CHICAGO HEIGHTS–(ENEWSPF)–March 24, 2015. Prairie State College (PSC) is celebrating “Earth Month” with a series of events scheduled throughout April. All events are hosted by the Sustainability Center. This is the first year the college has expanded the events through a complete month, after celebrating “Earth Week” in previous years. All events will take place on the college’s main campus, located at 202 S. Halsted St. in Chicago Heights.
The month’s events begin on Wednesday, April 1, with a 2 to 4 p.m. documentary viewing and discussion of “Switch: Discover the Future of Energy,” which will be held in the Conference Center Heritage Room. The sustainability club will be selling organic popcorn for $2 with all proceeds benefiting the PSC Butterfly Garden.
A Health and Wellness Fair, “Get Healthy, Go Green!” is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Tuesday, April 7, in the Atrium. Green components include electronics recycling with collected cell phones benefiting the South Suburban Family Shelter, a prescription drug take back program, worm composting from the U of I Master Gardner program, and a local fare cooking demonstration by The Cottage on Dixie. Attendees also can participate inan eco-walk around the PSC campus from 11 a.m. to noon on that day. The walk through the main building’s theme, “Hydrate Your Knowledge,” is intended to provide useful tips about water consumption and health.
During a 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Thursday, April 9 presentation in the Atrium, “Get Healthy, Go Green! Clear the Air,” attendees are encouraged to quit smoking “cold turkey,” by turning in their pack of cigarettes in exchange for a turkey sandwich. The event is partially funded through a competitive grant awarded by the Legacy Foundation. Other helpful information also will be available to help smokers quit and prevent others from starting.
A group of PSC faculty, staff, and students will take a field trip to Homewood Disposal on Tuesday, April 14. A family owned business for more than 50 years, Homewood Disposal is a full-range solid waste, transportation, recycling and disposal service company.
Amateur meteorologist and storm chaser Danny Neal will discuss the ins and outs of Illinois weather, from climatology to extreme events, during “Storms of the Great Plains,” from 10 to 11:30 a.m. or 1 to 2:30 p.m., Wednesday April 15, in the Heritage Community Bank Room in the Conference Center.
From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Thursday, April 16, attendees can visit the Sustainability Club-sponsored table in the Atrium, featuring “The Polar Melt Down,” to participate in an interactive activity to learn about the melting ice caps and the effect of climate change on arctic species. While in the Atrium that day, from noon to 2 p.m., attendees also can stop by the table “Get Unplugged,” sponsored by the Black Student Union, to learn about how unplugging devices can save energy and money.
Closing the month’s festivities, the faculty sustainability committee is leading the charge to clean up Halsted Street during “Adopt-a-Highway.” PSC adopted the stretch of Route 1 from McDonalds at Vollmer to 183rd Street. Anyone interested in helping should contact PSC Professor Ed Schwarz at [email protected].
Local organizations and businesses supporting the events include SouthSTAR Services, the Cottage on Dixie and South Suburban Family Center.
“This is the first ever Earth Month at PSC, and we’re happy that there is such a variety of educational events and speakers to stress the importance of sustainability on our campus and in our community, and how it can affect the earth as a whole,” said Allessandra Cairo, sustainability coordinator at PSC.
For more information on the events scheduled for Earth Month or PSC’s continued sustainability efforts, visit prairiestate.edu/sustainability or contact Cairo at (708) 709-3764 or [email protected].
Source: www.prairiestate.edu
