Earth Month
April 2015
This list of events compiles activities taking place during April at UNC Charlotte that fit the
original goal of Earth Day (April 22, 1970) as a national “teach-in”. While some of these
events were planned specifically for Earth Month, most were planned independently,
demonstrating that Earth-relevant activities occur year-round on our campus.
Michael Lizotte, University Sustainability Officer
Note: If a particular place / time is not listed, please contact Devin Hatley at [email protected]
for more details.
Ongoing
Keeping Watch: City of Creeks, Exhibition on the state of Charlotte creeks. Works by artists
Lauren Rosenthal, Stacy Levy, Marek Ranis, Nancy Pierce, and Ben Premeaux explore our
waterways in diverse media and from a range of perspectives – geographic, scientific, aesthetic,
and spiritual. A vast and elegant cut-paper map by Rosenthal shows the entire watershed of
Mecklenburg County. Levy’s Watershed Pantry exhibits jars of water from local creeks.
Stunning photography by Pierce and videography by Premeaux document the beauties and the
troubles of our massive creek system. STEWARDSHIP, a video installation by Ranis, with Tina
Katsanos, examines how religious beliefs define our perceptions and actions toward the natural
environment. Organized by UNC Charlotte's Urban Institute and the UNC Charlotte College of
Arts + Architecture, KEEPING WATCH (keepingwatch.org) is a three-year initiative designed
to foster collaboration across disciplines and interest groups to engage the public in local
environmental issues. The Opening Reception is Friday March 27 at 6:00 PM; the exhibition
runs through June 17. Gallery hours are 9 AM to 9 PM daily. Projective Eye Gallery, Center
City Building (320 E. 9th Street).
JustUs: Breaking Boundaries with Images. Visiting Artist Todd Drake creates art that
addresses human rights issues among marginalized communities. Drake is a North Carolina
native, recipient of various fellowships and grants, and has exhibited across the United States and
internationally. Through April 13, Center City Building - 2nd floor Atrium
Wednesday, April 1
Speaker: “Mommy, Mammy and the Maid: Race, Class and Women’s Political Power” by
Melissa Harris-Perry, Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Wake Forest University
and MSNBC television host. Part of the ninth annual Women’s and Gender Studies Speaker
Series and co-sponsored by the Campus Activities Board. Tickets for UNC Charlotte students are
free with a UNC Charlotte student ID, Faculty and staff tickets are $10, and general public
tickets are $15. Visit the Arena Ticket Office or call 704-687-4949, or purchase online at
www.ticketreturn.com. 8:00 PM, Student Union Rm 340 Multipurpose Room.
Thursday, April 2
International Coffee Hour. An informal gathering of students, faculty, or staff interested in
connecting with those from other cultures over coffee, refreshments, music and games. 4:00 PM
to 6:00 PM, Prospector
Tuesday, April 7
National Public Health Week -- Health Fair. The Graduate Public Health Association is
sponsoring a health fair for the UNC Charlotte community to facilitate education and awareness
about different aspects of living a healthy life. The organizations at our event will have tables
covering: LGBTQQ health, women's & men's health, STIs, birth control, domestic
violence/sexual assault awareness, nutrition (free smoothie and healthy snack samples will be
available), wellness promotion, counseling services, campus recreational services, yoga and
meditation, Zumba, and Department of Public Health Sciences information. Noon to 4:00 PM,
Student Activity Center Atrium.
Wednesday, April 8
Charlotte Green Team Meeting. Join professionals from Charlotte area organizations for a
presentation on sustainability efforts at UNC Charlotte, followed by a tour and discussion of the
Zero Waste Stadium initiative at Jerry Richardson Stadium. Sponsored by the Charlotte Green
Team, an alliance of hospitality and tourism professionals who are committed to environmental
and social responsibility, profitability and sustainability in serving our customers and visitors.
Students and staff are welcome. 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM, EPIC Lobby.
“We Are What We Eat and What We Build”. Dr. Richard J. Jackson, Professor of Public
Health at UCLA, will show how good design and building can protect and promote health.
Opening Keynote Speaker for the Integrated Network for Social Sustainability Annual
Conference. 7:00 PM, Auditorium, Center City Building. (Check w/INSS – Registration?)
