Local University Hosts a Sustainability Event to (Tap) Dance About
Exploding pumpkins. Tap dancing. Corn hole. Queer flag buttons. A woodland fairy, a clown, a witch. Apple tarts and squash soup. All these things came together at the Farm at Southern Oregon University’s “Fall Farm Fest”.
SOU’s sustainability program runs a small farm just a few blocks from the main campus, part of the school’s initiative to reach carbon neutrality. The farm is worked by students of all disciplines and the crops harvested for use in their cafeteria (and for making the aforementioned soup and tarts). It also sports two large solar panels which makes the whole operation — as well as two other campus buildings — carbon-neutral.
Sustainable agriculture practices, environmental education, community awareness and involvement, and introducing students to the many options for majors, minors, and micro-credentials in eco-science is just a part of the bigger picture.
The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs endorses a 17-goal mission for combating global warming. Here is a list of those goals that the Fall Farm Fest ticked off during the sustainability event:
Goal 7: Affordable and Clean Energy
There was no admission fee for entering the Fall Farm Fest, but the sustainability program was rich with exposure. At least 100 people were in attendance at the event, and sprinkled between performances were announcements about the farm’s agenda and values. One of those was the effort to help get the school to “net-zero”.
The Oxford Language dictionary defines the term as a noun meaning:
a target of completely negating the amount of greenhouse gases produced by human activity, to be achieved by reducing emissions and implementing methods of absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Here’s how that works at the farm.
Carbon sequestration (absorbing carbon from the atmosphere) happens when plants grow. The most effective of these include cover crops like grains, cereals, and legumes, though all plants perform the task to some degree.
To negate the greenhouse gasses produced by human activities, the Farm at SOU is doing a few things.
- Growing food for local use. This decreases transportation emissions and helps clean the community air.
- Lowering the net food waste. All of the crops grown at the farm are consumed, whether they’re pretty or not. The rot from rejected and unused crops produces huge amounts of greenhouse gases.
- The solar panels supply clean energy to three buildings with a long-term goal to power the whole campus with renewable, solar energy harvested right there at the farm.
Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
The actions to meet this goal and goal number 7 go hand-in-hand. Each of the three methods listed above contribute to shaping a sustainable community. In addition, the Fall Farm Fest set an example for community members to become educated about renewable energy, food waste, and greenhouse emissions.
A particularly well-dressed witch took the stage between a guitarist’s performance and a tap-dance routine to inform the audience that the SOU campus was built “…within the ancestral homelands of the Shasta, Takelma, and Latgawa peoples who lived here since time immemorial.”
By acknowledging the legacy of colonialism, students and community members begin to question what life was like for the people that came before us.
The Sashta Nation modeled sustainable practices for fishery. The Latgawa and Takelma tribes practiced responsible agriculture, only planting and harvesting crops naturally occurring in the ecosystem they lived in. Many of the tribes in southern Oregon and California practiced controlled fires for centuries that preserved much of the forest colonialists later cut down or allowed to burn. Their methods are being reemployed by fire scientists to save what remains.
Goal 12: Responsible Production and Consumption
Goal 12 in the UN’s sustainability mission refers to all production and consumption. That includes clothing, pharmaceuticals, transportation, and yes, food.
Responsible consumption of those things looks like thrifting clothes or making sure that the brand you’re buying from practices responsible manufacturing. It looks like properly disposing of medication that is expired or unused so that harsh chemicals aren’t introduced to the environment. It looks like taking public transport, walking, or driving an electric vehicle. It looks like only buying produce you know you will consume and shopping locally.
Nothing tastes as good as an apple crisp made from ingredients you’ve grown and nourished yourself.
Sustainability as a Cross-Discipline Priority
The Fall Farm Fest was made possible by the coming together of a variety of disciplines, clubs, and student employees. The dance club and music majors put on performances. The outdoor program provided games.
The Social Justice and Equity team had a booth shrouded by LGBTQIA+ flags, resource fliers for confidential advising and reporting. Their table was filled with pins of each of the Queer flags, stickers with a rainbow version of the school mascot, and and a stack of black stickers with a red with a red hand print which read “no more stolen sisters”, meeting goals 5 (gender equality) and 16 (peaceful and inclusive societies).
The chemistry department blew pumpkins delighting the children (and perhaps inspiring some future scientists).
The check-in tables were run by masters of sustainability students who, during a chat, detailed their plans for big-picture careers like starting a non-profit, starting a school in a disadvantaged country, and establishing a summer camp for sustainability education.
The hospitality school prepped and served the food and drinks. Sarabi Castillo, the hospitality leader said that “serving others is [their] priority, both in the industry and the community at large.” With the rise of ecotourism, water conservation in hotels, and carbon neutral goals across the hospitality industry, the Farm at SOU was a great place to put those vital goals into action.
Sustainability isn’t just a degree. It’s a priority. Every college discipline, every work place, every home has to value sustainability to make a difference in combating global warming. The Fall Farm Fest showed everyone that it’s possible to make those changes right at home.
