Friendly faces with a passion for the environment gathered together on the quad on Thursday as the Environmental Club hosted its Earth Day celebration.

On-campus clubs and organizations all presented environmental issues to student passersby. Many stands provided information on how to fight environmental issues or simply to raise awareness.

Vice president of the Environmental Club Amanda Mehall described the goal of the Earth Day celebration.

“We want to make sustainability and living eco-friendly a cool and friendly activity. It’s also a good opportunity for the clubs to bring the campus community together and give the clubs good PR (public relations),” Mehall said.

The first thing to catch one’s attention upon entering the quad was the live music being performed by university students. Senior Andrew Paladino was one of the students providing music at the celebration with his Native American wood flute.

“I was just riding by and saw the Earth Day event so I scooted home and grabbed my flute,” Paladino said. He later explained how he received recycled oil for his bike from the Bike Club stand.

Oil was the focus of many stands at the celebration, especially for Shippensburg University Dining Services and the ceramics department in the Huber Art Building.

The two organizations collaborated to increase the campus eco-friendliness.

“I believe we are the first university to create a zero footprint kiln. It’s powered by the leftover vegetable oil from the dining halls as well as solar power,” junior Dylan Yoost said. Yoost also informed students that tours of the eco-friendly kiln were being given to any interested students by art professor Ben Culbertson of the ceramics department.

Both the ceramics stand and the SU Dining Services stand used bicycles in powering their product. At the ceramics table, students could pedal to power the pottery wheel as other students worked to mold the clay. Meanwhile, the SU Dining Services table used the power of pedaling to make sugar-free smoothies for passersby.

However, some tables focused more on the ideology of creating a more eco-friendly world. Josh Chast, a sophomore in Hillel, a Jewish student organization, described the term, “Tikkun Olam” as he displayed a picture of a divided earth.

“Tikkun Olam basically means working together to make the world a better place. You have to ask yourself, ‘what can I do?’” Chast said.

Many stands were giving students the opportunity to make even the most minuscule difference by distributing plants in recyclable plastic bottles. Freshman Jeanette Weinberg was enthusiastic about the free plants.

“My favorite stand is anywhere I can plant a plant. I’ve already planted five.” Weinberg said.

Tara Kennedy, former president of the Environmental Club, described her passion for the celebration and informed students of the D.C Climate March to happen April 29. The Environmental Club is participating and encourages any student who is passionate about the environment to join. The club can be contacted at Enviro@ship.edu. 

Share