The University Program Council held its fair on the student center green space to raise awareness about environmental issues impacting Lee County and beyond.

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By Daniel Schmidt

April 22, 2022

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AUBURN, Ala. – As an unrelenting sun beat down on the hundreds of students gathered on the Melton Student Center green space, it served as a subtle reminder as to why they were there to begin with.

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The Earth Day Extravaganza, which was hosted by the UPC on Friday to bring awareness to the effects of climate change, featured more than a dozen organizations seeking to educate students.

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Exhibits included information ranging from threats to pollinating insects, how long certain consumer products take to decompose in landfills and how city design impacts sustainability efforts and citizens’ quality of life.

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While the exhibits’ primary goal was to highlight challenges facing the environment on Earth Day, they also served as a recruitment tool to convince students seeking involvement opportunities to become solutions to those challenges.

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Isabel David, Special Events Director for the UPC, said that while the event featured information distressing to some, the goal was to provide attendees with a late-semester escape.

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“This is the last hurrah before finals, and we just want students to enjoy the earth, see what is at their disposal on campus and get involved in UPC,” Davis said.

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Despite fun being a primary focus, organizers also stressed that those in attendance should also take participating organizations’ messages to heart and make changes to their existing behaviors.

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Amanda Zimmer, a UPC member, implored students that do not currently take sustainability issues seriously to rethink their position and consider the implications of climate inaction.

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“This impacts their future and will become what their children will grow up in,” Zimmer said. “It's our future and we should care about it.”

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One of the organizations at the fair seeking to transform such nonchalant attitudes was the Sustainability Studies undergraduate minor.

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Dr. Rebecca Retzlaff, director of the Academic Sustainability major, said that the program adds value to students’ education because it teaches them how to implement sustainable practices in business, logistics and any other career field.

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“Sustainability touches everything students do: their home life, their jobs and how they get to campus,” Retzlaff said. “Auburn University is a leader in sustainability in the Southeast when it comes to landscaping and building design among other things.”

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Those messages were not lost on the students in attendance, who recognized the importance of practicing sustainability and getting involved with campus organizations that seek to reduce harmful behaviors.

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“I think this is an amazing event,” Katie Bumbicka, an Auburn student, said. “I believe the learning brings us together and helps us appreciate the beauty of campus and nature.”

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Bumbicka added that she hoped the event would spur other students to take protecting the environment more seriously.

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“It’ll hopefully show them how cool and fun it is to celebrate the Earth,” Bumbicka added.

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If the oppressive sun bearing down on those in attendance was any indication, it shows that the fight to save a polluted and warming planet cannot be cool enough.