Smith College
EN-2: Student Orientation

The Office of Campus Sustainability offers two sessions that are open to all new students that focus on sustainability on Smith's campus. The sessions consist of an introduction about sustainability on campus, and then a tour led by students currently working in the Campus Sustainability office. The tour discusses how energy is made and procured at Smith, our green buildings, solid waste, recycling, and compost, and how to get involved in green student organizations.

Two orientation groups are also offered that prominently feature sustainability. These are longer programs, taking place over the weekend and led by the chair of Environmental Science and Policy department, and the assistant director of the Center for Environment, Ecological Design, and Sustainability.

1. Adventures at the MacLeish Field Station:
This program is designed to give you a taste of some of the many activities you can engage in at Smith's 240-acre Ada and Archibald MacLeish Field Station. Join us for a day and a half off campus to learn a little history, learn how to read the New England landscape, and make new friends and build relationships on our low ropes challenge course. Depending on the weather we may do some solar cooking, build habitat for native pollinators and more. Participants should be prepared to spend the day outside and be willing to try new things. This group can accommodate up to 20 students.

2. Sustainability and an Ecological sense of place:
Perhaps the key issue facing humanity now is how to live in an environmentally sustainable, socially just way. According to one calculation, the average U.S. citizen has an ecological footprint that is five times greater than the planet can support. We need to - and can - do better than that! This program will help you: (1) learn how to live more sustainably at Smith and (2) develop an ecological sense of place in your new home.

Questions that will be asked - and, to some extent, answered - include the following: Where does my food at Smith come from? How and what can I recycle? What powers our campus and how can I save kilowatts and BTUs? Are there green spaces nearby? How can I get to them and to other places without a car? What kinds of environmental majors, minors, and resources are available? Are there active student environmental organizations on campus? And most importantly, how can I make a difference environmentally while at Smith?

Short excursions and activities will give you an ecological sense of place, whether we visit a shady riverside trail or a steamy power plant. You will learn what Smith College is doing well and where there is room for improvement (this is where you come in during your next four years). Professor L. David Smith, Director of the Environmental Science and Policy Program, leads this orientation.