KNOXVILLE — April is Earth Month, and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, is seeing green with a month’s worth of events to celebrate. Departments from across the campus are participating through lectures, film screenings and other activities.
Events kick off at 1 p.m. today with the second annual Recyclympics Challenge on the intramural fields at the Tennessee Recreational Center for Students (TRECS). Individuals and groups will compete in 10 events featuring recyclable material including the phone book shot put and an obstacle course. Recyclympics is sponsored by Alcoa and UT’s Center for Sustainable Business and Tourism.
Other featured events include:
- New Norris House Tour, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. Thursday, April 7, in Norris, Tenn. Sponsored by the Office of Sustainability and College of Architecture + Design. The New Norris House is an award-winning sustainable home designed and built by UT Knoxville faculty, staff and students. In 2009, the house was one of six national winners of the Environmental Protection Agency’s People Prosperity and the Planet Competition. For more information or to RSVP, email gbennet5@utk.edu.
- “Garbage Dreams” film screening, 3-5 p.m. Friday, April 15, in the Hodges Library Auditorium. Sponsored by the Department of Sociology, the Sociology Graduate Student Association and UT Libraries. The PBS documentary follows the residents of the world’s largest garbage village, on the outskirts of Cairo, who collect 4,000 tons of trash per day, recycling nearly all of it.
- Earth Day Celebration, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 20, on the Humanities Plaza. Hosted by Students Promoting Environmental Action in Knoxville (SPEAK). Festivities will include a showcase of local environmental organizations, free T-shirt screen printing and bike tune-ups courtesy of the UT Bike Shop, a service of the UT Outdoor Program. The Environmental Leadership Awards Ceremony will take place at 12:15 p.m. The Committee on the Campus Environment will honor students, faculty and staff.
- Wood as a Sustainable Resource, 1-2 p.m. Thursday, April 28, in the Pendergrass Library Alcove. Sponsored by the UT Libraries and the Center for Renewable Carbon. Adam Taylor, associate professor in the Department of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries, will discuss the applications of wood as a sustainable resource.
For a complete list of Earth Month events, visit http://environment.utk.edu/earth_month.
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CONTACT:
Rebekah Winkler (865-974-8304, rwinkler@utk.edu)