Four prominent speakers on sustainability issues will make presentations via webcast at the U Health Sciences Education Building today for National Campus Sustainability Day.
The event is presented by the Society for College and University Planning in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Terry Calhoun is the director of the group, which is associated with the University of Michigan. He said the annual event is in its fifth presentation and has grown each year.
"We expect over 200 schools to be participating this year. It is an exciting time for sustainability awareness in higher education," Calhoun said.
The U's participation is being sponsored by the Office of the Senior Vice President of the Health Sciences, the Office of Sustainability and the student group Sustainable Environments and Ecological Design.
Jen Colby, the coordinator for the Office of Sustainability, said the discussion forum that followed last year's event sowed the seeds of ideas that led to the creation of her office.
"It's hard to believe that was only a year ago…so much has happened (on sustainability issues) since then," Colby said.
The webcast will be presented in Room 2600 of the Health Sciences Education Building from 10 a.m. to noon.
Later today, a new campus group, the Sage Point Green Team, will announce its existence and host a free screening of Al Gore's film, "An Inconvenient Truth" at the Peterson Heritage Center, Room 1A/1B at 8 p.m. The screening is free and open to all.
The new Sage Point Green Team will focus on sustainability issues specific to the Residence Halls and will be working with the Office of Sustainability on campus-wide issues as well.
