Date: Apr 17, 2008

Hofstra Hosts Earth Day Celebration

A Series of Events for a Greener Hofstra

Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY – Hofstra University’s Center for Civic Engagement along with co-hosts, School of Education and Allied Human Services and First-Year Connections, will sponsor a sequence of events in celebration of Earth Day on Wednesday, April 23, 2008 beginning at 11:15 a.m. on Adams Quad. The festival will begin with free food, activities, contests, vendors and music for Hofstra students, and will continue in the evening with four panelists discussing Long Island’s Environmental Future, which is free and open to the public. A full schedule of events is listed below.

Earth Day is intended to promote awareness and appreciation for the Earth’s environment. The global observance of Earth Day was originated by Gaylord Nelson, a former United States Senator from Wisconsin. Cindy Bogard, Hofstra’s director for the Center for Civic Engagement and associate professor of sociology, is also a Wisconsin native and remembers celebrating the nation’s first Earth Day as an eighth-grader.

"My school had little elections and I was one of three people in my grade selected to be on the committee," said Bogard. "We planned several activities for Earth Day including cleaning up trash in the woods and across the street from our school, and we had a little play about pollution. It was my first act of civic engagement. I got hooked and became an environmentalist at age thirteen on that day."

One of Bogard’s interns, sophomore Isabelle Goodman also commented on her involvement in the planning of Hofstra’s Earth Day. "We can show people what they can do by bringing vendors that sell green and hand-made products," said Goodman. "Until you see the big picture, it’s hard to imagine that you can actually do something." The festival will show Hofstra students how they can make a difference.

Hofstra’s Earth Day Event Schedule

8:30-10 a.m. – Mack Student Center Atrium - free organic continental breakfast
11:15 a.m. -12:35 p.m. – Earth Day celebration on Adams Quad
(Rain location: Multipurpose Room)
Free 21st-century buffet, brought to you by Lackmann
Music by Antler
Green ideas contest
Earth-friendly products and books for sale
Clothing exchange
Dramatic presentation on Rachel Carson
Smart Car
12:50-1:45 p.m. and 2:55-4:00 p.m. – Yoga in the Bird Sanctuary
1:55-2:50 p.m. – Tour of the Bird Sanctuary with Fred Soviero
The sanctuary is located behind the University Club, North Campus
4:30-6 p.m. – Business Development Center 246 - mock presidential debate on the environment
6:30-8 p.m. – Business Development Center 246 - panel: Long Island's Environmental Future
Prof. E. Christa Farmer, Hofstra University - How Climate Change will Change Long Island
Prof. Margaret Hunter, Hofstra University - Future of "Green" Engineering on Suburban Living
Prof. Eric Strauss, Boston College - Is it Possible to Live "Green" in the Suburbs?
Peter Washburn, New York Attorney General’s Environmental Protection Bureau - New York’s Legal Battle against Global Warming

Earth Day is a participating event of the Educate ’08 campaign, which is an unprecedented educational effort that engages not only students and faculty, but also the public in a year-long series of conferences, events and lectures leading up to the final presidential debate at Hofstra on Oct. 15, 2008. For more information on Educate ’08 please visit www.hofstra.edu/educate08.

Hofstra University is a dynamic private institution where students can choose from about 145 undergraduate and 155 graduate programs in liberal arts and sciences, business, communication, education and allied human services, and honors studies, as well as a School of Law. With a student-faculty ratio of 14-to-1, our professors teach small classes averaging 22 students that emphasize interaction, critical thinking and analysis. Hofstra offers a faculty whose highest priority is teaching excellence, cutting edge technology, extensive library resources, internships and special educational programs that appeal to their interests and abilities. The Hofstra community is driven, dynamic and energetic, helping students find and focus their strengths to prepare them for a successful future.