Blogs

The UW Botanic Gardens is hosting the 8th annual Urban Forest Symposium on May 17: "Sustaining the Urban Forest During Densification."

Jessica Kaminsky is an Assistant Professor in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at the University of Washington. A scholar of engineering projects and organizations, she conducts research on infrastructure for developing communities with a particular interest in topics of social sustainability. As part of the UW's Earth Day celebration, she gave a talk on how cultural values impact sustainability. Read the text below:

The UW Society for Ecological Restoration's Native Plant Nursery is hosting a Native Plant Sale this weekend. On Sunday, May 1, come out to the Douglas Research Conservatory at the Center for Urban Horticulture from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and support your local, student-run nursery. They will be selling a variety of native plants, including Douglas Fir, Vanilla Leaf, Salmonberry and many more!

There is a secret and unassuming energy hog lurking throughout our campus, consuming vast amounts of electricity. They are out of sight, but can be found in our buildings’... server rooms. Wilson Waldrop, IT Director of the Department of Physics, has been working with his team to make the Physics server room dramatically more efficient. 

UW Earth Club president Aaron Tam introduced the club's "Tap That" campaign during the Earth Day celebration, a project that is working to reduce the use of plastic water bottles on campus. Tam is a currently a senior at the University of Washington studying Environmental Science: Wildlife Conservation and Political Science. He's passionate about environmental and socioeconomic justice, and is proud to have contributed greatly to climate action in Washington and campus sustainability efforts.

The UW Recycling Office has an opening for a part-time student Waste Diversion Coordinator. This position could begin as early as June 13, 2016 and continue for the duration of the 2017 academic school year. This is a great opportunity for a qualified, dedicated student interested in environmental issues, primarily recycling and composting education and general sustainability topics, to help build upon their skills and experience.

By Mishu Pham-Whipple

Barbara Clabots of the Seattle Surfrider Foundation was the introductory presenter at the University of Washington's Earth Day celebration. Clabots is a social scientist focused on improving ocean conservation. Locally, she serves the community as Seattle Surfrider's Volunteer Coordinator to improve water quality in the Puget Sound, leading a program to eliminate cigarette litter.

Are you committed to being "green" in your office? Are you the person who always turns off the lights in the conference room after people have used it? How about the one who goes through the trash and sifts out the compost and recycle? OK, you probably don’t take it that far. But if you find yourself thinking about small ways to reduce your environmental impact in your office you should take the initiative to certify your workplace as a Green Office and you can become a Paper Reduction Pro!

Hundreds of community members and students gathered on red square in honor of the 46^th anniversary of Earth Day at the University of Washington.

"It's important to spread awareness about how involved the UW is in making our campus more environmentally friendly," said junior Itzel Medina, one of the many students who came to celebrate the event. "Sustainability really matters."