Here you'll find past events hosted by the Great Valley Sustainability Committee. For upcoming programs, visit our upcoming events page.
Trash Talk
September 10, 2024
Recycling plays an important role in promoting sustainability and reducing waste on campus. This program equipped attendees with practical knowledge and actionable steps to enhance recycling efforts while avoiding contamination and wishcycling.
Pawpaw Palooza
September 24, 2024
Master Gardener Sharon Richardson returned for a fascinating educational journey into the world of pawpaws (Asimina triloba)! Pawpaws have tremendous value in our landscape, diet, and history, yet we rarely see them in grocery stores today. Imagine a flavor that combines the best of banana, mango, and pineapple – that’s the pawpaw!
The Sustainability Committee supplied pawpaws and some recipes for participants to prepare a pawpaw dish to share as part of the program.
Green Burial: The Solution is Here
Wednesday, November 1, 2023
We hosted a celebration the Day of the Dead with a conversation about death and dying!
Watershed Walk
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
Meagan Hopkins-Doerr, Penn State Extension master watershed steward coordinator for Chester and Delaware Counties, and Steve Grim, Trout Unlimited board member, discussed Valley Creek and various practices that help protect your watershed, what makes Valley Creek so special, and how to join the effort to conserve it for the future.
Protecting & Restoring the Environment at MOM’s Organic Market
Wednesday, November 9, 2022
See how MOM’s Organic Markets “walks the walk” of helping the planet. Sean Lynch, environmental research and partnerships manager, shares MOM's initiatives range from collecting oyster shells to restore oyster reefs to advocating against animal cosmetics testing.
Food for Thought
Tuesday, October 25, 2022
Food insecurity is defined as a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life. Food insecurity could be ongoing for many years or it could be a short-term challenge brought on by any number of circumstances.
Swift action needs to be taken to provide food and humanitarian relief to the most at-risk regions. At the same time, a profound change of the global food and agriculture system is required.
Learn about the causes and effects of food insecurity globally, nationally, and locally with the Penn State Sustainability Committee and West Chester Food Cupboard (WCFC). Get an inside look at what WCFC is doing to contribute to zero hunger, and how we can help!
Green Living Part Two: Ecology, Permaculture, Beekeeping and More with Nicole Marusco
Tuesday, September 13, 2022
Nicole Marusco is an ecologist who posts sustainability tips on her Instagram. She began learning about sustainability and permaculture concepts as an undergraduate in Penn State's Parks and People and Sustainability research in Jamaica and has embraced the lifestyle and practices since. She's been involved in environmental education, ecological design, soil manufacturing, gardening, beekeeping, and more. This webinar focused on our local, back yard ecology and how we can create deeper connections through outdoor hobbies.
Cycling for Our Future
Tuesday, August 30, 2022
Bike riding is not only a fantastic way to improve your physical and mental health, but also the health of the planet! Unlike cars, bikes do not release harmful emissions, nor do they require harmful chemicals (like antifreeze). Moreover, the development of roads requires the destruction of green space, and creates water runoff that contributes to ground and water pollution. Riding a bike reduces traffic and noise pollution, improving mental health and communities.
Philadelphia is the top bicycle commuting city of the nation’s 10 biggest cities. The Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia is working to improve bicycling in the eight Pennsylvania and New Jersey counties surrounding Philadelphia, including Chester County, by building the Circuit Trails. Patrick Monahan, regional organizer for the coalition, discussed the health and environmental benefits of biking and trail use, and the latest updates on the Chester Valley Trail system.
The Five Easy Steps to Home Composting
May 3, 2022
Approximately 40% of food in the United States never reaches the table and much of this food ends up in landfills. Without oxygen to help the discarded food break down, organic materials buried in landfills release methane, a greenhouse gas that can trap 30 times the amount of heat in the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.
Composting diverts food waste from landfills and creates an ideal environment for microbes to break down organic materials, expediting decomposition and restoring nutrients to soil.
Back to Earth Compost Crew's Five Easy Steps covers how to turn your food scraps and yard waste into black gold.
Environmental Justice
February 17, 2022
Robert Bullard, the father of the environmental justice, defines environmental racism as “any policy, practice or directive that differentially affects or disadvantages (where intended or unintended) individuals, groups or communities based on race.” While we often think of places like Cancer Alley, Louisiana, and Flint, Michigan, environmental racism is present right here in the Greater Philadelphia region.
Mike Ewall is the founder and director of Energy Justice Network, a national support network for grassroots community groups fighting dirty energy and waste industry facilities such as coal power plants, ethanol plants, natural gas facilities, landfills and incinerators of every sort. In this program, learn about the history of environmental racism and environmental justice, discover where your waste goes (remember - there's no such thing as throwing something away), and find out how you can make a difference.
The Problem with Recycling
January 12, 2022
America leads the world in per capita waste production and it's increasingly clear that everyone — from manufacturers to consumers — "over-believes" in recycling. In this webinar, the Sustainability Committee explored waste, responsibility, and how to make impactful change.
Celebrating Sustainably
November 10, 2021
Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, the amount of trash produced in the United States increases by approximately 25 percent - that’s about one million extra tons of garbage each week! The Sustainability Committee explored innovative ways to celebrate more sustainably, including new ways to approach décor, entertaining, holiday cards, gifts, packaging, and disposal.
Learn about Lead with EPA’s Lead-Based Paint Program
September 16, 2021
Lead can be found in all parts of our environment – the air, the soil, the water, and even inside our homes. Lead from paint, dust and soil in and around your home can be dangerous if not managed properly. In this webinar, staff from EPA Region 3’s Lead-Based Paint Program shared information and resources to help participants learn basic facts about lead, lead safety, and EPA’s lead-based paint laws that are designed to protect children and families from hazardous lead exposure. For more information on lead, visit www.epa.gov/lead.
Waste Less Food and Save Our Planet
June 24, 2021
Every year, 40 percent of food goes to waste in the United States, including 20 billion pounds of produce that’s lost before even leaving the farm. Bart Creasman, Senior Brand Manager at Hungry Harvest, discussed food waste in the United States, the impact on the environment, and how we can help end food waste and hunger. He also provided sustainability, cooking, and composting tips to help eliminate food waste.
Penn State Great Valley 2021 Earth Day Celebration
April 22, 2021
Penn State Great Valley faculty and staff came together virtually to kick off Green Paws, share updates on the basin naturalization and pollinator meadow project, celebrate Earth Day, and learn about pollinators.watch the recording
Green Living: How I Live Sustainably
April 8, 2021
Penn State Great Valley faculty and staff members shared some of the eco-friendly practices that they have adopted to reduce their respective footprints.