Every year, Salem State University hosts a lively Earth Days week consisting of educational presentations, community discussions, student-led events, and films. This year, the university has continued to showcase an excellent array of panels and activities for students, faculty, and guests to enjoy.
By Brielle Laurent
Salem State University hosted their 25th annual Earth Days week in April, from the 7th to the 11th, demonstrating their continued dedication to sustainability and the climate justice movement. This year, as sponsors of Earth Days, we were invited to present two of our own panels relevant to climate change and biodiversity. We were joined by allies in the community to discuss climate activism in Salem and where this work is taking us in the future.
On April 9th, we held a presentation titled ‘A Just Energy Transition in Salem, MA’, discussing the continued efforts to solidify the development of offshore wind projects on the coast of Salem, and how we can ensure that local residents will benefit from them. Bonnie Bain, Executive Director at SAFE, was joined by Neenah Estrella-Luna of StarLuna Consulting, Reverend Nathan Ives of Saint Peter’s Episcopal Church, and Neal Duffy, the director of Sustainability and Resiliency of the City of Salem. Together, they addressed the challenges of introducing an offshore wind port with insight from residents, but maintained that it was certainly not impossible and was necessary to be successful.
On April 10th, we stepped back from the traditional presentations to attend an Arbor Day Celebration in front of the Sullivan Building, planting a young tulip tree in commemoration of Salem State’s recent achievement of obtaining Tree Campus Higher Education Certification. This event served as a way to acknowledge the numerous benefits of trees on campus and in the city of Salem. However, it also celebrated the continued efforts of students, staff, and faculty at Salem State who have dedicated their time and energy to improving biodiversity on campus. Engaging speeches were made by Tara Gallagher, Sustainability Coordinator, and Brian Vanden Heuvel, Dean of Arts and Sciences. Right after, Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) representatives taught the onlooking crowd how to properly plant and care for a tree, allowing attendees to get hands-on experience in the process!
On the last day of Earth Days at Salem State, we returned to participate in our second panel, titled ‘Salem’s Coalition Success Story: Environmental Justice and Community Benefits Agreements.’ Bonnie Bain of SAFE joined Lucy Corchado from the Center for Justice and Liberation and Professor Marcos Luna of the Geography and Sustainability Department to discuss the importance of using Community Benefits Agreements to guarantee benefits to local residents in the development of the offshore wind port. Although similar to the topics discussed in our previous panel, this one focused specifically on using legal contracts as a strategy to protect the rights of community members and provide a safety net if any agreements are breached.
At each panel, guests were engaged, excited to ask questions and to learn more from the panelists and from each other. Many attendees were interested in getting more involved, both in the climate justice movement and in SAFE’s endeavors. To further their interest and knowledge, we tabled at each presentation, providing invitations to upcoming events, motivational zines, information on SAFE, and a variety of free books relevant to the Earth Days theme. Guests left each event feeling empowered, excited to learn and participate more in the environmental justice movement. Thank you to Salem State University, our brilliant panelists, and our valued supporters for attending and helping to make this year’s Earth Days a huge success!
Brielle Laurent is SAFE’s Spring Communications Intern.