UF is asking students to leave bad habits behind in honor of Earth Day.
The Office of Sustainability is celebrating Campus Earth Day on Friday with its Turn Over a New Leaf campaign.
The campaign involves students pledging to take part in one new sustainable activity in any of the areas of waste, transportation, food and energy, said Laurel Nesbit, an Office of Sustainability program assistant.
“I recently just got a new bike, so I would pledge to bike more and drive less,” said Danielle Overton, a 19-year-old UF animal sciences freshman.
UF’s Office of Sustainability celebrates Earth Day, which normally and nationally lands on April 22, early to avoid conflicts with Spring finals.
“We move Earth Day on campus to earlier in the month so that more people can be involved,” Nesbit said.
The event starts at 10 a.m. on the Plaza of Americas and will feature UF President Bernie Machen’s annual state of sustainability address.
Jessica Yomano, an 18-year-old UF nutrition freshman, said it’s a smart idea to change the date of the observance of the holiday on campus.
“I think it’s great that UF is doing as much as it can to be a sustainable university,” she said.
The Office of Sustainability also partners with Healthy Gators to hold the Champions for Change award ceremony, which recognizes individuals in the UF community who have contributed meaningfully to sustainability, health or both, Nesbit said.
[A version of this story ran on page 5 on 4/8/2014 under the headline "Earth Day encourages students to adopt one sustainable habit"]
