University of Wisconsin-River Falls
EN-3: Student Life

Resource Management Club (RMC) provides training and volunteer opportunities in conservation work. Past events have included Leave No Trace trainings, river and pond cleanups, assisting in local prairie restoration and maintenance, and volunteering with the US Fish and Wildlife Service's education days.

The UWRF Bee Club is a group of students interested in learning about beekeeping and the impact bees have on the environment. Club activities focus on ways to help pollinators and find ways to counter the global decrease of bees. The Bee Club coordinates and works to maintain the Bee Campus designation.

The Green Team focuses on sustainability in a broad sense but has a particular interest in moving towards zero waste.

There is also the Environmental Sustainability Club and the Horticulture Society.

The College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Science has provided training in the agricultural sciences since 1912. We have earned an outstanding reputation for quality education and service to the people of Wisconsin. UW-River Falls operates two laboratory farms which are an integral part of our students' education. Many classes in animal sciences, food science, horticulture, crop and soil science, environmental science and agricultural engineering technology meet on the farms for the laboratory portions of the course. Students help operate the farms and our sustainable agriculture program continues to grow.

In addition to the production of crops, the laboratory farms support horse, beef and dairy cattle herds, a swine herd and a sheep flock. Demonstrations and experimental plots are also provided for student use. Cropland and livestock production facilities are used for classroom and hands-on educational purposes. Modern facilities house the animals and are used to demonstrate the relationships between management, nutrition, breeding and the environment.

UWRF partners with the River Falls Public Library for a sustainability speakers series each academic year. Topics during the last three years have included climate change, tree health and tree care, edible landscapes, the mental health impacts of our changing climate, sustainability in the fashion industry, seed starting, responsible investing, sustainable landscaping, sustainable living, local healthy pesticide-free food, and more.

UWRF also hosts a sustainability film series each academic year.

UWRF Stage and Screen Arts department ran the play "The Tempest" with a sustainability focus on waste. All materials used for the set were from campus waste and/or recycling collections.

The University is an Educational Partner with the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics. UWRF Outdoor Education students enrolled in PED 301 - Foundations of Outdoor Leadership will become Certified Leave No Trace Trainers.

The University has outlets to connect students with nature, heightening their appreciation for the natural world, including the services and spiritual connections it can provide. Falcon Outdoor Adventures provides free-of-charge rental items such as camping gear, cross-country skis, rock climbing gear, snow shoes, golf clubs, and fishing poles and leads trips and excursions that range from afternoon and day-long kayaking hiking to skiing outings. The Falcon Outdoor Adventure staff is trained in Leave No Trace principles during staff training and is expected to follow these principles during all Falcon Outdoor Adventures trips. In addition, trip leaders are expected to demonstrate these principles and expose our participants to them in the hopes that ethical outdoor adventuring becomes contagious.

https://www.uwrf.edu/CampusRec/FalconOutdoorAdventures/Index.cfm

UWRF Sustainability Representatives engaged students in learning sustainable life- skills with events such as DIY Up-Cycle Craft Event to promote relaxation with upcycling goods and relieving stress around finals week, local food events to inform students of our in-season produce and delectable, simple ways to use them (i.e., handing out pumpkin energy balls during the fall to provide healthy sustainable snacks during midterms, with nutrition label and recipe attached.). The sustainability speakers series focuses on educating people to lead more sustainable practices. Over the past few years, relevant topics in that series have included sustainable living and local, healthy, pesticide-free food.

"Sustain Your Brain" is an event held the week before finals week each fall semester. It focuses on mental health, well-being, and sustaining ourselves. It is a partnership with several other campus departments and student organizations. A Mindfulness in the Garden series was also offered in 2023.

The Sustainability Office employs students in sustainability roles. These are general sustainability and coordinator positions focused on waste, water and energy efficiency, reporting and planning, grounds, diversity and inclusivity, communication, food, health, wellbeing, waste minimization, city liaison, etc.

UWRF launched a sustainability pledge in 2023. Students who are about to graduate receive an email with more information and have the option to sign the pledge, which states, "As a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, I pledge to consider the social and environmental impacts of my personal and professional choices. Within any organization I am a part of, I will apply ethical principles to my decisions because they can shape the future of our global community. I commit to being a life-long learner concerned with honoring and upholding the dignity of others and leaving the world better than I found it."