Illinois Sustainability Calendar

Introduction

The average individual generates around 6 pounds of waste per day, and about 40% of all waste is in the form of food. Each person disposes of approximately a ton of waste per year. Yikes!

Thank you for taking the first step to be more conscious of your personal waste output. Your actions matter. You are helping to combat climate change and to reduce the amount of waste that ends up in our landfills. We have the power to make a change.

How to participate

As part of Campus Sustainability Month this October, iSEE is starting a campuswide waste reduction challenge.

Use this form to sign up: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdPPqdd9P7xdpL8VKVGCxLjjSbxvoNfTk1feHQJWyabd7U_nA/viewform

By registering to participate, you will receive a weekly grid to fill out with the items that you throw in the garbage each day; for example, food, single-use disposable items, paper, and plastics. A point system will be used for you to keep track of your waste. The goal is to earn as few points as possible. There is also the opportunity to subtract points for positive actions. These actions will result in a subtraction from your weekly total.

At the end of each week, upload your grid and reflection to the weekly Google Form.

For more information go to: https://sustainability.illinois.edu/campus-sustainability/contests-and-challenges/

Help Red Bison with restoration efforts in the South Arboretum Woods! Activities include seed collection, controlled burns, invasive species removal, and more!

Every Tuesday throughout the month of October, Bevier Cafe will host a speaker to present on a sustainability-related topic. The first five attendees will receive free lunch! Otherwise, optional lunch costs approximately $10.  Food will be served beginning at 11:30, and the presentation will begin at noon. 

Join us for a behind-the-scenes tour of Bevier Cafe and its greenhouses. Come learn more about some of the sustainability features of this unique, student-operated cafe!

The Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (SB 2408, CEJA) passed the Illinois general assembly with bipartisan support and was signed by Governor Pritzker on September 15th. The bill is being lauded as the country’s most just and equitable clean energy law. It sets Illinois on a path to a 100% clean energy future by 2050 and prioritizes equitable opportunities in the new clean energy economy.

Tired of frozen pizzas? Purchase some fresh, organic produce from the Sustainable Student Farm!

We will meet at the pavilion on Engineering Quad, 3:30 p.m. and disperse from there to pick up trash across campus. Resources will be provided. Stay for as long as you are able, and bring a friend. Everyone is welcome!

The Illinois Innovation Network’s East-Central Illinois Hub, hosted by Eastern Illinois University, will hold the IIN Research Conference on Sustainability on October 29, 2020. The virtual conference is the IIN’s first event aimed at generating new research collaborations in the broadly defined area of sustainability, which is a shared focus of all 15 IIN hubs.

Conference organizers invite students, faculty, and researchers to submit poster presentations/research paper proposals related to sustainability within Illinois. The conference will be held in an online format and is open to any student, faculty member or researcher associated with any of the IIN Hubs. All participants will participate remotely from their own locations.

Broadly defined, sustainability research poster presentations and/or paper proposals may be related to research projects on the environment, health and well-being, sustainable food and water practices, business practices that support economic growth, education practices, and governmental policies related to sustainability.

Research poster presentations and/or paper proposals should include a title, 300 word abstract, and author(s) contact information. Conference submission information is located here. Proposals should be submitted by September 15, 2020. Additional questions about submissions may be sent to Professor Ryan Burge, at rpburge@eiu.edu.

Awards of $250 each will be provided to the best presentations for an undergraduate student, a graduate student, and a post-doctoral researcher.

Help Red Bison with restoration efforts in the South Arboretum Woods! Activities include seed collection, controlled burns, invasive species removal, and more!