Elon University
EN-3: Student Life

Elon has a number of student groups that work on sustainability issues.
Elon students can search student organizations by keyword through an online system to find a student group that fits their interests. One of these, the Sierra Student Coalition, is dedicated to sustainable causes and service in the name of sustainability. The Sierra Student Coalition's mission is to:
Explore, enjoy and protect the wild places of the earth. Practice and promote the responsible use of the earth's ecosystems and resources. Educate and enlist humanity to protect and restore the quality of the natural and human environment. Use all lawful means to carry out these objectives.
Elon's Sierra Student Coalition is run by a student leadership team and is open to the entire student body. The group programs actively and collaborates with other like-minded organizations on campus.
A second group is the Kappa Alpha Omicron Environmental Professional Society. This organization is student run and is focused on student involvement in local environmental service projects, educational speakers, and peer-to-peer engagement.
More information: https://www.elon.edu/u/bft/sustainability/get-involved/student-opportunities/student-groups/
https://elon.campuslabs.com/engage/

The Elon Community Garden was initiated by an environmental ethics course to foster education, spirituality, service, community discussion and sustainability and was fully established by a student as part of a senior thesis project. It is a place for Elon students, faculty, staff, children and community to come together. It is now used as a laboratory for courses and volunteer location for any interested student.
Organic practices are utilized in the garden, and gardening tasks are coordinated by student managers. In 2012, the Elon Community Garden was designated a certified wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation.
More information: https://www.elon.edu/u/news/2012/09/05/nwf-gives-stamp-of-approval-to-elon-community-garden/

Elon University also maintains the Loy Farm. The Loy Farm fuses sustainable agricultural, responsible architectural design, opportunities for academic research and community service. Garden plots at the Loy Farm and a greenhouse serve as resources for food production related courses. The farm itself is a critical component of the university’s Peace Corps Prep Program. It also offers learning opportunities for community groups and programs such as the Elon Academy, whose students visit the property each summer to discover opportunities for starting their own gardens.
More information: https://www.elon.edu/u/academics/arts-and-sciences/center-for-environmental-studies/environmental-center-at-loy-farm/

There is a student organization specifically designed for students to be able to invest. The Elon Microfinance Initiative (EMI) works locally and internationally to promote sustainable giving by providing support to small business owners. On a local scale, EMI provides creative work and networking assistance to small business owners, while international impact is made through loans to developing countries and businesses via Kiva.
More information: https://www.elon.edu/u/academics/business/student-organizations/

Elon holds a number of events throughout the year related to sustainability including speakers, panel sessions, film screenings, exhibits and themed meals among others. Earth Week takes place each year and is a week-long Earth Day celebration with a number of different events, including a speaker. Students are the primary audience for these events. Recent Earth Week speakers have included David Orr (2019), Stan Meiburg (2018) and Robert Bullard (2017).
More information: https://www.elon.edu/u/bft/sustainability/get-involved/

In Fall 2019, the Office of Sustainability hosted Peterson Toscano, a performance artist who uses comedy to playfully explore the serious worlds of gender, religion and climate change.
Throughout the fall 2018 semester, Eco-Art students created a series of art installations open to the entire Elon community. They were presented in both the Living Studio, Eco-Art’s exhibition space, and in various public spaces around campus. Projects explored various topics connected to sustainability.
More information: https://www.elon.edu/u/bft/sustainability/get-involved/

Elon Outdoors allows students several opportunities to experience nature each semester. Program offerings include canoeing, climbing, kayaking, backpacking, indoor climbing, white water rafting and sailing. Camping equipment is available for weekend rental for those wishing to explore the vast array of outdoor pursuits available throughout the region. The Elon Outdoors Resource Room is a great place to obtain information about outdoor adventure. Elon Outdoors implements Leave No Trace principles on outdoor trip experiences.
More information: https://www.elon.edu/u/campus-recreation-wellness/experiential-learning-and-outdoor-adventures/elon-outdoors/

Consistent with the Elon University mission of nurturing a rich intellectual community, the Elon Common Reading Program (ECRP) challenges students, faculty and staff to examine themselves and the local and global worlds they inhabit through reading. The readings and related discussions aim not only to encourage critical reflection about important issues but also to invite personal consideration of how our individual actions affect these issues.
The ECRP will:
-Offer diverse perspectives and commentary on key issues affecting our lives;
-Provide forums to question and discuss these perspectives in depth;
-Encourage integration of these ideas and perspectives in other aspects of the Elon experience;
-Foster critical thinking by offering multiple opportunities to examine and reflect upon the reading throughout the year.
Recent common readings have been sustainability related:
Fall 2016 - Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
Fall 2017 - Make Your Home Among Strangers by Jennine Capo Crucet
Fall 2018 – Something Must Be Done about Prince Edward County by Kristen Green
Fall 2019 – Future Face by Alex Wagner

More information: https://www.elon.edu/u/academics/common-reading/

Elon has a Sustainable Living Learning Community (SLLC) on campus that brings together students from any major who are interested in learning how to personally live in a manner that supports ecologically, socially and economically healthy environments and communities. The SLLC is a space for students to formally and informally examine sustainability topics and the roles that individuals can play in addressing sustainability.
More information: https://www.elon.edu/u/academics/living-and-learning/residential-learning-communities/sustainable-living-llc/

The Office of Sustainability hires Elon students as interns for the summer and academic year. The Office also hires Elon students as Eco-Reps and Don't Trash It! Coordinators.
More information:
https://www.elon.edu/u/bft/sustainability/get-involved/student-opportunities/eco-reps/
https://www.elon.edu/u/bft/sustainability/get-involved/student-opportunities/interns/