Earth Day Issue
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University of Texas at El Paso DigitalCommons@UTEP The rP ospector Special Collections Department 4-18-2017 The rP ospector, April 18, 2017 UTEP Student Publications Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.utep.edu/prospector Part of the Journalism Studies Commons, and the Mass Communication Commons Comments: This file is rather large, with many images, so it may take a few minutes to download. Please be patient. Recommended Citation UTEP Student Publications, "The rP ospector, April 18, 2017" (2017). The Prospector. 282. http://digitalcommons.utep.edu/prospector/282 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Special Collections Department at DigitalCommons@UTEP. It has been accepted for inclusion in The rP ospector by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UTEP. For more information, please contact [email protected]. VOL. 102, NO. 27 THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO APRIL 18, 2017 EARTH DAY ISSUE PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE PROSPECTOR UTEP’s Student Green Team advocates for eco-friendliness BY ADRIAN BROADDUS From just participating in the 2014 it, but the only student organization for it cuss eco-related topics through different cling, saving water and educating more to The Prospector Earth Week to directing the entire week was environmental advocates, and it was guest speakers. do the same.” of events, Lugo has developed a deep pas- small and dying,” Lugo said. “We decided “We also just want to know people’s Dillon Bouqayes, a freshman pre-med When she first participated in UTEP’s sion for becoming more eco-friendly. It to do a big collaborative event for Earth major, believes that one thing the Stu- Earth Week in 2014, Fernanda Lugo was opinions and ideas—even if you don’t started with gaining awareness toward Week in 2016, and we tried to educate dent’s Green Team can push for is more surprised at how low-scale the weeklong know anything about environmental- sustainability, which led to Lugo leading and advocate, while still making it fun.” residential life recycling programs. event was. Lugo, who is a biology major, ism, you can have the best idea on how to forums on waste and consumerism. An event that was a lot larger than “They haven’t promoted recycling in cared deeply about being eco-friendly make it better,” Lugo said. “All the forums “I noticed that a lot of people were in- imagined, Lugo saw a wide array of stu- resident life at all in both dorms I’ve lived and sustainable, and wanted to bring and discussions we’ve had led us to our terested in it and wanted to do more in dent interest and involvement in her in- current projects that we are having with in,” Bouqayes said. “To promote or im- more of that to campus. prove recycling, they should just at least augural Earth Week with the Student’s eco-takeouts, the bike fix-it stations and Fast-forward to this year’s Earth Week have a place where we can recycle at the Green Team. outdoor drinking water fountains, which and Lugo, now a senior, is currently em- “The biggest improvement since the dorms. Right now, there’s none. And then will be coming soon. We have the filling barking on her second Earth Week as start has been student involvement,” Lugo maybe promote different recycling sta- stations inside, why not outside?” president of the Student’s Green Team, We also just want said. “We’ve heard a lot of students, who tions during our move-in day.” For this year’s Earth Week, Lugo and and the once smaller-scaled event has saw it last year, and (they) asked how they One of the biggest stereotypes sur- to know people’s the organization have planned various turned into a school-wide function. can help this year and are really excited rounding the local environmental push events ranging from planting cacti, open “I’m in biology and I’m going into pre- opinions and ideas— to help out. It’s cool and it’s a bit scary is the fact that El Paso is in a desert eco- med, which is something that helps peo- because it’s pretty much me designating forums and even a solar hot dog cook-off. system, so there’s not much to do for the ple. I figured that you can’t help people if even if you don’t where they can help.” The week’s events will start on Wednes- environment. Lugo, however, aims to dis- there’s no planet for people to be healthy know anything about The school’s Green Team wants to not day, April 19, and will lead up to Earth miss that preconceived notion. on, so it’s interconnected,” Lugo said. only advocate for eco-friendliness cam- Day, on Saturday, April 22. “The biggest problem is that we live in “Even being in nature, there are studies environmentalism. pus-wide, but also encourage other stu- “We want to see as many students par- the desert. People aren’t aware that there that show that it improves your mental dents to join them in practicing sustain- ticipating in these events and really engag- is wildlife out there and it matters here,” health and improves your immune re- ability through volunteering, outreach ing in the idea of how we have to change she said. “We’re actually in a bio-diverse sponses, which are topics that will be dis- and informing the student body. They our morality towards environmentalism,” area here and it’s worthy to go see and go cussed in Earth Week. Specifically, we will - Fernanda Lugo, have led different movements across Lugo said. “It can’t be something that’s hiking in. That’ll make you care about it talk about how you can help nature and senior biology major campus. ultra political; it has to be something as more. That’s some of the myths we’re try- how nature can help you, you just need to Student’s Green Team They meet each Monday in the Class- being a kind person—something to do ing to dispel.” start caring about it.” President room Building, room 004 at 2 p.m. to dis- on your day-to-day—to think about recy- Follow Adrian Broaddus on Twitter @Adrian_Broaddus All Dental Specialist in One Clinic MOST USA DENTAL INSURANCES WELCOME CARRETERA INTERNACIONAL WATERFILL 324 AVE. DE LAS AMERICAS 1411 NTE. 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The production and trans- you haven’t yet grasped the im- portation of basic necessities consti- plications of one tutes a problem for our world. tragedy before another takes its place. We know all of this, which is why we They’re exciting, no doubt, and ignore it, and it’s not working. It’s not each has it’s own importance in the working because we think the prob- world. Another bombing, an airline lem is more complicated than it is, and goes rogue or a press secretary makes nobody believes that the solutions to a stupid blunder. Each of these issues stopping the rising temperatures are in the past week received national at- feasible. But we are misinterpreting tention. And deservedly so. Passengers shouldn’t be dragged covered in blood the problem for the solutions. Luckily, out of a seat they paid for, and it’s im- there is not one massive solution, but portant to remember that Hitler did many smaller ones that can be imple- use chemical weapons. Some critics mented by everyday people. Just google will call these recent scandals an exam- “solutions climate change” and you are ple of “outrage culture,” where people met with a plethora of sites, organiza- are angry at seemingly inconsequential tions and ways that people can help things. I would slightly disagree, but one of the greatest issues of our species. only slightly. There is no reason to assume that It’s not a culture of outrage at mean- ingless events on a day-to-day basis, the destruction of our environment is it’s an outrage of events that have an inevitable. People’s outrage changes the obvious fix, and an end in sight. When world every day. It only took one day faced with multiple problems, it’s easy for that ridiculous Pepsi commercial to to focus on the one that can be solved be taken down, and that was just some- MARVEL - Kaelin Walker the quickest. thing annoying and benign. We live BOOST - Maria Jaquez The larger problems are not ignored, in a time where collectively we have a but pushed to the back burner. And in BOOST - Antonine Leon greater say in everything that happens the end we have pushed the largest and BOOST - Nohemi Lopez-Valdez because we are so connected to every- most complicated problem so far back BOOST - Nathan Luke thing that happens.