Next SECS Meeting This Wednesday at 6:30! 🌱

Happy Monday! As the weather is getting colder, SECS is only heating up.

Our next meeting will be Wednesday, October 11th, at 6:30 p.m. at the Channing Murray Foundation (1209 W. Oregon Street).

Our working groups are tackling some formidable peaks this week. Please be sure to bring a computer!

Action will be working on the upcoming pumpkin composting event and will be finalizing email outreach.

Green Observer will be meeting for the first half of the meeting to check in regarding the Green Observer’s upcoming deadline for submissions. Media will meet the other half of the meeting to work on pumpkin composting graphics.

Education will start planning a letter writing event for sometime in November to occur as an SECS event.

UIS Fossil Free Addendum will be finalizing an upcoming teach-in with Amnesty happening next Monday.

Be sure to stick around after the meeting for ecobricking! We’ll be consolidating plastic waste into plastic water bottles as an alternative to throwing it away. We’ll watch the Nightmare Before Christmas to make quick work of this activity!

Show up on Wednesday! Go green or go HOME!

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Come to Curtis Orchard with SECS!
We will be going to Curtis Orchard this Saturday, October 14th, at 1:30. Here is the carpool signup sheet! You won’t want to miss this one-of-a-kind event!

Amnes-tea Climate Justice Event!
Join us at the Y next Monday, October 16th at 6pm for a discussion on fossil fuel divestment here at UIUC and and its connection to Climate Justice.

Environmental Leadership Program Opens!
Applications are now open for iSEE’s Environmental Leadership Program! This awesome program gives environmentalists like yourself a chance to lobby at the state level for important environmental issues. Program space is limited, so apply by October 30th! For any questions, email Andres Vasquez at [email protected].

Champaign County Regional Planning Commission taking thoughts on Lincoln Avenue Corridor.

The Champaign County Regional Planning Commission is conducting the Lincoln Avenue Corridor study, and will be having an open house on Tuesday, October 10, from 4-7 PM at the Alice Campbell Alumni Center (601 S. Lincoln Ave.) The purpose of the open house is to get the community’s thoughts on improving the infrastructure of Lincoln Ave., between Green St. and Florida Ave. For more information on this study, you can visit them here.

Tuesday Talks Now Wednesday Talks!
The Bevier Cafe is pleased to announce the return of Tuesday Talks, with one caveat – they are now on Wednesdays! The SSLC and SSC co-host these events that will feature speakers with experience in the environmental industry, ranging from places such as the Environmental Protection Agency to the Champaign County Forest Preserve District. Free lunch for the first 5 attendees! October dates include October 4th, 18th, and 25th from 12-1 pm at the Bevier Cafe.

NYU divests!
Great news: our friends at NYU Sunrise have won divestment!
Read all about it here. After years of pressure from student activists just like us, New York University will divest their $5 billion endowment from fossil fuel companies. Divestment is possible!

Sign the petition to save Weaver Park!

Weaver Park is a natural landscape in east Urbana that is currently at risk of being converted into soccer and baseball fields. To protect this park with inherent value, sign this petition.

The SECS talk is back!

SECS’ flagship podcast is returning under Alex Chavez’s leadership. If you have a professor, boss, colleague, or friend that would have an interesting environmental topic to cover, let us know! Here is an interest form to connect us with the wonderful folks you know.

SSC Reimagine our Future Undergraduate Sustainability Competition

The Student Sustainability Committee is co-sponsoring an undergraduate sustainability competition, where undergrads work alone or in teams to address a sustainability problem at a local, regional, national, or international level. The winning team receives $2,000 and there are cash prizes for second and third place as well. Last day to register! Register here.

Illini Lights Out is Back!

Join the Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment this fall semester in conserving energy! The Institute looks for students to help turn off lights in campus buildings on Friday night to help save energy over the weekend. Go here for more information and to sign up!

Sign the Fossil Free Illinois Open Letter!

In Fiscal Year 2022, the University of Illinois System reported over $120 million invested in 52 fossil fuel companies. This is in contrast to a fossil free future that seeks to mitigate climate change and ensure a healthy planet for all. Go here to learn more about and sign a letter that calls on the University of Illinois System to divest these funds. Help us get to 200 signatories!

If you’ve read this far, give some consideration to clicking right here for this week’s surprise. Come again!

Contact Us!
President — Danika Ford (she/her)
[email protected]
Vice Presidents — Alex Chavez (he/him) & Rudy LaFave (he/him)
[email protected]
[email protected]
Treasurer — Averhy Sanborn (she/her)
[email protected]
Secretary — Julia San Miguel (she/her)
[email protected]
Action Coordinator — Trey McCallister (he/him)
[email protected]
Education Officer — Claire Sullivan (she/her)
[email protected]
Media Officer — Sophia Beem (she/her)
[email protected]
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer — Fatima Naveed (she/her)
[email protected]
Community Chair — Joya Weissman (she/her)
[email protected]
Land Management Chair — Liam Henry (he/him)
[email protected]
Outreach Coordinator — Izzy Wilder (she/her)
[email protected]