Cal State Bakersfield marked Earth Day on campus with hands-on projects aimed at improving the environment, including planting new trees and tending to a student-led Butterfly Garden.
The theme for Earth Day this year is “Our Planet, Our Power,” and the university’s celebration included weeding in the butterfly garden and planting trees across campus.
CSUB’s Sustainability Department pull weeds in the Butterfly Garden on Earth Day PHOTO: KBFX
KC, the roads and grounds manager at CSUB, said crews were planting 12 trees, including Live Oak Trees and Western Sycamores were also being planted near the old dorms.
“They’re really great trees. I really like them because they get really big and majestic and they capture carbon. They help the environment,” says KC.
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He also said trees help by pulling carbon dioxide from the air and improving air quality. “Trees are like a, like an air filter,” he said. “The more trees you have, just the better it is as a net, as a net carbon capture.”
Adi Arya, CSUB’s Sustainability Energy and Manager, said the tree planting is designed to give students hands-on experience with best practices and to learn about the benefits of trees, including air quality and carbon sequestration. She said CSUB holds Earth Day events each year and typically hosts two tree-planting events annually.
CSUB’s Sustainability Department plant Live Oak and Western Sycamore Trees for Earth Day PHOTO: KBFX
Arya also said, “I think Earth Day means to have to be grounded, right?” “And to feel like, okay, how can we contribute more to the mother nature and what we can do in order to make our not just our local environment, but also globally, have a global impact.”
CSUB will be hosting their annual Sustainability and Symposium event this Friday from 8:30am – 2pm, and it’s open to the public.