August 21, 2008

Dear Pirates for the Environment,

I hope that this letter finds you well. After forming our alumni connection group last year, we have been looking for ways to keep you informed about environmental programs on Southwestern’s campus. Below is a letter from a member of Students for Environmental Activism and Knowledge (SEAK). Like many Southwestern students, Kimberly has been working hard to move Southwestern University towards its Sustainability goals. She has been gracious enough to write a letter informing us about what is going on environmentally at Southwestern and she is very excited to see this type of communication continue. We should be receiving updates from other SEAK members as the year progresses.

I also want to make sure that everyone knows about the sustainable additions to the 2008 Homecoming and Reunion Weekend celebrations, Nov. 7-9, on campus this year. The Association of Southwestern University Alumni has agreed to host a "green" bar at the Alumni Hospitality House where all the beverages will be produced within 100 miles of Georgetown and all the cups and napkins will be made of PCR (post-consumer recycled) paper and recyclable plastics. This is the first event that Pirates for the Environment is sponsoring, and hopefully, it is a sign of things to come in the future. Please continue to spread the word about our group, and if you have any ideas for future events, please pass them along. Thank you for your time and go Pirates!

Regards,

Ben Johnson ’07

Assembly Delegate for Pirates for the Environment
BenjaminClarkJohnson@gmail.com

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Dear Pirates for the Environment,

My name is Kimberly Griffin, and I am a junior at Southwestern University majoring in Environmental Studies and Spanish.  I am currently the Vice President of SEAK (Students for Environmental Activism and Knowledge) as well as a student representative on the Talloires Committee. 

Since we have certain values in common, I wanted to update you all on a few of the positive changes taking place on campus.  Some of you may know that President Jake B. Schrum ’68 signed the Talloires Declaration in 2007, which committed our University to pursuing sustainable actions and fostering environmental education.  This commitment has allowed us to pursue more sustainable practices throughout campus.

Starting this Fall semester, we will finally have a full-scale recycling program that encompasses all academic and administrative buildings.  The program will make recycling easy and convenient for everyone on campus.  The new admission center, which is currently under construction, will be the first LEED-certified building in the city of Georgetown.  The Environmental Studies department also hired their first full-time faculty member.  Professor Gavin Van Horn will begin this semester teaching Environmental Science, Religion and Ecology, and Introduction to Sustainability. 

SEAK also helped raise awareness and encourage conservation by hosting several events on campus this past year.  These included Fall and Spring Earth Day events, a presentation from the Beehive Collective, and the first annual Campus Energy Challenge.  During the month-long energy challenge, we hosted several movie showings and encouraged students to reduce their energy and water consumption with a little friendly competition.  The winning residence hall reduced their water consumption by 58% or 16,241 gallons.   

Of course, we’re happy to see all of these changes, but we will continue working for more.  Our future goals include pushing for the University to purchase 100% renewable energy and investigating the impact of having Southwestern sign the President’s Climate Commitment.  The President’s Climate Commitment would require the University to develop a plan that outlines exactly how and when we will reach carbon neutrality.  We realize that this is a lofty goal and that it will require a lot of work, but we have a strong group of able and passionate leaders, and we are all excited about making a real impact on our University. 

Hopefully this will be the beginning of a new relationship, and we welcome any communication from you.  If you would like more information about any of the projects we are working on, or if you would like future updates about volunteer opportunities, please contact me at griffink@southwestern.edu.

Sincerely,

Kimberly Griffin
Class of 2010