Director of Student Life Discusses College’s Celebration of Our Planet
By Amanda Fales | Observer Contributor
Earth Day has been celebrated yearly on April 22 since 1970, and numerous events took place on the Mount Wachusett campus to show appreciation for this annual holiday that celebrates a place that billions of people call home.
The day also offers an opportunity to brainstorm ideas to help curb the impacts of climate change and discussions on what can be done to prevent environmental issues from getting worse. To help this effort, Mount Wachusett hosted its own celebrations for the week of April 25-28.
Kathleen Matson, the Director of Student Life at Mount Wachusett, stated that she had planned events for the entire week. Matson revealed the activities that were hosted each day, beginning on Monday. Matson said, “On the 25th there was a discussion panel hosted by the Green Society,” and that “It revolved around the topics of consumerism and the environment.” It is often wondered whether consumerism and the environment can co-exist–the panel discussed this possibility.
Matson said that Kenny Shore performed on Tuesday and shared that “He’s a folk artist and a historian.” She adds, “It was exciting to have him come and try something new.” Matson also discussed the two Wednesday events, which were “an Americana folk singer performing and another discussion panel hosted by the Green Society.” The second discussion focused on what can be done to help stop climate change and conversations described why the issue of acting now is so important.
On the final day of the celebration, there was a plant sale organized by the Green Society. Matson said, “The emphasis of the plant sale was to promote the use of microgreens,” and that “They’re more [the microgreens] sustainable and eco-conscious.”
According to the Associate Degree in Natural Resources section on the Mount Wachusett home page, the Green Society Club, which is led by Professor Heather Conn, aims to increase interest in the natural resources curriculum and the greenhouse, located on the MWCC campus. Besides this, the Green Society generates events and thinks of ways to improve Mount Wachusett’s environmental footprint.
While each day hosted its own events throughout the week, there was a roadside clean-up effort as well. Matson shared that “The goal was having people take some time and look for trash,” and that “It was a simple way to help get students involved.”
Matson shared that Earth Day has been celebrated at the Mount for many years and that “We’ve hosted some sort of event even before I was here, and I’ve worked at the Mount for 6-years,” It was shared by Matson that Earth Day activities have always been well attended at the Mount, and with COVID numbers dropping, the hope for high attendance was present. She states, “In the past, we’ve had companies with reptiles come and have hosted some live shows, which are always a crowd favorite…But when we’ve had other activities, they’ve always been popular.”
Comments are closed.