Earth Month at CMU
Events, Informational

Earth Month at CMU

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By Jessica Reinhart

Central Sustainability (CS), the student-led office of sustainability at Central Michigan University (CMU), is looking forward to celebrating Earth Month with a newly expanded team!  CS was founded in 2020 by students Eric Urbaniak and Teresa Homsi with the mission to institutionalize holistic sustainability at CMU and in the surrounding community. Now, only four years later, CS has gone through its second expansion. Each member of the team is dedicated to institutionalizing sustainability at CMU. 

CS has big plans for Earth Month this year. To kick off Earth Month, CS is hosting a community clean up around Mt. Pleasant. This is a way for people to get involved in a service activity to build community while improving their surroundings. In a previous clean-up in October, volunteers collected almost 100 pounds of litter! Community members are encouraged to join in on the fun at 5pm on April 1st in the Fabiano Gardens gazebo.  

On April 5th and 6th, CS is collaborating with CMU’s Student Government Association and the Computer Science Department to host the 2024 Hackathon. The Hackathon is a 24-hour competition where students will problem-solve to develop solutions to improve campus. This year, CS devised three sustainability-focused issues for participants to solve. 

On April 6th, CS is partnering with CMU’s Threads Fashion Show. CS and the fashion show producers have been collaborating to make sure this event is meeting sustainability standards such as low waste, accessibility, and sustainably sourced materials. This event is open to the public. 

On April 8th, 9th, and 12th, CS is hosting campus sustainability walking tours to acquaint participants with the pillars of sustainability (social, cultural, environmental, economic, and human) and how CMU exemplifies them. This is a great opportunity for participants to connect geographic locations on campus to sustainability concepts. These events are free and open to the public and begin in front of the Bovee University Center. 

On April 17th from 7-8pm, CS is partnering with Central Civics to host the annual spring Griffin Forum. CMU hosts two Griffin Forums each year to “address social, political-economic, environmental, and other important issues.” This spring, the forum will highlight sustainability and energy policy by hosting a discussion titled “Our Energy Transition” with Jim MacInnes, the former CEO of Crystal Mt. Ski Resort. This event is free and open to the public. 

Two days later, on April 19th, CS members are speaking at CMU’s annual peace flag raising ceremony hosted by the Cora Di Brazzà Foundation. This event honors the work of E.C. Warriner – the fourth President of CMU – and his dedication to world peace. The ceremony is an opportunity for participants to discover CMU’s past relationship with the Peace Through Law movement and is free and open to the public.  

To celebrate Earth Day, CS will be participating in a CMU speaker series event. There will be a sustainability workshop at 2pm with climate leaders Britt Wray and Laura Schmidt followed by a keynote speech, “Generation dread, how to cope with climate change,” by Britt Wray. Preceding this will be a panel and Q&A session with Mt. Pleasant Citizens Climate Lobby leader Marie Koper and CMU’s Geography and Environmental Studies Department Chair Matthew Liesch at 8pm. This event is free and open to the public. 

Next year, CS is excited to host the campus farmers market for the second year and collaborate with CMU and the local community. CS appreciates our ongoing relationship with GreenTree! 

Needless to say, CMU is fired up about sustainability!  

Learn more about CS below: 

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