2008 Woodie Awards
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HOPES takes active role in promoting sustainability
The four-day conference aimed to inspire student involvement
by Chris Brock and Anastasia Strgar | Freelance Reporters |
Echoing this emphasis on action, the conference included a series of hands-on workshops with an explicit focus on sustainability. On Saturday morning, about 15 students braved the unseasonably cold April weather to participate in a habitat workshop in front of Lawrence Hall. Students combined a mix of plants and habitat elements to create a functioning ecosystem for a variety of wildlife.
Erin Duffy, a landscape architecture graduate student, coordinated the event. She was in the middle of all the dirt and plant debris, issuing orders while sleet and rain swirled around them.
"We're just trying to teach people how to make better habitats for wildlife in your own backyard," she said.
On Thursday, organizers held a 24-hour design workshop that encouraged participants to come up with their own ways to create sustainable solutions for rebuilding Eugene's downtown.
Also part of the conference was a green business expo, which was coordinated by students in the Sustainable Business Group, a student-run club in the Lundquist College of Business. Booths showcased organizations that promote environmentally and socially responsible business and community practices.
Saturday featured two lectures that focused on different aspects of sustainability. Two panels discussed sustainable architecture in both local communities and on a global scale. Also, a new workshop taught how to recycle and reuse products locally. Using donated plywood, "Found, Formed and Functional" participants broke down the unusable pallets to create desks for a local nonprofit human services agency.
One of the critical concepts of the conference was that "sustainability is not a trend; it is the social movement of our time." Andreas, the conference director, said the next step is for students to get involved and sustain the planet.
"It's imperative that we learn to not have too much of an impact," she said. "The evidence is overwhelming and calls for us to take action."
Erin Duffy, a landscape architecture graduate student, coordinated the event. She was in the middle of all the dirt and plant debris, issuing orders while sleet and rain swirled around them.
"We're just trying to teach people how to make better habitats for wildlife in your own backyard," she said.
On Thursday, organizers held a 24-hour design workshop that encouraged participants to come up with their own ways to create sustainable solutions for rebuilding Eugene's downtown.
Also part of the conference was a green business expo, which was coordinated by students in the Sustainable Business Group, a student-run club in the Lundquist College of Business. Booths showcased organizations that promote environmentally and socially responsible business and community practices.
Saturday featured two lectures that focused on different aspects of sustainability. Two panels discussed sustainable architecture in both local communities and on a global scale. Also, a new workshop taught how to recycle and reuse products locally. Using donated plywood, "Found, Formed and Functional" participants broke down the unusable pallets to create desks for a local nonprofit human services agency.
One of the critical concepts of the conference was that "sustainability is not a trend; it is the social movement of our time." Andreas, the conference director, said the next step is for students to get involved and sustain the planet.
"It's imperative that we learn to not have too much of an impact," she said. "The evidence is overwhelming and calls for us to take action."
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