On Monday, April 17, Earth Week at Lawrence University was kicked off. Earth Week is a week at Lawrence from Monday, April 17 to Sunday, April 23, dedicated to raising awareness about environmental sustainability and promoting environmentalism. During this week, there were many events put on by various student organizations, such as the Sustainable Lawrence University Garden (SLUG), Lawrence University Environmental Organization and Greenfire.
The first event of Earth Week was a lecture given in Wriston Auditorium by Assistant Professor of Biology Israel Del Toro. The lecture consisted of Del Toro discussing his “No Mow May” study, which indicated that not mowing your lawns within a period of one month increases the richness and abundance of pollinators in the area. Del Toro talked about how his study was challenged by other academics. One of the reasons it was challenged was the fact that Del Toro identified species of pollinators by eye, rather than killing them and identifying them in a lab. However, Del Toro thinks that this defeats the purpose of the study. The benefit of being able to objectively identify the exact species of pollinators that can be gained from killing them does not outweigh the negative impact that killing these pollinators will have. Del Toro also discussed how the No Mow May ordinance was proposed to be eliminated by alderperson Chad Doran. In Appleton, there is an ordinance requiring the height of grass and weeds to be below eight inches; however, under No Mow May, the city suspends its enforcement until June 1 to observe No Mow May. Del Toro also stressed other aspects of environmentalism, such as conservation of land; the management of chemicals, such as pesticides and herbicides; and public education around the topics of sustainability and environmental consciousness. Professor Del Toro is also hoping to increase engagement with the “No Mow May” movement that has sprouted from his study, from getting more people to participate to promoting native planting.
Following Del Toro’s lecture, SLUG hosted the final event for that day, a garden power hour. SLUG is the student organization that runs the Sustainable Lawrence University Garden on campus. They hosted two different SLUG power hours throughout the week and had a table at EarthFest where they sold tomato and basil plants.
“SLUG has made me aware of how much food consumption and food waste happens,” said SLUG member and first-year Victor Sandberg. “We have been able to collect and utilize such food waste on campus and turn it into compost to help promote growth for our future plants.”
There were more events planned for Wednesday, April 18. However, both events were postponed due to bad weather. The first event was a native planting event with the Center for Community Engagement (CCE) and the Appleton Rotary; the second event was a stargazing event at High Cliff Park State Park hosted by Greenfire. The native planting event was moved to Thursday, April 27, from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.. The stargazing event was moved to Wednesday, April 26.
EarthFest took place on Saturday, April 22. The event included tables for various groups, from both on and off campus. Lawrence University Native American Organization (LUNA) had a table where EarthFest-goers could play a Jeopardy-style game about where players could learn about environmental issues that impact Indigenous people and win prizes for playing. Wisconsin Bike Fed encouraged EarthFest-goers to write letters to their representatives to increase funding for the Transportation Alternatives Program, which helps to provide alternatives to cars and car-centric infrastructure in Wisconsin by funding alternatives such as bike paths. Other organizations had information about what places to offer suggestions for school sustainability and sustainably sourced candies, among other activities.
“EarthFest is a cool event; there are a lot of people in the community who are coming to this event,” said first-year Emmett Bowman-Grubbs, Treasurer-In-Training for Recess Club. “Keeping a healthy air quality and making sure our environment is healthy is necessary if we want to keep enjoying the outdoors.”
Recess Club appeared at EarthFest with a table and spike ball set. Bowman-Grubbs, who was at their table, talked about how Recess Club does a lot of events outdoors and because of that, they place an emphasis on sustainability so that the outdoors can remain a safe place to play games and have fun.
Live music was played at the event. Guest speakers were also present throughout EarthFest. One of the speakers who was scheduled to speak was Winona LaDuke, an Indigenous environmentalist, author and activist who co-founded the nonprofit environmental organization Honor The Earth and ran for Vice President in 2000 on the Green Party ticket. However, LaDuke’s speech was canceled because she was implicated in a lawsuit for covering up sexual harassment at Honor The Earth and resigned from the organization.
The end of Earth Week was marked by two events by Outdoor Recreation Club (ORC) and Lawrence University Environmental Organization on Sunday, April 23. ORC hosted Paddle on the Fox River, where students could paddle on the nearby Fox River. The Lawrence University Environmental Organization hosted a recycling event for the community from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., which was the closing event of Earth Week.