Newswise — Fueled by the slogan "Turn your lights off, turn the Earth on!" Misericordia University's new environmentally-focused student group, Cougars for Change, is leading campus efforts to participate in a world-wide initiative to draw attention to responsible energy use and global warming. The event, Earth Hour 2009, is expected to have nearly 1 billion participants world wide turn off all non-essential lights for one hour, beginning at 8:30 p.m. on March 28, a time chosen to coincide with the spring equinox and when most places around the world are suitably dark.
According to group member Nicholas DeStefano '09, an interdisciplinary studies major from Chesapeake Beach, Md., Earth Hour began in Sydney, Australia in 2007 as a singular event with 2.2 million participants. The 2008 event involved 400 cities and 50 million people worldwide. More than 60 countries are already committed to the 2009 initiative. "It is amazing to think that this is a project that nearly a billion people around the globe are working on together, and we are able to make Misericordia a part of that community," DeStefano said.
The Cougars group is working with campus facilities to have all non-essential lights turned off on campus, including turning administration building Mercy Hall entirely dark. They are engaging alumni support with messages on Cougar Connect, the alumni-based web portal, and plan to sell T-shirts bearing the slogan. Organizers have also created Facebook and other social networking site pages to engage students, friends and family across the country. In an effort to make this a community event, Misericordia students also plan to visit businesses throughout Dallas borough and township, and the Dallas Area School District to register participants.
"The goal of the event is not the energy saved in that one hour, but to make a bold statement for climate change," DeStefano notes. "If we all work together we have the ability to create awareness and that will lead to change."
"Electricity is definitely taken for granted by everyone and it's nice for each of us to play a role in conservation and awareness," adds fellow Cougar for Change Caitlin Bryson'10, a Physical Therapy major from Cashtown, Pa. "I want to be involved because I feel it is important to give back to the community and the world. Misericordia, even though it is small, can still help make a difference by its role in Earth Hour."
Cougars for Change is planning an outdoor event during the hour, including an acoustic open microphone night featuring music, poetry readings and a performance by the Drama Club. The students are also planning to hold Ultimate (glow-in-the-dark) Frisbee and football games, and set up a variety of booths offering information on ways to go green.
Earth Hour '09 will be the highlight for the first-year student organization, according to DeStefano. Inspired by the green-friendly and social justice initiatives they witnessed at the Power of One conference they attended last summer in Chicago that involved students from Mercy colleges across the country, the group formed Cougars for Change when they returned to campus in August.
"The Mercy Conference was a very inspiring and motivating weekend for all of us," said Bryson. "After learning about so many social justice issues, each of us knew there was something we could bring back and share with the Misericordia community. As a group, we decided to focus on one issue — environmental sustainability. This was the inspiration that became Cougars for Change."
The group's first event was a campus-specific Earth Hour last September, and throughout the year they promoted the reduction of food waste by initiating Trayless Tuesdays in the student dining hall. That on-going project now includes Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and encourages students to carry only what they think they will eat. It is estimated to have reduced the amount of food waste generated by the campus from 100 pounds to 70 pounds for the lunch meal each day it happens.
Founded and Sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy in 1924, Misericordia University is Luzerne County's first four-year college and offers 31 academic majors on the graduate and undergraduate levels in full and part-time formats.
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