On Thursday, ETSU celebrated Earth Day with everything from live music, to hacky sacks, to groups of people that had at least one thing in common: they were all interested in environmental issues.
The music started at 11 a.m. with the ETSU Bluegrass Band followed by the band Hot Groove and Appalachian raggae artist Ras Alan.
The celebration included not only booths from different local and university organizations, but also friends bonding over hacky sacks, hula hoops, and dancing to music.
Lance Lewis said, “It’s going smoothly. Last year it [Earth Day] wasn’t this big. For the last three years we’ve expanded it to get awareness out there.”
The plaza was full of different booths including booths for Klimb High, Boone Watershed, the Sierra Club, Green Peace at ETSU, Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance (FMLA), Mahoney’s, and a booth where people could register to vote.
There was even a booth for the United States Green Building Council (USGBC).
They displayed a “sustainable house” made of recycled products.
The house also showcased a plant-covered roof to improve oxygen levels and insulation of the houses.
They also explained the number of plastic coke bottles Americans throw away, and actually had a sample of carpet padding made from recycled coke bottles.
The Hands on Museum even had a booth where people could learn about and hold a live corn snake.
“The Earth Day celebration is great,” said Mimi Almeida, “but I don’t think we should just take one day to be aware of what’s going on and the limited resources we have on the planet. It’s disappointing to still see people throwing their cans and bottles in the trash can though when there is a recycle bin right next to it.”
The festivities were sponsored and organized by the ETSU Environmental Studies minor, Center for Appalachian Studies and Services (CASS), and the Initiative for Clean Energy, a student group.

Author