Based at the Vermilion campus, the 12-member club recently initiated a campus clean-up, teamed up with the Vermilion Environment Committee to host The Age of Stupid, a movie about climate change, and donated $2,000 to Lakeland College for the purchase of two solar panels for the energy cabin.
Next on the Enviro Club’s agenda is hosting the popular Green Cup street hockey tournament. As many as 32 teams are expected to compete in the fun tournament which runs April 9 -11 on the tennis courts at the Vermilion campus. The tourney begins Friday at 7 pm with Lakeland staff members battling for a sixth consecutive victory over The Goat. That’s followed by two more games and a Drop the Puck kickoff dance in the gymnasium.
“Green Cup is our biggest fundraiser of the year. Money raised supports many club projects, including an Enviro Club scholarship and purchasing bottle recycling bins for the Vermilion campus,” says Robin Lagroix-McLean, Enviro Club faculty advisor. She noted that students in the transitional vocational program look after the bottle recycling bins and use the beverage container refund money for class projects.
Other Enviro Club projects currently underway include the creation of two posters that will be posted around campus and given to students in September. One will focus on what and where to recycle at the Vermilion campus and in town, and another on how to live green on campus with reminders about shutting lights off, reducing water consumption, taking care of the campus and more, says Lagroix-McLean. The club’s also started an endowment fund which will be used for The Green Living Award.
In its nine year existence, the Enviro Club has been instrumental in starting many projects at Lakeland including Sunfuel, a biodiesel made from the cafeteria’s used canola oil, and recycling of non-bond paper. As for what’s next, club secretary Chelsea Gatzke is investigating the possibility of doing an idling project and there is also interest in donating trees to the college and creating a green roof project.
“The tradition of this club is if the members see a need for a project, they pull together and get it done. Club members aren’t interested in recognition, they’re involved because they want to make a difference,” says Lagroix-McLean.
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For more information:Robin Lagroix-McLean
Faculty Advisor
Lakeland College Enviro Club
780 853 8587
