Santa Monica College’s celebration of Earth Week, which will be held April 22-26, has a full lineup of activities for the week, all free and open to the public.
The scheduled events, all of which take place on the main SMC campus, 1900 Pico Boulevard in Santa Monica (except the beach cleanup), are:
• Monday, April 22 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.:
“Honey Bee Celebration Day,” with educational and interactive exhibits, which will demonstrate how honey bee farmers are helping bees and people by harvesting local, organic honey. Attendees will be able to sample honey-based foods and share in afternoon tea. Organic Learning Garden.
• Monday, April 22 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.:
“Queen of the Sun” Movie Night. Screening of a film about the catastrophic disappearance of bees. Humanities & Social Science Building Room 104.
• Tuesday, April 23 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.:
EcoHero Awards Luncheon, honoring SMC Earth Science Department Chair Vicki Drake for her work on SMC’s Sustainable Technologies Program, which includes the nation’s only degree in Recycling and Resource Management. Also receiving special recognition will be the SMC Curriculum Committee for its concerted efforts to “green” the curriculum and support new environmental classes that prepare future generations to be a positive force in solving today’s environmental problems. Organic Learning Garden.
• Wednesday, April 24 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.:
Free Bike Registration at the SMC Bike Park, located on Pearl Street between 17th and 20th streets.
• Wednesday, April 24 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.:
SMC Center for Environmental & Urban Studies Open House, offering tours of the college’s most sustainable facility that will show its energy-efficiency measures, green building materials, and the steps SMC is taking to be more sustainable. Refreshments and discussion to follow. SMC Center for Environmental & Urban Studies House.
• Thursday, April 25 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.:
The SMC EcoAction Club hosts the “SMC Free Store,” a campuswide exchange of items, including clothing, electronics, kitchenware, tools, small furniture, bikes, office supplies and much more. The Main Campus Quad.
• Thursday, April 25 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.:
The Bike SMC Club’s screening of “Urbanized,” a documentary about the design of cities, which looks at the issues and strategies behind urban design and features some of the world’s foremost architects, planners, policymakers, builders, and thinkers. Free popcorn and bike giveaways. Center for Environmental & Urban Studies House.
• Friday, April 26 at 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.:
Community Bus Ride and Beach Cleanup. The SMC community will come together in a day of service and cleanup of a local beach. Volunteers will meet at the Big Blue Bus stop at 17th and Pico or at Lifeguard Tower 18 on SMC EcoAction’s Adopted Beach, located on Santa Monica Beach near the original Muscle Beach. Snacks and discussion follow the cleanup.
• Friday, April 26 at 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.:
Screening of ‘I AM,” an engaging and entertaining nonfiction film by Tom Shadyac that poses two practical questions: what’s wrong with our world and what can we do to make it better? Humanities & Social Science Lecture Hall 165.
SMC is becoming increasingly known for its sustainable practices. It was named a winner of Santa Monica’s 2009 Sustainable Quality Awards for its progressive environmental practices and programs that range from education to recycling to transportation.
In particular, the college has been cited for its Center for Environmental and Urban Studies; its partnership with the non-profit Sustainable Works, which offers students extra credit by participating in extracurricular environmental workshops and has generated more than 15,000 community service hours for local nonprofits; its leadership in recycling, highlighted by its worm composting project that turns three tons of SMC cafeteria garbage each year into clean and organic fertilizer and pesticide; and its “Any Line, Any Time” program that offers free transportation to all students, faculty and staff on Big Blue Bus lines.
The college also has the largest solar panel installation in the city of Santa Monica and recently launched two “green” job-training programs – one in solar installation, the other in recycling and resource management.
SMC Earth Week events are sponsored by the EcoAction Club, SMC Associated Students, and the Center for Environmental and Urban Studies. All events are free and open to the public. For information on Earth Week events, visit www.smc.edu/earthweek or call 310.434.3909.
