Gettysburg College
EN-3: Student Life

GECO (Gettysburg Environmental Concerns Organization) is the environmental club on campus, an entirely student-run organization that has existed on campus for over 20 years. Members are students who care deeply about environmental issues and want to make a positive impact on the environment and their community. They are involved in advocacy campaigns, campus sustainability projects, and ecological restoration activities. They frequently collaborate with other student organizations to put on education and social events on campus, such as film festivals and speaker series, and have organized various trips off campus from camping in nearby state parks to national student conferences like PowerShift in Washington, DC.

In 2006, student Freya Gibbon '07 received a Mellon Grant to establish an organic student garden on campus. Named after a friend found at the garden after flood rains, the Painted Turtle Farm donates fresh produce to the Campus Kitchen at Gettysburg College, a student-run food-recovery program, and to local agencies in need. The Dining hall supports the garden by purchasing fresh herbs and flowers. The garden's mission is three-fold: to demonstrate small-scale sustainable agriculture, to educated campus and community members about food systems and sustainability, and to serve a need in the community with fresh, local, and organically-grown produce. The garden is entirely student-run year-round, with three paid interns each summer.

In 2009-2010, the student Sustainability Program Coordinator organized a series of programs for Common Hour, the bi-weekly lunchtime block for campus-wide programming and guest speakers. The programs were a mix of interactive sessions and dialogues, all aimed at disseminating information about campus sustainability to to the student body. They included student panels, a jeopardy game, and an open workshop for students, faculty, and staff on how to improve collaboration on sustainability efforts. The series also included a lecture by author and environmental activist Howard Ernst. In 2010-11, the Eisenhower Institute at Gettysburg College also offered a unique program entitled "Troubled Waters: Environmental Security in the 21st Century." This program was offered by Eisenhower Institute Fellow Howard Ernst, Ph.D. The program aims to provide a select group of Gettysburg students with an intensive opportunity to explore and discuss the central concepts of environmental policy, experience the Chesapeake Bay's environmental problems, and interact with the Chesapeake Bay's environmental policy community. Gettysburg College has also continued to organize Sustainability Week every fall and multiple events to coincide with Earth Day in the spring. Recent events have included an Environmental Film Festival, speakers, local foods dinners, potlucks, and service-learning opportunities.

For earth day in 2014 from April 1st to the end of the school year the library placed all the paper left at printers in stacks that were immediately visible to anyone entering the library. This was meant to demonstrate how much paper is wasted and encourage printing double-sided to save paper. The instillation generated many conversations among students.

The Gettysburg Recreational Adventure Board (GRAB) provides a wide variety of outdoor opportunities ranging from one day experiences to two-week trips that visit crags, waterways, caves, and trails from the mid-atlantic region to international locations. We promote exploration, education and respect for the natural environment through our small group experiences. We emphasize instruction and teaching while on our trips, rather than just guiding an experience. We want our participants to learn the skills necessary to enjoy the backcountry, so when they embark on their own adventures they have a foundation of ethical and sound Leave No Trace practices. Our trips are available to anyone associated with the Gettysburg College community--students, faculty, staff, alumni, and their family members.

Gettysburg College chooses a theme each year to guide the selection of speakers and events on campus. The theme for 2009-2010 was 'Gender and Just Sustainability,' and included student-organized programs on campus sustainability and prominent speakers such as Carolyn Sachs, Rebecca Walker, Carolyn Merchant, and Howard Ernst. Speakers in previous years have included Mark Winne, Jullian Agyeman, and Bill McKibben. The organization of these events is shared by many departments and initiatives on campus including the Eisenhower Institute, Center for Public Service, Environmental Studies, Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies, student organizations, and more.

The student sustainability-themed house, Farmhouse, models sustainable living for all students on campus. All student living in the house strive for a low-energy and low-resource use lifestyle. Food, appliances, and electronics are shared communally and sustainable practices such as growing and composting food, dry clothes on the clothesline, and biking around town are practiced frequently. The rooms in the house also do not have individual mini-fridges and chargers are always plugged into power strips and unplugged to moderate electricity use. The house recently added a vermicultre system to demonstrate possibilities for small scale indoor composting.

The recycling interns on campus are hired to conduct surveys of greenhouse gas emissions on campus, innovate with Facilities Services to engage the campus community, and develop their own ideas about implementing sustainable practices.