University of New Haven’s Green Team is leading the way for the campus to become greener. A few weeks ago, a petition was sent around at the Undergraduate Student Government Association (USGA) meeting to ask for more recycle bins around campus. But that is not all. Just last Friday, the USGA created a new committee, the Sustainability Committee, which will also focus on implementing green initiatives on campus.
The UNH Green Team has come a long way since then. The Charger Bulletin chatted with the club’s president Lisa Pyle about their recent initiatives.
Charger Bulletin: How did the club get started?
Lisa Pyle: The club was started in 2009 by Alex Alund and Sarah Hosford (class of 2012) because there were no other clubs on campus that were solely working towards promoting sustainability at the time. Both Alex and Sarah had been involved a great deal with similar organizations/projects in high school and they wanted to bring that experience to UNH.
CB: What are your most successful events?
Pyle: In the past, our most successful events have been Recycle Bin Decorating, Plant Potting, and our Acoustic Show. Sadly, we may not be having Recycle Bin Decorating this semester due to funding issues.
CB: What made you create the petition?
Pyle: The petition was actually suggested by a freshman member, Josh Howard [a Senator at USGA who came up with the Sustainability Committee], when we mentioned at a meeting that we had planned to meet with facilities about the lack of recycling at the university. He and I then drafted it together.
CB: How many signed the petition?
Pyle: So far, we have 162 signatures. Our goal is to get 1000 signatures (Approximately 20 percent of the student population).
CB: Why should people go green?
Pyle: People should go green because if they don’t, the future of the world we live in may not be a very bright one. Global warming is a real issue, and if we sit back and do nothing to stop or at least slow its progression, the environmental impacts will be felt worldwide. Also, as a race, we are raping our planet not only of its precious resources, but of many of its species, as more and more animals are added to the endangered or extinct list every decade.
CB: What do hope for the future of the club?
Pyle: What we want most as a club is to generate more awareness of the ways that we impact our environment and to educate people on ways to minimize any damage we may cause. As of now, our major goal is, of course, getting more recycling both on campus and off at UNH-sponsored housing locations. We would also like to look into alternate energy sources for the university and present them to President Kaplan in the hopes that we can become a true “green” campus.
CB: Are there any upcoming events that students should look out for?
Pyle: We will be celebrating America Recycles Day (Nov. 15) with week-long events starting on Monday the 12th leading up to a Jeopardy night with Gaming club on Friday night. Those who attend the events will be given a giveaway ticket which will count towards our grand prize to be given out on Friday. Thus, the more events you attend, the better your chances of winning! Flyers detailing the events will be posted next week, so look out for those!
For more information on the club, go to Charger Connection or like their page on Facebook.
