Earth Week Every Week

Students at Cal Poly Humboldt demonstrate and participate in sustainability efforts year round which shows their commitment to making  Earth Week Every Week. One great example of this is through continuing this commitment into life after graduation, via the Graduation Pledge. Furthermore, students consistently plan events, activities, collaborate across campus, and make a daily habit of environmental responsibility and allyship, among other methods. 

During the official time of Earth Week every April, students utilize this platform to reconvene and further affirm these values. 

Spring 2025 Schedule of Events

Monday, April 21 

• Coffee for Commuters, 8-10 a.m., G11 Parking Lot Kiosk and Balabanis House Lawn
  The SEEDs team invites commuters of all kinds to the first-ever Coffee for Commuters. To encourage staff, faculty, and students to try a more sustainable commuting option, the team will have hot coffee and baked goods for those arriving on campus by an alternative mode of transportation. Please bring your own clean and durable coffee mug.

• Campus Pollinator Tour, 3:30-5 p.m., Meet at CCAT (Buck House)
  Join Cal Poly Humboldt Climate Action Analyst Morgan King for an easy guided tour of some locations on campus to see and learn about our native pollinators and pollinator plants. Hosted by the Office of Sustainability. See this flier for details. 

• Appropriate Tech and Advocacy, CCAT Club Meeting, 5-6 p.m., CCAT (Buck House)
  CCAT will be discussing some of the history of appropriate technology and how to advocate for appropriate technology and sustainability on campus and in the community. Anyone is welcome to join in the discussion.

• Weigh the Waste, 5-8 p.m., The J Dining Hall
  Weigh the Waste is a student peer-to-peer campaign that seeks to educate students about food waste and food recovery. For the final event of the semester, Green Campus will engage with students through a spin-the-wheel activity and bingo with food-waste reduction-themed questions. Green Campus will also collect communal food waste from all students who participate in the event.

Tuesday, April 22 

• Earth Day Rest + Read, 11 a.m.- noon, Library 209
  Take a beat to read, rest, and reflect at the Library. This session will consider a chapter from the Little Free Sustainability Library book: The Intersectional Environmentalist, How to Dismantle Systems of Oppression to Protect People + Planet by Leah Thomas. 

• EcoTopia Earth Day Celebration, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., University Quad
  Ecotopia will be a space where sustainability-oriented groups come together to host activities and games. In the past, there have been birdhouse making, waste relay games, craft stations, swap meets, and clothing upcycling. A food truck will be present.

• “Lyd” film screening and discussion with co-director Rami Younis, 5-7 p.m., Native American Forum (BSS 162)
  “Lyd” is a speculative documentary that follows the rise and fall of Lyd—a 5,000-year-old metropolis that was once a bustling Palestinian town. 

• Earth Week Dungeons and Dragons, 5-10 p.m., Jolly Giant Commons Recreation Room (First Floor)
  A tabletop RPG (Dungeons and Dragons) focused on themes of sustainability and environmental justice. Players will build their own characters based on stats like strength, intelligence, and dexterity and form a party to partake in an eco-activist adventure fighting against human corruption that continuously exploits nature as a commodity. 

• Real Food Trivia, 6:30-8:30 p.m., CCAT (Buck House) 
  Real Food Challenge will host a sustainable food systems trivia event. During the event, students will participate in a series of trivia rounds, answering questions related to sustainable farming practices, food waste reduction, ethical food production, and the impact of food choices on the planet. Students can earn points for correct answers during the trivia game. At the end, everyone will be entered into a raffle, with each correct answer providing an extra entry to increase their chances of winning.

Wednesday, April 23

• Spring Maker's Market, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., University Quad
  Spring Maker’s Market 2025! Supporting all our Cal Poly Humboldt artists, crafters, and creators with an on-campus craft market. Students, staff, and faculty have the opportunity to sell their handmade goods to the campus community. 

• Fibersheds and Spindle Spinning Workshop, Noon- 2 p.m., Humboldt Scholars Lab, Library 302
  Learn how to spin yarn on a drop spindle. The workshop will cover the basics of what makes yarn, how drop spindles work, and you will spin yarn using natural sheep's wool. All experience levels are welcome. Materials provided. Registration recommended here so planners can gather needed materials. 

• A.I. & Sustainability: Panel & Discussion, 3-4:30 p.m., Green & Gold Room, Founders Hall 166
  Do AI’s negative impacts on the environment and society outweigh its utility? Or is there a way to generate and use AI in a more responsible and less harmful way? What is our institution’s responsibility? Join us for this timely discussion! Light refreshments. See this flier for details.

• Sustaina-Ball, 7-9 p.m., Goodwin Forum, Nelson Hall East 102
  Dance the night away at Cal Poly Humboldt's first Sustaina-Ball! Sustaina-Ball is a sustainable and zero-waste school dance! There will also be FREE food, beverages, and admission to the dance. RSVP now! 

Thursday, April 24

• Campus Tree Tour, 1-2 p.m., Meet at the University Quad (near the Depot)
  Take a walk with a Campus Grounds Professional and learn something new about Cal Poly Humboldt's beautiful and awe-inspiring trees. The tour will last for about an hour, visiting trees of interest and learning about Humboldt’s fantastic campus.

• Native American Studies Guest Speaker Dr. Carla Macal, 4- 6 p.m., BSS 162 (Native American Forum)
  Join Dr. Carla Macal’s visit to discuss her research on body mapping and her work with Guatemalan and Maya survivors of genocide. The name of her talk is "Healing Cartographies: Weaving Memory, Movement, and Embodied Testimonios Across Imaginary Lines." 

• Sustainability Mixer, 5-7 p.m. , Septentrio Winery (650 6th Street, Arcata) 
  The third annual Sustainability Mixer is an informal networking event for Cal Poly Humboldt students, staff, faculty, and selected community partners. Join us to celebrate sustainability achievements, make connections, and discuss future opportunities. The Sustainability Champion Award Winners will be announced midway through the event. All guests will receive a free drink ticket and light food. 

Friday, April 25

• Hiller Park Cleanup and Picnic, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Hiller Park (795 Hiller Road, McKinleyville)
  Clean up litter at Hiller Park to prevent trash from entering our water streams and the ocean. This event was proposed and planned by a fourth and fifth grade class, who invite you to make a difference in the community.

• Islands of Coherence—Group Meditation, Noon- 1 p.m., Redwood Bowl
  Join us for an afternoon or part of an afternoon to rest and restore, to be in a field of peace and coherence together. "When a complex system is far from equilibrium, small islands of coherence in a sea of chaos have the capacity to shift the entire system to a higher order,” (Ilya Prigogine, Nobel Prize-winning chemist). As we well know, we are living in absolutely unprecedented times of turbulence and change and within the change it is important to cultivate individual and collective coherence, for resilience, restoration and for the health of ourselves and our world.   

• Global Water Dances, 7 p.m. , Studio Theatre, Theatre Arts 115
  Global Water Dances is a biannual multinational event that unites choreographers from across the globe to create original works inspired by local water sources, fostering a unique connection between performers and audiences worldwide. This year's showing, put on by the Dance Program and directed by Kyleigh Brine, will feature new works by faculty and students exploring Humboldt's water systems.

Saturday, April 26

• CCAT Spring Celebration, Noon- 5 p.m., CCAT Garden (Buck House)
  CCAT will be hosting sustainability-themed peer workshops. In between workshops, CCAT will have three student bands playing at the event. Other crafts and activities will be provided, including a raffle for prizes.