Monmouth College's celebration of Earth Day includes talk on eliminating carbon emissions
Monmouth, Ill. (04/15/2021) — It's always been wise to take good care of the only planet we inhabit, but that idea took on added significance in 1970 when the modern environmental movement was born and Earth Day was established.
Monmouth College will extend the annual observance of Earth Day on April 22 to an Earth Week celebration, bookended by a pair of opportunities to plant a tree or shrub at its LeSuer Nature Preserve on the northeast edge of town, just south of the intersection of North 11th Street and U.S. Route 34.
Between the hours of 9 a.m.-noon on April 17 and April 24, biology professor Tim Tibbetts will lead members of the campus and local community in the planting event, which will help in the restoration of the preserve.
His department colleague Ken Cramer will present a talk at 4 p.m. April 23 in Room 273 of the College's Center for Science and Business. Along with three of his students, Cramer will present a 10-year plan to achieve zero carbon emissions at the College.
"Solar and wind energy are both growing incredibly rapidly, and coal is declining," said Cramer. "Renewable energy has been around for a long time. It's tested, proven technologies. It's just a matter of expanding our use of it so that we can protect the environment a little better and still do the things we like to do."
On the actual date of Earth Day, April 22, the movie Into the Canyon will be shown at 7:30 p.m. in the Pattee Auditorium of the Center for Science and Business. The movie highlights what two journalists learned about the beauty and fragility of the Grand Canyon during their 750-mile hike of exploration.
Over the course of three months, Monmouth College is hosting the Associated Colleges of the Midwest's Environmental Education Symposium, and the second session of that symposium will be held during Earth Week. Titled "Beliefs, Stereotypes and Social Justice," the session will be held from 2-4 p.m. April 24. More information, including how to register for the event, is available from Monmouth faculty member Adrienne Hagen at amhagen@monmouthcollege.edu.
"At all of our Earth Week events, there will be a petition to sign to encourage Monmouth College to go carbon neutral and help slow climate change," said Cramer.
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