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February 21, 2003
What is the Campus Ecology Group?
You’ve spotted a
SEA newsletter while sitting on the toilet, and you’ve seen Outdoor
Education’s creative displays around the quad. You’re pretty up on
Colgate’s environmentally-oriented groups. Here’s a head-scratcher
for you- have you ever heard of the Campus Ecology Group?
The Campus
Ecology Group is a set of faculty, administrators, staff and students who meet
once or twice a semester to discuss both environmental problems and ideas for
improvement on campus. It was originally formed in 1997 when Ron Blackmore, an
environmentally conscious member of the Colgate staff, brought together a number
of staff members, students and administration to discuss environmental issues at
Colgate. He modeled the discussion forum after a National Wildlife Federation
initiative directed at boosting campus education. The design is meant to bring
various valuable ideas and opinions together in “a non-confrontational
atmosphere to work toward reducing the college’s detrimental impact on the
environment,” says Blackmore.
The biggest benefit of having this
group on campus is that it combines people of different roles in the campus
community, including those with new ideas or information, and those who have
administrative influence to put ideas into action. Many current members point
to both Mark Spiro, Vice President of Administrative Services, and his
predecessor Ernie Cross as being big players in the initiation of action plans.
Professor of Geology Paul Pinet serves as facilitator of the group, and many
others such as various students and staff members complete a powerful forum for
brainstorming. Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies Department Head
Bob Turner says, “It is important that the administration is there,
because they can and do make things happen. The administration is interested in
making these environmental changes for their own sake and because it is what
people on campus seem to want.”
The Campus Ecology Group has
been meeting once or twice each semester since 1997, and a number of notable
initiatives have resulted from these meetings. Organic coffee was suggested at
one meeting last year, and less than a week later, it was ordered for sale at
the COOP. In addition, more efficient lighting in library reading areas has
been installed as a result of a Campus Ecology Group brainstorming session. The
Green Summit is the latest project to result from the group. It is the hope of
many Campus Ecology Group members that initiatives from this January’s
Summit will be integrated into future meetings, so that action plans may be
explored further and started.
The Campus Ecology Group serves the
crucial need on campus to bring together ideas and initiatives of various groups
in an informal yet productive way. Senior Heejin Lee reflects, “I’m
really glad to see a collaborative effort between faculty, administration, staff
and students which can facilitate strides of the Green Summit. As a student who
works hard at these kinds of changes, I’m glad to see people other than
students working on this.” As the Campus Ecology Group moves ahead after
the Green Summit, more changes are bound to be on the horizon.
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