Here comes a BONUS TBT in honor of Earth Day! The photos featured here come from the March 15, 2019 Climate Strike at Villanova. This was just one of many climate strikes taking place on college campuses across the country. These strikes were inspired by Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old Swedish  student who challenged world leaders to take immediate action against climate change and emphasized that no one is too small or too young to make a difference. Thunberg has had three consecutive nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize from 2019-2021. 

Student speakers Gracie Stagliano and Yvonne Nguyen led the demonstrations and the group march to the office of University President the Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA, PhD, to present him with two demands:

1. Move the University’s carbon-neutral pledge date up to 2030
2. Enter into a power purchase agreement for renewable energy by 2020

More information on the 2019 Climate Strikes at Villanova can be found in Falvey’s mini-exhibit entitled Earth Week at Villanova.

Jenna Newman is a graduate assistant in Falvey Memorial Library and a graduate student in the Communication Department.

Not only is next week Earth Week, but it’s also National Parks Week, so get ready for a list of ways you can celebrate both the earth and our parks, whether it’s through picking up a new book to read or finding time to get outside and enjoy nature.

Activities to Celebrate 

Villanova is lucky enough to be situated only 15 minutes from one of Pennsylvania’s national parks—Valley Forge National Park. This week or weekend get together a group of your close friends, find someone with a car and make the drive over to Valley Forge to walk around and enjoy nature. Not only is this a great way to celebrate National Parks, but it also lets you get outside, clear your head and refocus for all of the end of semester studying and papers that lie ahead. 

Villanova has a wide variety of Earth Week events going on, some of them starting as early as this week, and all of them are worth attending; however, I wanted to highlight another event that gets you outside and looking at nature, even if it’s not at a National Park. Next Thursday, April 22, Villanova’s horticulturist, Hugh Weldon will be leading a tour of the trees around campus. More details and registration can be found here.

Books to Read 

The Falvey collection has a wide range of National Parks Travel Guides that you can reserve and pick up. The collection has guides for everything you need to know for parks from Shenandoah National Park to Glacier National Park. With only a month left of the semester, now is the perfect time to grab some guide books and start planning a summer road trip to a National Park near or far!

Fun Fact: Did you know each day of National Parks Week has its own theme?

The National Park Service website has a list with themes for each day of National Park week as well as other ideas for you to celebrate. Below are the themes for each day.

April 17 – Park Rx Day

April 18 – VIP (Volunteers In Parks) Sunday

April 19 – Military Monday

April 20 – Transformation Tuesday

April 21 – Wayback Wednesday

April 22 – Earth Day

April 23 – Friendship Friday

April 24 – Junior Ranger Day

April 25 – BARK Ranger Day

Let us know how you plan on celebrating both Earth Week and National Parks Week next week!

Jenna Newman is a graduate assistant in Falvey Memorial Library and a graduate student in the Communication Department.

Celebrate Earth Week 2021 with the campus events below!

Pre-Earth Week Events

Sustainable Living Conversations: Students

• Sustainable Fashion—Friday, April 9 at 1 p.m.; Led by: Sarah Wisniewski ’22 Psychology and Delaina Castillo ’21 Environmental Science.
• Eating Vegan or Vegetarian on Campus—Wednesday, April 14 at 7 p.m.; Led by: Amelia Robinson ’21 Psychology and Jameson Parker ’21 Finance.

Sustainable Living Conversations: Faculty and Staff

• Mastering a Vegetarian Diet—Wednesday, April 14 at 12 p.m.; Led by: Deena Weisberg, Assistant Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences, and Steven Goldsmith, Associate Professor of Geography and the Environment.
• Explore Renewable Energy Solutions for Your Home—Friday, April 16 at 12 p.m.; Led by: Christopher Kilby, Professor of Economics, and Scott Dressler, Professor of Economics.

Earth Week Events 

Monday, April 19

• Climate (De)Regulation in the Courts—Tune in from 4-5 p.m. to hear from Villanova University’s Charles Widger School of Law Professor Todd Aagaard on the state of regulating climate change pollutants in the United States.

Wednesday, April 21

• Earth Day T-Shirt Tie Dye—Tie dye this year’s Earth Day t-shirt for free! Come by between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. outside by “the Oreo.” Pre-signup is required to manage crowding. The first 250 people get a free mask to tie dye!

Thursday, April 22

• Campus Tree Tour—11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., meet under Corr Arch. Learn about all the amazing trees on campus from Villanova’s Horticulturalist Hugh Weldon. Pre-registration is required.
• Keynote Address—Join us at 5:30 p.m. to hear from renowned climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe, PhD, an endowed Professor in Public Policy and Public Law and Co-Director of the Climate Center at Texas Tech University, on “Christians, Climate, and our Culture in the US.” Pre-registration is required.
• Quizzo: Earth Day Edition—9-10:30 p.m.; Enjoy your weekly Quizzo with a green twist. The questions for the night won’t be the only thing centered around the Earth Day theme, so will the food and prizes.

Friday, April 23

• Earth Day Food Truck Friday—Sustainability themed food trucks will be set up along the Campus Green area (right by the road along Falvey) and will be handing out samples to students between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m.

Saturday, April 24

• Sustainability Market on the Green—Enjoy an evening market filled with sustainability vendors and products from 6-9 p.m. Free giveaways, along with items for sale, will fill out our first Sustainability Market on the Green.
• Open Mic For Justice—The open mic is a space for a wide range of solo or group artistic expressions. Music, song, dramatic readings, comedy, sketches and skits, dance, and beyond are welcome. We ask that all performances somehow address an issue of social justice. Performances should not exceed five minutes. The event will take place from 7-8:50 p.m. and 9-10:50 p.m. on the green near the Riley Ellipse.