Environment & Sustainability :: Lang Center for Civic & Social Responsibility :: Swarthmore College

Environment & Sustainability

Scientists have confirmed that human impact on global environments is not sustainable, making issues surrounding the environment and sustainability some of the most pressing of our time. Experts have proposed the term “Anthropocene” to describe a period of geologic time during which human beings’ effect on the planet and their environments have had a global impact. While individuals can make important strides toward sustainability through personal choices, only through collaboration and rapid change can we hope to build a sustainable relationship with our environments. The Lang Center offers a wide range of resources to help students explore these intersections such as our engaged scholarship courses, database of opportunities and clubs, and thePresident’s Sustainability Research Fellowship- a partnership with thePresident’s Office, theOffice of Sustainability, and theEnvironmental Studiesprogram.

Engaged Scholarship Examples and Opportunities

Serenity Soular

Contact:Giovanna Di Chiro

宁静Soular是可持续的倡议renity, a coalition of groups and individuals concerned with the preservation and sustainability of North Philadelphia in the face of decades of disinvestment. Sustainable Serenity is a think tank~act tank rooted in North Philadelphia, and involves allies from the broader Philadelphia region, including institutions of higher education, local churches, and nonprofit organizations.

Crum Woods Restoration Project

总统的可持续发展研究奖学金Project

Contact:Chelsea Semper'22

The Crum Woods is an invaluable asset and resource to Swarthmore College due to its numerous uses for education, research, recreation, and relaxation. It is a part of Swarthmore College’s mission to promote stewardship of this land; however recent disturbances in the Crum have complicated the fulfillment of this goal. In 2011, the reinstallation of the CDCA Sewer Line, which runs in parallel to the Crum Creek through the middle of the woods, caused extensive damage and deforestation. In the decade since this ecological destruction, minimal restoration efforts have been executed to restore this area to the way it was before the reinstallation. Hence, the core mission of Chelsea Semper’s project was to improve the ecological functioning of the Crum Woods by creating a restoration plan for the Sewer Line Right of Way (ROW) that details how to successfully restore the ROW with native flora to recreate lost habitats. Another aspect of Chelsea’s project was community engagement, and pursuing ways to involve Swarthmore community members in this valuable restoration work. Chelsea fulfilled this goal by hosting a restoration tree planting in the Spring 2021 semester that garnered over 70 participants, and am currently continuing to work on ways to further include Swarthmore students, staff, and faculty in Crum Woods restoration efforts.

Connect

Lang Center Associates

Emma Dulski '22	Daniel Balauro

Key Faculty and Staff

Elizabeth Drake, Interim Director of Sustainability
Clare Hyre, Sustainability Program Manager
Adrienne Benally, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies
James Fenelon, Lang Visiting Professor for Issues of Social Change, Professor of Sociology
Betsy Bolton, Professor and Department Chair of English Literature
Giovanna Di Chiro, Professor of Environmental Studies
Carr Everbach, Professor of Engineering and Chair of the Environmental Studies Program
Mark Wallace, Professor of Religion
Sustainability and Engaged Scholarship Fellows |Alex Flowers'21 andOswaldo Morales Solorzano'21
Green Advisor Student Coordinators |Kyra Hall'22,Alicia Contrera'22 andDaniela Kim'23

Student Groups

Garnet Go Green | Contacts: Contacts:Kyra Hall'22
Sunrise Contacts:Alana Ballagh’22
Sync Up for Zero Waste (SZW) | Contacts:Hannah Stern Pait'23 andSierra Jeska‘22
C4 (Campus Coalition Concerning Chester) | Contact:Chantal Reyes'22
Good Food Garden | Contact:Eva Krueger'24
Beekeeping | Contact:Lara Cohen

Lang Center
for Civic & Social Responsibility