Parker Commons was transformed with palpable, focused energy for environmental change for Colgate and the surrounding community as nearly 100 participants converged for the sixth annual Green Summit.
The summit is not a recognized group but rather an open gathering of students, faculty, staff, and community members who want to see environmental change enacted by Colgate.
On Friday, informal groups were formed around individual initiatives. Participants generated practical, short-term goals called Green Strides that will be carried out over the next two months.
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| Kelly Henderson '09 was among the dozens of students, faculty and staff members, and area residents participating in the Green Summit. (Photo by Kali McMillan '10) |
This year there were, of course, 13 initiatives (Colgate loves the No. 13). The initiatives ranged from reducing the use of bottled water to cutting back on computer printing and paper waste to staging an Energy Olympics.
Groups spent 40 minutes talking about how to best attack the environmental problem set forth in their initiatives.
Brainstorming brought about ideas including "I Drink Tap" (anti-bottled water) stickers to planting trees on the ski hill to offset study group carbon emissions.
After narrowing the options to a low-cost and realistic idea, the groups spent another 40 minutes writing an action plan for their chosen Green Stride.
The summit also spent time celebrating the successes seen over the past year. Focus the Nation, held Jan. 31, came out of a previous Green Summit initiative.
Guided by Bob Turner, professor of economics and environmental studies, and Steph Tubman '08, it became one of the most successful examples of a Green Stride and created the energy on campus that fueled the high participation at this year's summit.
Green Bikes was also recognized for its success in creating a program of shared community bicycles. The On Campus Travel initiative will be continuing the Green Bikes program, enlarging the fleet and raising awareness.
Funded by the Environmental Council, the summit recognizes the value of informal, grassroots collaboration to make immediate changes.
There are many organizations represented at the summit: the Environmental Council, which reports to the president and dean of faculty; the Campus Ecology Group, which is open to the campus; and student groups such as Students for Environmental Action and Hamilton Outdoor Group.
The idea behind the summit is not to save the world in one day, but rather to take tangible steps to reduce Colgate's environmental footprint.
This summit's goal is "Action by Earth Day," which is April 22. Good progress toward that goal was achieved Friday at Parker Commons, where the energy and enthusiasm was palpable.
(Seniors Elizabeth Juers and Rachel Surprenant contributed to this article)