MCLA Beacon Online
The Newspaper of the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts
MCLA keeps up with its green measures
By Laura Field
Staff Writer
Earth Day is a day set aside to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s environment. But for some people at MCLA, every day is Earth Day.Several of these students, including MCLA freshman, Jason Brown and junior Christine Amor are of those who helped raise awareness last week.
They set up tabling in the marketplace on the day that had mostly been taken up by the undergraduate research conference. While the students in the conferences showed the results of all of their work, the students in the marketplace were showing work of their own. At his table, Brown proudly explained the work he has been doing with the environmental program.
“There is a site on Corinth St. with five acres that the college owns right now. It’s just sitting there doing nothing,” said Brown. “Some of us are working with the college and Aramark to gain easy access to the site.” Brown explained the plan is to use the land as a composting site. As it stands, the plot is currently landlocked by houses.
Once there is a proper set up, students can start composting.“Aramark’s to-go containers are made to be compostable, but we don’t have anywhere to compost them,” said Brown. “Hopefully this will solve the problem.”Two tables over, Christine Amor and junior Ashley Perkins displayed their ongoing effort with big smiles. The girls, like Brown, are members of the student-run Green Team, also known as the Environuts. Amor and Perkins talked of plans in progress for a new bike share program.“The idea is that students will be able to take out bikes like books,” said Amor. “It’s just another option to travel and exercise.”
The bike-share will potentially be funded by the North Adams police department. The program is just another of the many alternatives towards being more environmentally conscious. This year marks MCLA’s year of awareness to reduce it’s carbon footprint by five percent. The ultimate goal is to reach 20 percent by 2012.Earth Day tabling was part of a week-long array of events, including seminars by John Turenne, president and founder of sustainable food systems and “Olli Talk” in Murdock.
Interested in being a part of the Green Team? Contact Lauren Moffatt, BERC coordinator and Green Team co-chair, at Lauren.Moffatt@mcla.edu
Ali Johnston/Beacon Staff
Last week in celebration of Earth Day, clubs and organizations came out to talk about environmental issues, pros and cons on ‘green living’ and some free sweets as donated by Aramark. Groups such as the Envronuts, Pi Upsilon Pi Fraternity and the future ‘Bike Share’ club we all present. Here, Christine Amor (left) and Ashlei Perkins (right) are promoting a new club idea in Bike Share.
