Conscious College Road TourIn spring 2016, SSPEAR helped bring the Conscious College Road Tour (CCRT), a sustainability event put on by the nonprofit Turning Green, to campus! The event involved stations of 7 different lifestyle categories--food, body, zero waste, clean, style, and space--and how to turn them from conventional to conscious. There were demos, product samples, and even a Town Hall meeting to discuss sustainability initiatives at CMC.
Learn more about CCRT and Turning Green at projectgreenu.org/#!roadtour/c24vq |
Monitoring the SprinklersSSPEAR helps keep watch to ensure our campus’ sprinklers operate as efficiently as possible, especially during this period of critical drought. We have taken pictures of and mapped any sprinklers which were over-watering or turned in the wrong direction, and with the help of our Grounds personnel, were able to quickly make the necessary repairs.
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Beach Clean-upsSSPEAR members volunteer to gather trash littered along local beaches to help keep our water and our wildlife clean and healthy. This year we took part in this effort alongside thousands of other volunteer groups around the world during International Coastal Cleanup day, organized by the Ocean Conservatory.
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Trash on the LawnTrash on the Lawn is a dormitory waste audit SSPEAR organizes each semester to analyze our campus’ recycling habits. We gather trash bags from our dorm lounges, and instead of sending them to the landfill, we dump them out on the lawn, and—armed with gloves and tarps—properly sort the contents!
In our last Trash on the Lawn event, SSPEAR members found that almost 50% of the contents (by volume) could in fact be diverted from the landfill through proper composting and recycling. We were shocked, and so were the dorm residents we shared this with! It definitely shows a need for greater understanding of proper waste disposal on campus. |
Power Down Challenge!The Campus Conservation Nationals competition, known at the Claremont Colleges as “PowerDown,” is a nation-wide effort to create awareness of everyday energy and water use by residents in dorms. In the spring semester, Claremont McKenna dorms compete against one another, the school will face off against the four other Claremont Colleges, and it will be nationally ranked based on its ability to reduce its own energy and water demand.
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Monarch Butterfly GardenDid you know that 99% of monarch butterflies do not survive to adulthood?* For this reason, SSPEAR has joined the effort to help preserve the habitat and migration route of this beautiful, endangered, creature. With the generosity and assistance of CMC’s Garden Club and Art Club, we were able to build and decorate a milkweed and flower garden for monarch butterflies to rest, lay eggs, and call home on our campus.
*http://www.flightofthebutterflies.com/conservation-preservation/ |
Conservation StickersSo much of sustainability relies upon collaborative effort, and for this reason, SSPEAR hopes to engage campus users to take part in our energy and water reduction goals! We are soon planning to place selected stickers in dormitory restrooms, and hopefully in classrooms and public restrooms, too, as reminders of the simple steps we can all take to reduce our impact.
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Red Cup BinsIn collaboration with the Campus Improvements Committee, SSPEAR has purchased and painted special Red Cup Recycling Bins for dorms and events! It is our hope that these special bins will help encourage socially responsible habits that help keep our campus looking great, and will benefit our environment, too, as all cups collected will be sent to Terracycle.
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