The University of Oregon has a wide range of opportunities for students interested in sustainability and the environment. Below is a list of student groups on campus specifically dedicated to these issues.
Center for the Advancement of
Sustainable Living (CASL)
CASL is a student initiated organization working to create an example of
residential sustainability in the East Campus neighborhood. This Demonstration house will exhibit the
true potential for sustainable living. CASL also sponsors the Portable Pedal Power (PPP) Energy Generation
Device and the “Redefine the Dream” speaker and workshop series.http://casluoregon.wordpress.com/
Coalition Against Environmental
Racism (CAER)
CAER is a student-based group that provides a forum for education and organizes
efforts to promote environmental justice and end environmental racism. CAER
unites various groups on campus to promote environmental equity and hosts an
annual environmental justice conference on campus. http://www.uoregon.edu/~caer/
designBridge
designBridge is a student organization linking the UO School of Architecture
and Allied Arts with the surrounding community by offering design and
design-build services to clients and weekend design workshops for students. The
group meets weekly on Wednesdays, at 12pm in Lawrence 279. http://designbridge.org/index.html
Ecological Design Center (EDC)
The EDC is a student initiated group on campus which seeks to promote a
sustainable relationship between the build and natural worlds. The group
encourages the implementation of sustainable design at UO, hosts the annual
HOPES conference, and was the driving force behind the installation of solar
panels on the Student Recreation Center. http://edc.uoregon.edu/
Land Air Water (LAW)
LAW is the nation’s oldest student environmental law society. The group organizes the annual Public
Interest Environmental Law conference, publishes the Western Environmental Law
Update and the Directory of Public Interest Environmental Lawyers, and sponsors
the Land Air Water Research and Assistance group, which provides independent
environmental organization with legal assistance and research. http://www.uoregon.edu/~earthlaw/
LiveMove
LiveMove (aka University of Oregon Transportation and Livability Student
Group) is an interdisciplinary student group that brings together undergraduate
and graduate students to focus on the planning and design of transportation
systems to support the quality of life and livability of a community. The group provides opportunities for students
to collaborate on planning and design projects and provides grants for students
to attend conferences, workshops and seminars on transportation related issues. http://www.uoregon.edu/~livemove/
Oregon Student Public Interest
Research Group (OSPIRG)
OSPIRG, established at UO in the 1970’s, is one of the most active and vocal
groups on campus regarding conservation, sustainability, recycling and other
environmental issues. OSPIRG sponsors
various education campaigns on campus, has worked to improve air quality in the
Rogue Valley and preserve Oregon’s old growth forests, as well as, participate
in the Campus Climate Challenge to combat global warming. www.ospirgstudents.org
School Garden Project (SGP)
SGP is a grassroots, non-profit organization dedicated to fostering
hands-on learning experiences for children by creating vibrant and sustainable
school gardens. Established in 2000, SGP
helps local schools create and maintain gardens, sponsors teacher in-services
and UO School Garden seminars, provides a lending library of gardening tools,
books, and videos for the community, operate a greenhouse, and advices schools
on curriculum integration regarding environmental topics surrounding sustainability.
http://www.efn.org/~sgp/
Sustainable Business Group (SBG)
SBG is a student-run club at the UO Lundquist College of
Business. Established in 2001, SBG
serves as a forum to discuss issues related to sustainable business practices,
providing students with the tools necessary to integrate social responsibility
and environmental stewardship into business models. The group sponsors speakers
on campus regularly and meets every Monday at 6pm in Lillis 232. http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~sbg/index.htm
Survival Center
Founded in the early 1970’s, the Survival Center is an umbrella organization
geared towards the education of the campus community on issues of social
justice and environmentalism. The
Survival Center includes the Earth Week Planning Committee, the Forest Action
Coalition, the Coalition Against Environmental Racism, and the Human Rights
Alliance.
http://gladstone.uoregon.edu/~survival/
Environmental Studies Service
Learning Program
The Service Learning Program partners students with government agencies,
businesses, and non-profits to work on real world environmental projects in the
Eugene-Springfield community. Past projects include coordinating Lane County’s
first television recycling event, conducting a watershed enhancement project,
and creating and presenting a campus energy profile.
http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~ecostudy/slp/
The Outdoor Program (OP)
While not specifically a student managed group, the OP characterizes itself as
a “wilderness co-op.” The OP assists students in organizing, planning and
executing their own outdoor adventures, providing equipment rentals,
instructional classes, and a Wilderness Resource Center, stocked with maps,
guidebooks and manuals. Furthermore, the
OP manages a Bike Maintenance Co-op, located in its facility, The Barn, and
sponsors a number of annual clean-ups and educational outdoor trips and
clinics. Additionally, the OP recently launched the Bike Loan Program, which refurbishes abandoned bikes and loans them to UO students on a term-by-term basis.
http://outdoorprogram.uoregon.edu/index.php
University Day
University Day is a campus-wide beautification event that takes place each
spring. Hundreds of students, staff and faculty gather together to plant
flowers, pick up trash, spread bark dust, and generally show that they care
about the campus.
http://studentlife.uoregon.edu/programs/uday/index.htm
