleanup of the east bank of the Mississippi.
The cleanup will run from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers will meet near the World War I monument at the western end of Summit Avenue. Wear some sturdy shoes and old clothes. You will receive trash bags and gloves if you need them. Snacks and beverages also will be provided.
The St. Thomas Green Team, in cooperation with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, takes responsibility for cleaning the east bank of the river from Summit Avenue to the Ford Bridge.
The public is welcome to join the fun. Organizers remind St. Thomas student organizations that the cleanup offers a good opportunity to log required service hours.
For more information about Earth Week events at St.Thomas, you can e-mail ustgreenteam@stthomas.edu or Tommy Rodengen, one of the student organizers, tjrodengen@stthomas.edu.
