This is just to let everybody know that Leave It Green, in conjunction with the Cycling Club and The Green Bike Initiative, is hosting Slippery Rock’s first ever Bike and Music Fest this Saturday.

The day will kick off at 1:00pm with bike activities including speakers, clinics and give-aways (you could even win a brand new bike!), then at four, the mood shifts to music with performances by Brad Yoder, Dali Rocket, and The Unified Theory.

After the festival, we will be remembering last year’s movement, and the beginning of Leave It Green, by kicking off our second annual week long camp-in! There will be friends, fire, and music, and everybody is welcome!

We hope to see you there!

**this event is sponsored by donation from the PA Film Institute, whose Global Wealth Environmental Film Festival is going on Monday thru Thursday of this week and next, with films starting at 7:30pm nightly in the ATS Auditorium. Admission is free, and the documentaries are interesting…CHECK IT OUT!

For all of you activists out there, tomorrow (Tuesday) we will be meeting in ATS 311 at 7:30. We will be discussing the campaigning and making signs. It should be pretty cool. If you have any posterboard, markers, paint, etc., bring it along! Hope to see you guys there!

Hey everyone, I just finished posting the latest and greatest Green Fund documents here on the site. Kudos goes to everyone who put a lot of heart and hard work into getting these together. They are awesome!

Be sure to check out the Activist Packet at the very least. That has tons of useful information in there. If you’re feelin’ spunky, check out The Bylaws. They are chock full of really cool insights into how The Green Fund works.

– Alex

If I had to pick my favorite Green Fund week so far, this week would definitely be it.

On Tuesday, Doug and I met with the SGA executive board to discuss the logistics of President Smith’s plan for us. We quickly discovered that it was not quite feasible for the mission of The Green Fund, and at that time the board was insanely helpful in figuring out other ways for The Green Fund to be successful. So in the end, it came down to us going back to our original plan. While Doug and I were with SGA, Dan and Matt met with a group of communications majors who will be helping out The Green Fund as their class project. We are really excited to have them and their talent on board.

Later that day, probably the most exciting thing in the history of The Green Fund happened–we had our activist meeting!! All of us were really excited to see the turn out at the meeting, and I know we have a GREAT team to work with. Already, I have seen signs put up, pins handed out, and you guys wearing your shirts. I even heard about the plans that the hecklers have, and quite frankly, I dig em. What it all comes down to, is that you all rock, and I know that with your help we will be successful. Stay tuned for more meetings, and if you couldn’t make the meeting but still want to be on our activst team, let me know at rachel {at} leaveitgreen(.)org.

On Thursday, Dan and Allie met with SGA, where they approved our voting days, APRIL 7, 8, and 9. Dan gave each member of SGA a button, so hopefully they will wear them as much as we do (everyday)!

Then Friday, we met with Larry Brink and President Smith…you can read the details in the post below.

So this was a very active week, and it is only going to get better!

This coming week, we will be working on adding to the video, so keep your eye out for us! As for you activists, keep checking your emails, and remember, if you have ANY questions, don’t hesitate to call or email us.

Peace and Momentum!

Rachel

This morning, we met with Larry Brink, SGA president, as well as SRU President, Dr. Robert Smith. Basically, we told him that we were uncomfortable with incorporating our fee into the General Services fee. The General Services fee is basically SGA’s money, and while we would be able to fund the student activities portion of the program with that account, we would be unable to do anything for any building upgrades, maintenance issues, department requests, etc. Basically, the only things that could be funded would be student club’s requests. Since Leave it Green is grassroots, and intends on remaining that way, we would be going against our mission by becoming a recognized group, and the bulk of The Green Funds intentions would not be satisfied.

After explaining this and much further discussion, President Smith and Leave It Green agreed that we would wait until the referendum passes, and explore our options at that point. It really has come down to us sticking to our morals as an organization, and we can’t back down on what we believe is right. So though no concrete resolution has been made at this time regarding the path we will take after the referendum, we will continue to stand up for our beliefs and make the best decision when the time comes. So keep on keepin’ on guys, we need your support and help more than ever!!! Remember that the voting dates for the referendum are April 7th, 8th, and 9th.

You guys ROCK!!!

Rachel and Dan

Wow… what a long day!

Today was full of meetings and craziness. Rachel and Doug met with the SGA executives today, who filled them in on the appropriate details to better achieve our goal of passing a $5 student fee. This task wont be easy; before break President Smith asked Leave It Green to look into alternative funding options. After much discussion and today’s meeting with SGA, we feel sticking to the original plan is our best option. In order to add a new fee, we will have to get the approval from the board of trustees. We are very confident in this decision and willing to do whatever it takes to pass The Green Fund.

