Changes Just Keep Getting Greener

Get ready for change.

The Students for Campus Conservation Club is about to get a facelift; a new name, new posters and new events to get our school community more involved with sustainable living.

"We are in the process of changing our name from Students for Campus Conservation to the Sustainability Club," says the group's Vice President Aaron Emerson. Emerson believes the change will make the name easier to remember and perhaps make the club more accessible to other students.

According to the club's President, Chris Mullen, the new name will express more of what the club is about.

"Keeping yourself in a sustainable state is not just about the environmental or economic [parts of sustainability], it's also about the social and emotional [parts]," says Mullen.

According to Samantha Wolfe, the club's secretary, the name change request is just waiting for approval by the SGA.

Along with the name change the club has been brainstorming for new advertisements and events that will make them more involved with the campus.

The club has members from the English and Graphic Design majors and is hoping to use the talents of their members to make new eye-catching posters for the Hornet's Nest and around campus to draw new members in and to keep everyone updated. They are also looking into making better signs for the waste receptacles in the Hornet's Nest to reduce confusion about which items should go where.

"Everyone participates in coming up with ideas," says Wolfe, "In our last meeting we talked a lot about what small events we could do to get other students involved."

Their ideas are extensive, from nature walks to identify invasive species to potluck dinners with local food and possible monthly movies that relate to nature and sustainability. There is also talk of bringing composting to the dorms and doing more regular trash audits where the club members collect trash from around campus and separate out what could have been composted or recycled. The only thing that stands in the club's way is possible interference from the school.

When asked about the school's cooperation with the goals of the Campus Conservation Club, the faculty advisor for the group, Benjamin Luce, admitted there has been some frustration in the past.

"It took the Hornet's Nest a while to get on board with our new waste receptacles," says Emerson.

"It was more like half a semester," Mullen chimed in.

There are some problems with communication between the club and the school but the club is pushing their ideas forward and wants to continue their growth as a club and as a presence on campus.

  "We welcome everyone," says Wolfe. The club is very open to new members and stresses that you don't have to be a part of the major to be a part of the club.

 If you're interested in making a difference with Campus Conservation, or just interested in meeting some new people, the Students for Campus Conservation Club has meetings every Wednesday at 5:30PM in room S-123 in the Science Wing.