Five activities for a green state of mind this Earth Day

Graphic art of a green hand holding a tree with leaves shaped to Earth's continents and words that say celebrate Earth Day with GovState

By Sarah Shoaf, Staff Writer

Connecting with nature and celebrating Earth this April, Governors State University (GovState) combines conservation, sustainability, and education with a week full of events in honor of Earth Day.

Here are five campus activities to honor Earth from Monday, April 20 to Friday, April 24.

1. Meditate with a tree: At any point during the week, pick a tree on campus and take a moment to appreciate the surrounding nature. Observe the sights and sounds around the tree from the leaves swaying in the breeze to the birds chirping in branches.

2. Dralle Road Clean Up: Students can join in on the annual tradition to clean up Dralle Road near campus, which leads to the biology field station, a vital hub for research and coursework. From 1 - 4 p.m. on Monday, April 20, students can come together to maintain this specialized area, cleaning and preserving the site in respect for the academic and natural environment.

3. Learn about bird migration and reducing building strikes: In the D-Building Atrium from 1 – 4 pm on Wednesday, April 22, Biology student Rachael Muenchow will have a table set-up to highlight some of her research on birds, including how to reduce the abundance of bird strikes against building windows. There will be a monitor displaying live imagery of bird migration, window decals to lessen window strikes, and additional written materials about why birds collide with buildings.

4. Clean up a garden for spring planting: The garden alcove outside the F-Building is being converted into a native pollinator garden to attract diverse animals, including birds, bees, and butterflies. From noon to 2 pm on Friday, April 24 near room F1300, people can help clean the garden by clearing out invasive species and preparing the space for planting native plants.

5. Take a stroll through theNate sculptures: Celebrate the outdoors and the larger-than-life sculptures at the Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park (theNate) on GovState’s campus with a self-guided tour using the free Otocast app. Set for International Sculpture Day on Saturday, April 25 from 9 a.m. – 6 p.m., guests are invited to walk through the collection ranging from “Working on the Failed Utopia” by Christine Tarkowski to “Field Rotation” by Mary Miss and “Avian Station” by Bernard Williams. These sculptures and more are related to environmental issues and the land.

Looking for more from theNate? Click here to check out the park’s summer season of guided tours and family nights.

For more information on Earth Week and a full schedule of events, click here.