Seeing green: Campus to showcase sustainability Oct. 22

SF State will celebrate its fourth annual Campus Sustainability Day on Oct. 22 as part of the University's ongoing efforts to promote environmental awareness and sustainable living.

A variety of events will take place throughout the day in Malcolm X Plaza and in the plaza between the Towers, the Village and the Dining Center. The goal is to educate the SF State community about the role it can play in building a more sustainable city and world, according to Sustainability Coordinator Nick Kordesch.

"We want students, faculty and staff to learn about the many ways they can help make SF State a greener campus," he said. "We hope they realize that their actions -- from what they recycle to what they eat to how they communicate -- contribute to our University-wide goals."

Campus Sustainability Day activities include:

• A station on Malcolm X Plaza where the group Power to the Pedal will provide bicycle repairs and offer advice on anything related to biking
• An orchard planting in University Park North from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., where participants will plant 60 fruit trees
• A screening of the film "Growing Cities," about urban agriculture, from noon to 2 p.m. in the Depot
• Student groups and sustainability organizations tabling in Malcolm X Plaza and on the quad
• The Levi's-Goodwill "Mendables" event in Malcolm X Plaza, where students, faculty and staff can purchase slightly damaged Levi's denim potentially for the landfill for just $5 and then have them mended or hemmed on site for another $5

"We -- students, faculty, staff -- are integral to the process of moving sustainability forward," said Connie Ulasewicz, a professor of consumer and family studies/dietetics who is coordinating the Mendables event. "We want to educate people about the beauty of reuse, which is an integral part of what sustainability is all about."

Student groups and sustainability organizations will also be tabling in Malcolm X Plaza.

SF State has been at the forefront of building the model sustainable campus. Recent initiatives include planting drought-resistant native grasses, installing water-bottle filling stations to cut down on plastic-bottle waste and rolling out a "three-bin" waste management system that includes composting. Since 2007, the University has reduced its annual water consumption by roughly a third. This year, the University again made the Princeton Review's list of "Green Colleges."

The event is part of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's Campus Sustainability Day and will be held concurrently with sustainability events at colleges and universities across the nation. For more information about SF State's Campus Sustainability Day, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/324370111071121/

-- Jonathan Morales