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student groups

Student Groups Take on Sustainability

Student organizations make significant contributions to campus life at Northwestern. More than a dozen organizations on campus focus on issues of the environment and sustainability. They take on challenges that range from building a solar powered car to expanding access to healthy, sustainably produced food. The Office of Sustainability recently asked group leaders to share some information about their organizations. Here are some of the things we heard back about the groups and their plans for the coming academic year. Students can connect with these groups and others to get involved.

Associated Student Government Sustainability Committee (ASG SusCom)

ASG SusCom is dedicated to promoting environmental sustainability at Northwestern University by establishing and maintaining key relationships with the Northwestern community, engaging the greater student body, and developing sustainability projects within the committee. Three major projects for this year include: the academics project to increase the amount and quality of environmental sustainability curriculum offered at Northwestern; the sustainable advertising project to limit or completely ban ground flyering; and the zero-waste project’s to increase the sustainability of Ryan Field by transitioning the stadium to zero-waste.

Eco-Reps

Eco-Reps work to promote sustainable behavior on campus, particularly in student housing. Goals for the year include reducing waste in residence “munchies,” reducing food waste, and supporting events including Green Cup, Earth Week, and a Food Waste Fair. Connect on Facebook.

Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW)

Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW-NU) is an action-based group, mobilizing students through education, training, and hands-on projects related to environmental sustainability. This year they plan to build membership and hold events including Wildcat Blackout (a race to turn off lights). Connect on Facebook.

Fossil Free NU

Fossil Free Northwestern is calling on Northwestern University to remove its investments in coal and move toward divestment from all fossil fuels. They aim to build a sustainable endowment that refuses to fund climate change, pollution, or injustice. The group’s goals for the year include working with local and regional environmental justice groups to expand their actions to promote sustainability and environmental justice in ways other than divestment. They also hope to strengthen partnerships with alumni, faculty, staff, and trustees. Connect on Facebook.

GREEN House

GREEN House is a residential community with a mission of extending classroom learning to living-learning in ways that engender exploration, discovery, and critical thinking about environmental problems. Their main goal is to develop a strong sense of community between members. They hold bi-monthly Green Tea speaker events where other organizations come to GREEN House to speak about what they do and ways that people can get involved. Connect on Facebook.

In Our Nature

This online publication aims to engage and entertain readers with all aspects of the environment, nature and sustainability. Their goal is to make environmental topics more accessible to the general public. This year they plan to expand their audience and work on new and innovative stories. Connect on Facebook.

Northwestern Energy and Sustainability Consortium (NESC)

NESC aims to facilitate collaboration between organizations and generate new projects around sustainability and energy. This year they intend to continue to organize the Business of Energy and Technology of Energy seminars. They also plan to continue to build a more cohesive and cross-disciplinary sustainability and energy community through networking and collaborative events.

Northwestern Energy Technology Group (NETG)

NETG’s mission is to educate the graduate student body about energy technology. This year they plan to bring in more speakers for a regular speaker series.

NUsolar 

NUsolar’s objective is to enhance education and career preparation opportunities for Northwestern students by providing hands-on project management, design, and manufacturing experience. They also promote alternative energy by increasing green energy awareness and demonstrating the feasibility of solar power. This year they intend to finish building their seventh generation vehicle and race it in summer 2017. Connect on Facebook.

Plant-it-Purple Graduate Gardens

Plant-it-Purple is a graduate student gardening group that seeks to build community among graduate students with an interest in gardening. Anticipated projects and events for the year include indoor seed starting and transplanting, a workshop on how to re-pot cuttings and outdoor gardening events. Connect on Facebook.

Real Food at NU (NURF) 

Real Food at NU teaches about the values of real food that is sustainably and ethically produced and helps students promote those values in their lives. They are working with the Northwestern dining system and work to achieve a goal of 20 percent real food on campus by 2020. This year their goals include reaching 5 to 10 percent real food on campus, and expanding relationships with groups outside of sustainability organizations. Connect on Facebook.

Students for Ecological and Environmental Development (SEED)

SEED’s mission is to pioneer, teach, and model environmental stewardship so as to inspire future leaders to act in ways that protect and sustain our planet. Projects and events for the year include helping to organize Green Cup, (a month long competition to reduce electricity and water consumption), partnering with ESW to bring in a winter speaker, and putting on a sustainable music festival called Philfest. Connect on Facebook.

Wildroots

Wildroots works to promote and spread knowledge regarding sustainable gardening. This year they will work to maintain the garden and to determine how student garden can be preserved in the course of planning for the construction of a new student center. Connect on Facebook.

Learn More

The Office of Sustainability works with student groups to advance sustainability on campus. This fall, sustainability staff members plan to work with student leaders to facilitate discussion and opportunities for collaboration. To get involved, email us at sustainability@northwestern.edu