PFZ, Peace Action highlight the importance of making Geneseo more sustainable
Students at the rally on Tuesday proudly holding up their various signs and hightlighting the importance of sustainabilty on campus (photo courtesy of Regan Russell).
On Tuesday, Apr. 23, 2024, students gathered outside of the MacVittie College Union to begin their walk through campus and around the administration buildings to rally for sustainability. The rally was a joint effort between Plastic Free Zone (PFZ) and Peace Action with the goal of celebrating and recognizing the sustainability efforts of students on campus. Students from various student-run groups were also present including the Beekeeping Club.
While the group of students may have been small, their message stood strong. Geneseo lists sustainability as a core value and praises its sustainability major and minor, but students are still forced to continuously ask the administration to take action against various problems around campus. PFZ is just one of the student-led groups on campus who are asking the administration to make a difference.
Elizabeth Klosko, a senior chemistry major with minors in sustainability studies and biology is on the executive board for PFZ alongside Kayla Forthman, a junior sustainability studies and international relations major. PFZ has been advocating for the elimination and reduced use of single-use plastics on campus for a number of years while advocating for the administration to take action, as well. PFZ has done bottle and can drives on campus, Orchard Street cleanups, general community cleanups, and has weekly general meetings open to all new members. Joining the club is an easy way to begin making a sustainable difference on campus.
Peace Action is another student-led club on campus advocating for the administration to take action to make real changes happen on campus. They held a meeting on Thursday, Apr. 18, 2024, to make signs for the upcoming rally and to educate students on why sustainability is so important in a place like a college campus. Both clubs are relatively small in numbers but have been able to successfully hold events and spread awareness to students on various issues both on and off campus. Peace Action advocates for students to bring issues that they are passionate about to the meetings in order to have open discussions, and in some cases create events that shed light on issues.
Students had complaints about the rally on Tuesday, with some openly expressing their complaints on the popular anonymous app YikYak. One comment stated, “If the issue is with the administration I’m pretty sure there’s a form where you can submit complaints too.” Student-led groups have exhausted all other resources and rallies such as this one spread information to the student body along with calling for changes from the administration. This comment was the nicest out of the bunch, with many commenters calling the students a variety of curse words and negative names.
This negativity is to be expected from the popular app, as many posts on the site complain about various groups on campus. The discussion of sustainability on campus, however, is an important one and needs to be on everyone's mind. Even though those who may have witnessed the rally complain about the brief disturbance to classes, the message continues to spread. Next time you see a rally taking place on campus, take the time to educate yourself on the issue and explore the possibility of joining students in the fight against various ongoing issues.