Messiah University
EN-3: Student Life

Earthkeepers: A club that promotes sustainable practices on-campus and abroad. Aiming to protect and improve the environment not only for our benefit but to honor God and the creation He has charged us with. Outdoors Club: The purpose of this organization is to provide opportunities for the outdoor lover in the college community to enjoy fellowship with others, to develop stronger outdoor skills, and to engage in community service for our environment. The Club's leadership works to integrate these three aspects with the appreciation of God's Creation through outdoor activities.

Spoke N True: Spoke N’True Bike Shop provides both repair services and learning opportunities for students and faculty, creating awareness for cycling and cycling safety on campus.They work as an extension of Harrisburg’s Recycle Bicycle, another non-profit service organization.

Restoration House: Focuses on the environment by developing a strong sense of place by learning about and understanding the environment in which we live. Stimulates activities that involve the immediate community of Messiah College, the community of Grantham, and the world; raise awareness of global injustices and make intelligent decisions when consuming products and ideas in order to avoid adding to the problem. They additionally acknowledge the importance of environmentalism as an aspect of spiritual wholeness and live accordingly.

WEBSITE: https://www.messiah.edu/info/23216/clubs_and_organizations

Messiah's Campus gardens are lead and run by work study students through the Office of Sustainability. There is one Garden Coordinator each year that serves in this position from February through January. There are 2-3 summer student garden workers that work from April through August.

https://www.messiah.edu/sustainability/

Messiah's Campus gardens are lead and run by work study students through the Office of Sustainability. There is one garden coordinator each year that serves in this position from February through January. There are 2-3 summer student garden workers that work from April through August.

Messiah also has a student lead bike share/bike shop that is centered around encouraging biking on and off campus. Students run a bike share program, lending bikes for a small fee to students as well as a bike shop where members of the campus community can bring their bikes for repair.

Garden: https://www.messiah.edu/sustainability/

Spoke N' True Bike shop: https://www.messiah.edu/homepage/1601/special_interest_clubs_and_organizations

Messiah University's Sustainability Committee administers a Sustainable Development Fund that allows all students, faculty and staff the opportunity to write a grant for funds to support an on campus sustainability initiative.

https://www.messiah.edu/homepage/2851/energy

“On Loving Our Enemies”
https://www.messiah.edu/info/20266/conferences_and_events/329/schrag_lectures/2

America today seems like an increasingly divided place—politically, economically, religiously, and culturally. In this moment, what does it mean to build bridges and love our enemies? In this lecture, author Marie Mutsuki Mockett answered this question by drawing on the lessons she learned while writing her book, American Harvest, which follows a group of Brethren in Christ–connected wheat harvesters across the American heartland.

Panel Discussion and Q&A

After the lecture, Mockett interviewed members of the Wolgemuth family, whom she profiled in American Harvest. A time for audience Q&A followed.

About The Lecturer
Marie Mutsuki Mockett, a writer of fiction and nonfiction, was born to an American father and Japanese mother. Her most recent book, “American Harvest: God, Country and Farming in the Heartland” (Graywolf), follows Mockett’s journey through seven heartland states in the company of evangelical Christian harvesters, some with ties to the Brethren in Christ Church. The book examines the role of GMOs, God, agriculture, and race in society, and won the 2021 Northern Californian Book Award for General Nonfiction. Mockett’s memoir, “Where the Dead Pause, and the Japanese Say Goodbye” (W.W. Norton & Co., 2015), examines grief against the backdrop of the 2011 Great East Earthquake in Japan and was a finalist for the 2016 PEN Open Book Award, the Indies Choice Best Book for Nonfiction and the Northern California Book Award for Creative Nonfiction. Mockett lives in San Francisco with her family.

Messiah University has two houses on campus that provide a livable area to practice sustainability principals. The "Restoration Houses" have one house for female students and one for male students who are interested in living a sustainable lifestyle.

Website: https://www.messiah.edu/info/21479/housing_options_and_rates/2307/special_interest_houses

The Office of Sustainability offers quite a few positions for employment through our work study program. These positions include: Engagement Coordinator, Waste Coordinator, Compost Workers, Energy Coordinator, Biodiversity Coordinator, Grantham Community Garden Coordinator, and Communications Coordinator. The Engagement Coordinator works to bring speakers and events focused on sustainability to campus (such as the annual Sustain-A-Fest, chapel series, Service Day, and campus sustainability tours) and communicates and partners with student-led sustainability groups on campus. The Waste Coordinator helps reduce food waste within dining establishments, helps coordinate move-out efforts to create less waste, and gives out compost buckets to students. The Compost Workers pick up pre- and post-consumer food waste from the dining establishments on campus and bring them to the compost piles at the edge of campus. The Energy Coordinator records energy use on campus as well as sends out mock energy reports to get students to reduce their energy usage. The Biodiversity Coordinator helps ensure that the campus biodiversity stays intact and coordinates the efforts for the campus to remain a member of Tree Campus USA, as well as overseeing the campus rain gardens and pollinator meadow. The Grantham Community Garden Coordinator oversees the planting, harvesting, and management of the garden. The Communication Coordinator handles all of the Office's social media and advertisement of events.

https://www.messiah.edu/info/22719/opportunities

The University hosts five programs that have themes related around sustainability. They include the Earthkeepers, The Outdoors Club, Spoke N' True as described above as well as the International Justice Mission (IJM), Education Association of Messiah University (EAMU) and Student Nutrition Awareness Club.The International Justice Mission is a human rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators, and aftercare professionals work with local governments to ensure victim rescue, to prosecute perpetrators and to strengthen the community and civic factors that promote functioning public justice systems. IJM's justice professionals work in their communities in 12 countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America to secure tangible and sustainable protection of national laws through local court systems. At Messiah, IJM has a student-run program that allows individuals to promote awareness of international justice issues among the student body, including some instances of environmental injustice. SNAC seeks to enhance nutritional awareness on campus and foster relationships among Messiah University students and in the local community through various activities, educational events, and community service. Education Association of Messiah University (EAMU) offers future educators workshops to learn alongside each other outside the classroom to be the most dynamic teachers Jesus has called us to be. The Education Association of Messiah University works diligently to prepare professional development workshops, panel discussions, and some other fun events to foster a community of growth and learning. https://www.messiah.edu/homepage/1601/special_interest_clubs_and_organizations