Thursday, April 9
“Infrastructure Investment to Create Enduring and Human-Centered Wealth: A Capital
Asset Management Theoretic and Analytical Framework”. Dr. Adjo A. Amekudzi-Kennedy,
Professor of Global Engineering Leadership & Research Development at Georgia Tech, will
present a model for conceptualizing and evaluating sustainable development. Keynote Speaker
for the Integrated Network for Social Sustainability Annual Conference. Noon, Auditorium,
Center City Building. (Check w/INSS – Registration?)
“Panel Discussion on Local Rivers” for the Keeping Watch on Water: City of Creeks initiative.
Panelists will discuss the values and language used by stakeholders in river conservation, and
seek to understand contradictions and complementarities in the various visions of sustainability
that are held by engineers, policymakers, river dwellers, and citizens. 6:00 PM, Auditorium,
Center City Building. (Check w/INSS – Registration?)
“Film: Lost Rivers” for the Keeping Watch on Water: City of Creeks initiative. LOST RIVERS
takes us on an adventure down below and across the globe, retracing the history of these lost
urban rivers by plunging into archival maps and going underground with clandestine urban
explorers. 7:00 PM, Auditorium, Center City Building.
Saturday, April 11
Trip: North Carolina Zoo. Lions and Tigers and Bears, OH MY! Join T.A.X.I. as we take a
trip to the North Carolina Zoo. Also get a chance to feed a puffin and win prizes in a zoo
scavenger hunt! Sign up on Orgsync.com starting March 21. See
https://campusevents.uncc.edu/trip-north-carolina-zoo for details. Leaving 11:00 AM from
the Student Union Loading Dock.
Wednesday April 15
Campus Cleanup and Tree Care. The Office of Waste Reduction & Recycling will coordinate
events and supply everyone with litter cleanup supplies (map, bags, pickup sticks and gloves).
Volunteers and participants can check in from 10:00 AM to 2:45 PM at three points on campus:
the Belk Tower, and the Motorsports Building at the CRI campus. Contact Devin Hatley for
registration: [email protected].
Tree Campus USA Award Celebration: TBD
“Controversies and Concerns: Agricultural Biotechnology and GMOs”. A NC Science
Festival event. An expert-led discussion on Genetically Modified Organisms, their current use
in medicine and agriculture, their future potential, and public fears. The panel will feature Drs.
Kenneth Bost and Kenneth Piller, prominent UNC Charlotte researchers in the field. 7:00 PM,
Room 105 of the Bioinformatics Building.
Thursday, April 16
Member’s Preview Plant Sale for the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens. (You may join that
day if you are not already a member; Public Sale is Friday and Saturday 9am-3pm). Shop the
special selection of plants for your home garden – from the best selection of natives in Charlotte
to choice shrubs, unique tropicals, carnivorous plants, and more! Noon to 4:00 PM,
Greenhouse (corner of Craver Rd. and Mary Alexander Rd.).
International Coffee Hour. An informal gathering of students, faculty, or staff interested in
connecting with those from other cultures over coffee, refreshments, music and games. 4:00 PM
to 6:00 PM, Prospector
Friday, April 17
Plant Sale for the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens. Shop the special selection of plants for
your home garden – from the best selection of natives in Charlotte to choice shrubs, unique
tropicals, carnivorous plants, and more! Members preview sale is Thursday, April 16 from
noon-4 pm (you may join that day if you are not already a member). Sale Open to the public
9:00 AM to 3:00 PM, Greenhouse (corner of Craver Rd. and Mary Alexander Rd.).
EARTH CLUB: Toby Creek Cleanup. The Earth Club is leading a spring cleanup of litter
along Toby Creek as it passes through campus. Volunteers should meet at the tennis courts at
12:00 pm. Volunteers will be collecting litter until 3pm.
Seminar: “Full of Slime and Filth: Death, disease, and drinking water quality in the early
Jamestown Colony, Virginia” by Gregory Hancock, College of William & Mary.
Department of Geography & Earth Sciences Speaker Series 12:30pm - 1:30pm, McEniry 116.
