OUR VIEW: Sustainability, an issue worth our attention

Today, the College of Natural Resources and USU’s Sustainability Council kick off this year’s Sustainability Week.

    USU has a lot of themed weeks. Too often it seems like the various events and giveaways on the TSC patio blend together into an indistinguishable tapestry of the status quo. At times it can be hard to tell when one organization’s week has ended and the next has begun. We do not discount the entertainment, fund-raising and awareness-generating value of such endeavors, but we also admit that some things hold more weight than others.

    A walking tour of USU’s efforts to go Green may not hold the same draw as a Kalai Concert on Old Main Hill, and a showing of Academy-Award winning documentary “The Cove” is most likely not as crowd-pleasing as “Toy Story 3”, but ask yourself what you take away from participating in these various events. This week we can enjoy the social and entertainment aspects of campus-sponsored events while stretching our understanding of the world around us. After a weekend of non-stop parties and revelry, let’s all take a step back and think about the impact that our society has on our natural resources.

    In an interview with The Utah Statesman, Natural Resources senator Jason Carlisle said:

    “…Natural resources and sustainability issues are not going away anytime soon and finding solutions to those problems and thereby maintaining natural ecological processes is critical to sustaining life globally.”

    We agree. These issues are real and need to be addressed.

    There is a time and a place for everything. This week, it’s time for all of us to become a little more educated on Sustainability, Green living, and the difference that we can make in the environment. Take a couple of hours to watch the documentaries, listen to the speakers, check out what programs are part of Blue Goes Green, take part in the service project this Saturday or do a service project of your own.