Grow for Change

By: Maria Genovese
Posted In: News

What size are your shoes? How about your footprint.your ecological footprint? Put simply, your ecological footprint is the impact you make on the environment and can be calculated based on a number of factors such as food, goods, services, shelter, and mobility.

As a poor, good-looking college student without a car, I was shocked to learn that if everyone on the planet were to live like me, it would require 4.1 Earths!

I used http://www.footprintnetwork.org to calculate my footprint, and I urge you to do the same. It takes effort to become enlightened as to the way we impact the environment both as individuals and as a society. Even more effort is needed to then take steps to protect the environment.

However, this effort is necessary. Not tomorrow, but now.

Every year, humans consume an amount of natural resources that increasingly exceeds the earth’s biocapacity, thereby impairing sustainability. The sooner and more intently we focus on making choices that will improve sustainability, the sooner humanity will be able to live in efficient harmony with earth, giving hope to a future that will surely be longer and more prosperous. Fortune has smiled upon us, the Environmental Club at Salve Regina is helping to initiate this process in our community.

The club is brand new; 2008-2009 marks its first active year. Salve students Colleen Danaher and Missy Fromm, who were both on the Environmental Committee last year, started the club. Danaher and Fromm felt a need for more student involvement with environmental issues at Salve. They are co-presidents of the club, and run it alongside Dr. Chase, the club’s advisor.

“Our goal is to improve the campus’ awareness about environmental issues,” Fromm said. “We hope to do so by providing lots of information about things that can be done to be a more sustainable citizen of the university (and the world). We will be hosting many activities around Earth Day to promote positive environmental actions and knowledge.”

This fantastic club meets almost every other Wednesday at 5 p.m. in O’Hare, room 106. New members are always welcome and will automatically become more popular and happier. Stop by, you have nothing to lose. Mention this article and you will get a free high five! The Earth does more for us than we realize. We’re just making an effort to return the favor.