Saturday, April 18
Plant Sale for the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens. Last chance to Shop the special selection
of plants for your home garden – from the best selection of natives in Charlotte to choice shrubs,
unique tropicals, carnivorous plants, and more! Open to the public 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM,
Greenhouse (corner of Craver Rd. and Mary Alexander Rd.).
Spring Football Game: See the future of waste management as the students of the Charlotte
Green Initiative continue the Zero Waste Football project. And check out the game while
you’re there! 6:00 PM Kickoff at Jerry Richardson Stadium.
Monday, April 20
Film and Panel Discussion: “Shored Up”. A documentary about climate change and sea level
rise that asks tough questions about our coastal communities and our relationship to the land.
What will a rising sea do to our homes, our businesses, and the survival of our communities?
Can we afford to pile enough sand on our shores to keep the ocean at bay? Film to be followed
by a panel discussion featuring environmental science and earth science researchers. This film
(http://shoredupmovie.com) is part of the NC Science Festival. 7:00 PM, Student Union
Cinema.
Tuesday, April 21
Volunteer Orientation for the UNC Charlotte Botanical Gardens. A fun and
informal gathering with our orientation host, Teri Edwards, with light refreshments and
snacks. An overview of the volunteer opportunities available, with a tour of our outdoor gardens
(weather permitting). Dress comfortably and wear appropriate shoes for walking the grounds.
Please register online at: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0e45aca923a4fd0-volunteer.
10:00 AM to Noon, Greenhouse (corner of Craver Rd. and Mary Alexander Rd.).
Film: "Yesterday”. Part of the Culture, Environment and Health film series. This South African
movie written and directed by Darrell Roodt was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Awards. The film tells a story of a young mother who discovers she has AIDS. Her
husband, a migrant mine laborer, rejected her despite being the one that infected her. Her
ambition becomes to live long enough to see her daughter, Beauty, go to school. This film is the
first commercial feature-length production in Zulu. 5:00 PM, Student Union Movie Theater
Wednesday, April 22
Earth Day Festival. Join 30+ organizations to learn more about their various environmental
missions, services or products. 10:30 am to 2:00 pm CHHS plaza (in front of the Student
Union).
Friday, April 24
Undergraduate Research Conference. The Undergraduate Research Conference, now in its
4th year, is a university-wide showcase, sponsored by Academic Affairs, the Atkins Library and
the Levine Scholars program, of undergraduate research projects. In the afternoon, UNC
Charlotte organizations will be available to share information about how they promote
undergraduate research and/or scholarship. More information, including details on eligibility and
registration by April 1, is online at https://library.uncc.edu/urc . 7:30 AM to 5:30 PM,
Barnhardt Student Activity Center
REGISTER FOR A TABLE BY 4/1: LIVING LABS (noon-4:30, Matthew et al.)
Saturday, April 25
KEEPING WATCH Creek Walk: Walking tour along an unnamed creek through the UNC
Charlotte Botanical Gardens, highlighting past efforts to protect the stream, a new bank
reconstruction project built by students last winter, and future plans for stream restoration.
KEEPING WATCH project (keepingwatch.org) is a three-year initiative designed to foster
collaboration across disciplines and interest groups to engage the public in local environmental
issues. For questions, email Michael Lizotte at [email protected] . 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM,
Greenhouse (corner of Craver Rd. and Mary Alexander Rd.).
Sunday, April 26
Budding Botanists: Seeds & Sprouts, children’s program from the UNC Charlotte Botanical
Gardens. Join us for a hands-on plant exploration program designed for ages 4-8. A $5
donation is requested for each participant. For questions, email Paula Gross at
[email protected]. Register online at: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0e45aca923a4fd0budding . 1:30 PM to 3:00 PM, Greenhouse (corner of Craver Rd. and Mary Alexander Rd.).
Thursday, April 30
Senior Design Spring Expo, William States Lee College of Engineering students demonstrate
their project results on projects addressing the needs of their sponsors. See some cutting edge
research and projects aimed at addressing the sustainability of the UNC Charlotte campus. 11:00
AM - 2:30 PM, Barnhardt Student Activity Center (SAC).
ADD:
FACULTY DEV BROWN BAG