Earth Day To Provide Environmental Education

By: Kyle Charette

Posted: 4/23/07

Although yesterday was Earth Day, UConn will be celebrating it today because of spring weekend with a day long celebration organized by EcoHusky student group and a host of other student environmental groups. This year's celebration includes the opportunity to learn about the environment, tour the Burton-Shankman football facility and even have a chance to win free gear for the holiday that celebrates the entire world.

Today, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., EcoHusky, which is supported by the Office of Environmental Policy, and other groups are hosting a wide variety of informational events for Earth Day 2007 in front of Gampel Pavilion and at the entrance to Fairfield Way.

"Earth Day gives students a chance to learn about environmental initiatives on the UConn campus as well as an opportunity to make a difference locally and globally," said Katie Gherard, a 6th-semester environmental science major and co-coordinator for EcoHusky.

Several attractions include hybrid and grease-powered cars which will be parked outside the Student Union, the opportunity to pot and take home free spider plants as well as free bike tune-ups by the UConn cycling club, all of which will be available throughout the day.

EcoHusky will also be displaying towers of cases of bottled water representing how much water an average UConn student uses during a day and how much water is wasted by a leaky faucet. The display is a continuation of Stop the Drop, a campaign started by EcoHusky at the end of last summer to conserve water in dorms. The group put signs up in bathrooms across the campus with maintenance phone numbers asking for students to call and report leaky faucets.

The Forestry and Wildlife Club will be selling maple syrup that the group made this year from trees in the UConn forest. They will also have a display board explaining the production and some tools that they use for the process.

Also featured at the event will be tours of the LEED certified Burton Family Football Center and the Shenkman Training Facility at noon and again at 4 p.m. The facility was completed this past summer and boasts an indoor football field with a 120-foot-high ceiling, a large strength and conditioning facility, an academic resource center and upscale locker rooms. People interested in the tours will be able to sign up at the event.

In addition to all of the informational happenings at Earth Day 2007, there are also a number of organizations collecting donations for their various causes.

For example, Rain Forest Alliance will be collecting money to purchase and preserve rainforest. The Rain Forest Alliance is an organization that attempts to preserve the environment, help communities, businesses and governments to change their land-use practices and works with organizations to promote sustainable agricultural practices.

Collections for Mt. Sneaker will continue as well and those who donate sneakers at the event will have a chance to win one of three Nike iPod sport kits. Since last year 2,000 pounds of sneakers have been collected by EcoHusky student grop and this year has been particularly successful.

Leah Giffin, a 6th-semester individualized major in environmental policy, has been involved with Mt. Sneaker since freshman year.

"It's been great. We've had a lot of community involvement, lots of phone calls and e-mails and it's just nice to see multiple student groups coming together and involved in one project," Giffin said.

There have been collection bins at the Student Union, the Homer Babbage Library, the Co-op, at dining halls and other places throughout the campus. Many groups including Student Athletic Advisory Committee, EcoHusky, Res-Life Collection have participated and the collections will continue throughout finals and as students move out for the summer.

The Earth Day celebrations will also have an informational booth about green roofs which are boxes of plants that can be installed on roofs. This concept offers a number of benefits including reduced heating and cooling costs for a building.

The Soil and Water Conservation Society will be displaying the green roof boxes and is attempting to raise enough money to install these plants on campus at Gant Plaza.

Finally, an informational bio-diesel display will be supporting the bio-diesel fuel that is created on the UConn campus, including 50 gallons per week using grease from Chuck and Augie's restaurant.

Earth Day has been celebrated every year by EcoHusky since the group started four years ago.