DePaul Student Perspective: CYCC’s Youth Environmental Leadership Retreat By Katie Abma

I have been hearing about the Chicago Youth Climate Coalition (CYCC) for about a year now, but had yet to attend any of their meetings or hear of an event such as their annual Youth Environmental Leadership Retreat.  Finally, something I was able to go to.

I am currently a senior at DePaul University and when this opportunity was presented at one of the University’s Environmental Concerns Committee (ECC) meeting, I felt like this may be the last time I’d get an opportunity to participate in something like this as a DePaul undergrad. The ECC has grown so much in the relatively short time I’ve been a part of it, and I felt it was important that I go to help represent DePaul as a university that cares about sustainability.

I didn’t quite know what to expect from the retreat—I knew it was being student run, so I was a little nervous that it’d be all over the place. It was nothing of the sort! I should have had more faith in my fellow students. Everyone who was a part of running the workshops and overall flow of the weekend (I unfortunately couldn’t stay the night or for Saturday) did an amazing job at creating a schedule that wasn’t scatterbrained but also wasn’t restrictive.

 

I think I would have really enjoyed the workshops being offered on Saturday, so I was upset that I couldn’t commit my day to it due to the huge amount of homework I had. However, I did like how Friday night was about getting to know your values:  where they come from and why they are yours, in order to know when they are being violated. I found the structure of the retreat—beginning with personal reflection activities and then moving onto creating change and “the world we would like to live in”—to make a lot of sense.

I was inspired but also overwhelmed by everyone’s passion for a common cause. I’ve never been a huge activist type person; I tend to prefer working behind the scenes to attempt to create much needed positive change in systems that exist. But I’ve always admired activism and hope to make it a bigger part of my life, and sustainability issues are those that I feel most passionate about, so this was a perfect place for me to start.

I truly feel like I gained a lot from attending the Friday night section of the retreat. In that short time, I felt connected to the people around me, and part of something vitally important for humankind and all species. I look forward to working with CYCC in the future, and especially to what we as a collective group may be capable of accomplishing.

An Edible Event for the Earth

by Jessica Walsh, member of the Environmental Concerns Committee

Yummy Kale Salad

   The big question during last Wednesday’s Edible Earth banquet was, “How often do you really know what’s on your plate?”  To answer that question, DePaul students began to fill the Vincent & Louise House (V&L House) with organic, locally produced and home-cooked platters around 6 o’clock. 

   Jonathan Eiseman, the Student Government Association’s Senator for Sustainability kicked the dinner off around 6:20 pm with a brief welcome and introduction.  

After that came a brief keynote address by Elise Hawley, the Assistant Director of the Environmental Concerns Committee (ECC), in which she spoke of challenging students to become more aware of the food we eat, think about where it is grown, and see how far food has to travel to get to our plates.

Buckwheat Pancakes 

   Before the chow down began, Robby Hawkinson from the V&L House led the group of about 60 students in a short Buddhist prayer on the importance of nurturing one’s body with food that comes straight from the earth’s soil.  With food on each of the three floors in the house, participants were able to move throughout space, engaging in great conversations and meeting new faces.

Crunchy Pita Bread

   The first floor consisted of the breads and entrées such as buckwheat pancakes and a scrumptious wild rice entrée.  The second floor was packed with wholesome appetizers, vegetable soups and fresh salads, and the third floor was filled with delicious desserts.  After the night was over I left the V&L House with a full and happy stomach and with an awareness of the meal and the ingredients I had just consumed.

      Overall, the V&L House was packed with organic, healthy meals, important discussion, and real cool people.  Wednesday night was another successful partnership between the ECC, the Urban Farming Organization (UFO), and the V&L House, creating a sustainable dinner for the community of DePaul students.  If you were not able to attend Edible Earth last Wednesday, we are already planning another one to take place at the end of the Earth Week celebrations on Earth Day, Sunday the 22^nd of April.  Keep your eyes peeled for more information coming soon!