From all of us at the Environmental Stewardship Center, welcome back to another year at K! And for our first-years, we’re so excited to have you on campus. We’re also excited to share with you some of the awesome events, ongoing projects, and other environmental opportunities that the ESC is involved with this fall. Below, you can explore what’s going on, and how to get involved with us!
The Environmental Stewardship Center (ESC)
The Larry J. Bell ’80 Environmental Stewardship Center, or ESC, is the hub for all things sustainability at Kalamazoo College. The ESC works with our Climate Action Plan & Committee, the Hoop House, the Composting program, and the Lillian Anderson Arboretum! The Center exists to help infuse themes of sustainability in all parts of life at K College, and to create more chances to get students, faculty, and staff involved in environmental work.
You can visit the Environmental Stewardship Center on the first floor of Dewing, just off the Dewing Commons! Stop by and chat with our directors and interns any time, or join our bi-weekly community lunches (on Wednesdays of even weeks). For more information, check out the ESC website, or send us an email at environmentalstewardship@kzoo.edu!
The Hoop House
Come visit one of our campus green spaces: the lovely Hoop House gardens! Here, you can learn about tending for all kinds of plants, eat delicious and nutritious food, and join a community of people who care deeply for the health of the Earth. All kinds of classes and clubs utilize the Hoop House space, and we’re always looking for more.
The Hoop House has open gardening hours from 4:30-6pm every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday! Stop by to get your hands in the dirt, harvest some fruits or veggies, or simply study or hang out! The Hoop House is located at the bottom of Academy Street behind the Fitness and Wellness Center.
Composting
One of the most important processes that makes our campus thrive is our community composting! Run by students with the support of Facilities Management and the ESC, the Compost Crew helps students, faculty, and staff turn their waste into rich and healthy soil (which then helps feed all of our green spaces and gardens)! Last year alone, the Crew helped compost nearly 7000lbs of food waste!
Composting takes place in The Grove, a forested space between the Living Learning Houses and DeWaters residence hall. You can participate by picking up one of the green composting buckets, adding your food scraps and returning the bucket to The Grove, or by taking the composting PE class! Faculty and staff offices can also participate with campus rounds. Check out the composting website to learn more.
The Lillian Anderson Arboretum
A true highlight of green life at K is a trip to the Lillian Anderson Arboretum. Located 5 miles away from campus, this 140 acre space is home to forests, marshes, prairies, and meadows. Students and faculty use the space as a learning laboratory for classes and research, and the trails are also open to be enjoyed by members of the public.
A student Arb Crew is responsible for managing this lovely land and its trails! Transportation is provided for this work. To learn more about the Arb and Arb Crew, check out its website.
Share with us!
Thanks for reading! This blog will continue to update weekly, and showcase all kinds of environmentally-focused happenings around K We’d love to hear from you! If you have ideas for blog posts, projects you want to share, or progress you see being made, please let us know via this form! The ESC exists to unite our community around a shared vision for a sustainable future – we can’t do it without you! So, keeping sharing with us, and stay tuned for more to come. Happy Fall, Hornets!
