SJC to Host Earth Week Events

April 07, 2016

Patchogue, N.Y. – In celebration of Earth Day, the Sustainability Committee at St. Joseph's College (SJC) will host a series of events for Earth Week beginning on Monday, April 18 and concluding on Earth Day, Friday, April 22. The events will take place at SJC Long Island located in Patchogue, New York.

The Earth Week schedule is as follows:

• Monday, April 18 – Earth Day Celebration, noon-2 p.m., Danzi Athletic Center Lawn – This event will feature local businesses and organizations that utilize green practices and promote sustainable living.
• Tuesday, April 19 and Wednesday, April 20 – Patchogue Lake Clean Up, 2-5 p.m., Clare Rose Playhouse – Join the SJC Biology Club as they remove unwanted debris and invasive plantlife from the Patchogue Lake. 
• Wednesday, April 20 – “The State of the Bays – 2016,” 1-2 p.m., Danzi Athletic Center Multipurpose Room – Dr. Christopher Gobler, from the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at Stony Brook University, will give the lecture, “The State of the Bays – 2016,” focusing on water quality in Long Island’s marine and freshwater ecosystems.
• Thursday, April 21 – Environmental Policy Lecture, 6-7 p.m., McGann Conference Center, O’Connor Hall – Adrienne Esposito, executive director of the Citizens Campaign for the Environment, will speak about local environmental issues and how to get involved in shaping environmental policy.
• Thursday, April 21 – Bag It, 7 p.m., McGann Conference Center, O’Connor Hall – The Sustainability Committee and the Protecting the Environment in Patchogue (PEP) Committee will host a screening of Bag It, a documentary on plastic bag use. Village of Patchogue Trustee Joseph Keyes will discuss upcoming policy aiming to reduce single-use plastic bags in the Village of Patchogue.
• Friday, April 22 - Nature Trail and Organic Garden Clean Up, 10 a.m.-noon, Clare Rose Playhouse – Attendees will assist in the maintenance of the College’s nature trail and prepare the organic garden for spring planting.

“The Sustainability Committee has been promoting Earth Day as a means to educate students and the community about the challenges and opportunities for improving our relationship with the Earth and its inhabitants,” said Kirk Lawrence, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Sociology at SJC Long Island. “While we promote sustainability year round, Earth Day is our largest event on campus and it has continued to grow over the years. This year, St. Joseph's College has expanded the activities from a single event into an Earth Week of activities.”

These events are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dr. Lawrence at [email protected] or 631.687.4579. SJC Long Island is located at 155 W. Roe Blvd. in Patchogue, and is accessible via the South Service Road of Sunrise Highway, just east of Exit 52 (Waverly Avenue).

ABOUT ST. JOSEPH'S COLLEGE
St. Joseph’s College has been dedicated to providing a diverse population of students in the New York metropolitan area with an affordable education rooted in the liberal arts tradition since 1916. Independent and coeducational, the College provides a strong academic and value-oriented education at the undergraduate and graduate levels, aiming to prepare each student for a life characterized by integrity, intellectual and spiritual values, social responsibility and service. Through SJC Brooklyn, SJC Long Island and SJC Online, the College offers degrees in more than 45 majors, special course offerings and certificates, affiliated and pre-professional programs.