We have also confirmed our voting dates. Originally we thought the vote would be held with SGA elections, instead they will be held on April 7th – 9th. We have yet to decide if the vote will be held over the Internet or using traditional methods. Currently we are discussing this issue and will make the final decision Thursday at the SGA meeting.

While Rachel and Doug were meeting with SGA, Matt Bucceri and I met with a group of communication majors. The group will be designing and creating our donation brochure as a class project. We hope to send this out to SRU alumni, faculty, staff and Slippery Rock community members. These donations will be put into the foundation account which could potentially be used to fund research grants and student scholarships.

Tonight was our activist meeting, and I want to thank everyone who showed up. We were impressed with the turnout and made some good progress. There is obviously a strong team of motivated individuals ready to get the word out. We also got our Green Fund buttons in, which we will be giving away for free. If you did not make the meeting but want to get involved send Rachel or I an email.

Its crunch time, we are doing everything we can to get the word out on The Green Fund. Thursday, we and the SGA will be writing our language for the referendum. Friday we will be meeting with SGA President, Larry Brink, and President Smith. So keep checking back for updates.

Cheers to activism!

Tuesday March 18th 7:00pm ATS room 311, Leave It Green will be hosting a meeting for anyone interested in volunteering for the Green Fund campaign. We will need volunteers for chalking, informing students, presenting to classrooms, handing out and hanging fliers, and most importantly, spreading the word for students to vote “YES” for the Green Fund. This is a great resume builder and an awesome opportunity to get involved. Don’t you want to be part of this monumental positive movement?

If passed, the Green Fund will positively change SRU forever. SRU will be the first of the 14 State schools to implement a green fee, and we will lead the way for sustainable campuses in Pennsylvania. Leave It Green has designed an informative packet for volunteers; this will help you spread the word more accurately and effectively. At this meeting we will designate specific tasks to individuals and plan out or campaign strategy and timeline. Please come and be part of this historic movement! Tell your friends and get involved!

If you have any questions, call Rachel at 269-275-0659, or Dan at 440-724-4716. See you all there!

Hey Everyone, This Wednesday our spring break starts, Rachel may be making a post or two over break but I wanted to run by some quick updates on whats going on and what will go on as soon as we get back from break.

Campaigning can officially start at 12:01 am the Monday we get back from break, we are really excited to get the word out and do some hardcore activism. Tuesday Rachel and Doug will be meeting with Larry Brink, president of SGA, to set up the wording for our referendum that will appear on the ballot. Allie, Matt, and I will be meeting with a small group of communication majors that want to help us with our campaign. That Friday we will also be meeting with Larry and President Smith, to discuss our referendum language and what else needs to be done to successfully implement the Green Fund.

Because we will probably start campaign Tuesday or Wednesday, we will be getting a late start on our campaign, but we are not too worried about it. The late start is nothing a good megaphone can’t handle.

I would like to take this time to announce that we are in need of activists to get the word out. We will be creating an activist packet that will tell you everything you need to know about the Green Fund, so if you’re interested get a hold of Rachel or myself. It’s going to take a lot of posters, flyers, communicating, presentations and loud voices. We are going to need a ton of help, so please if you’re interested let us know.

That’s it for know, I am sure if anything comes up over break Rachel will post about it, I hope everyone has an amazing Spring break.

Hang loose and happy trails

Dan

Well, as always, The Green Fund has had another pretty eventful week! We have been working very hard on getting all of our documents and literature ready for the public, and we will continue to work on that over spring break!

On Thursday, Dr. Lang Smith of the GGE department came to speak to Leave It Green members about his experience working for the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, and gave us tips on how to be better activists. Dr. Smith offered us some priceless advice, and it was awesome to see all of the work he has been involved with. He asked us some hard questions, and really helped us to prepare for our big meeting on Friday with President Robert Smith.

When Dan, Doug, Allie, and I met with President Smith on Friday, we were pleasently surprised at how supportive he was in regards to our initiative. He gave us some options on how we can acheive our goal. We definitely have some things to think about, and no decisions have been made. We will be meeting with him again after spring break, and are happy to have him on board to reach our goal!

I will be taking the next two Saturdays off, because it is SPRING BREAK, and there are no classes to remind me what day it is, but rest assured that I will keep you guys posted on anything that happens as soon as I get to a computer. I hope you all have a WONDERFUL spring break. Explore new places, see new things, and take lots of pictures!

Peace and Relaxation!

Rachel