Everything You Need to Know About Elon’s Sustainability Week

For the past three years, every October, Elon’s Office of Sustainability holds a Campus Sustainability Week. This year it’s being held from October 19th through the 23rd. You can find all sorts of events ranging from tree walks to bike rides!

The Edge wanted to learn more about Elon’s Sustainability Week, so we spoke to Kelly Harer, the Assistant Director of Sustainability for Education Outreach. Kelly partners with the rest of the Sustainability Office, campus eco-reps, interns, and student volunteers to put on this week-long, campus-wide event.

Throughout the week, there will be multiple events happening each day. All of the events are centered around the environment and taking care of yourself. Some of the events offered include a tree walk, a lesson on making plantable paper, and a bike ride to Burlington. You can find a full list of activities here from the Sustainability Office’s website.

Sustainability week is a little different this year due to COVID-19, but the office is committed to hosting a safe but engaging week. There are virtual and in-person options available. Some of the in-person options require you to register beforehand to help maintain social distancing.

“The in-person events we do have are outdoors, and they’re small so people can stay safe. And we’re doing a variety of virtual activities,” says Kelly.

Sustainability is a broad term. Kelly says that sustainability encompasses everything from your mental health to environmental health. These events focus on sustainability as a whole rather than on just the environment.

“In our office, we try to help people understand the breadth of sustainability through the three P’s: People, Planet, Prosperity,” says Kelly. “Sustainability is about the environment but also mental health, wellness, education, and gender equality.”

As students are continually adjusting to changes on campus due to COVID-19, the Office of Sustainability uses Sustainability Week to remind students to take care of the Earth and take care of themselves.

“I really tried to focus events around mental health and wellbeing because that is important right now,” says Kelly.

With everything going on this year, mental health is a large focus of this year’s Sustainability Week, but education about the environment is still the week’s core focus. The Sustainability Office also educates students and staff about how they can help make Elon more sustainable so Elon can achieve its goal of being a carbon-neutral campus by 2037.

One of the most significant ways students can work to create a more sustainable environment is to reduce waste, whether that is by composting food waste, remembering to bring your reusable shopping bags, or buying food from local farmers.

Kelly recommends reducing your meat consumption. She emphasized that you don’t need to completely adopt a new way of eating because small changes still make a massive difference.

“You don’t have to go vegan or vegetarian to make an impact. You could try ‘meatless Mondays,’ or maybe you could try going one meal a day without meat,” says Kelly.

She also recommends trying to reduce your use of single-use plastics when you can. Kelly says that COVID-19 has led many people to use more plastics for sanitary purposes, and that is okay. She recommends using reusable shopping bags and reusable water bottles when you can do so safely.

In this time of chaos, it is essential to remember to give yourself grace when it comes to sustainability. Do what you can when you can to help make Elon more sustainable, whether that’s remembering to turn off lights in the common rooms, unplugging your electronics when you go home for winter break, or having a meal without meat.

The Sustainability Office is always available if you have any questions about how you can be involved, participate in Sustainability Week, or for more information on how you can help the environment!

Celebrate Sustainability Week starting tomorrow at Elon! Photo by Madison Gilgo.