A Syracuse University organization wants students to know sustainability involves more than just being mindful of the earth, and aims to spread that message in a creative competition in April.

SU Showcase for Sustainability is hosting a video and poster competition with the theme of “You Only Have Earth” and hopes to promote awareness about how humans affect the Earth.

Rachel May, coordinator of sustainability education at SU, said in an email that the university is holding the competition to get students to think creatively about the big issues in sustainability and to share their ideas with other students and faculty members.

“We know there are a lot of great ideas out there, developed in course work, in students’ community service and entrepreneurial activities, and just floating around in people’s heads, and we want to see them out there in the world,” she said.

The competition runs through April 4 with winners announced on April 21 during a 4 p.m. ceremony in Watson Theater, according to the SU Sustainability in Action website. The entries will go along with the theme of “You Only Have Earth.”

May said the winning entries will appear on SU’s website during Earth Week and be shown on video screens and bulletin boards around campus. Earth Week runs from April 14–22.

The winner of the special category for short videos about fresh water, rain water capture and green infrastructure will be shown on screens in the Carrier Dome next fall, she added, when the new rain water capture system is implemented.

This is the third time SU has held a sustainability video competition, May said.

“The first one was initiated by students in 2011, and we revived the idea in 2012, when we received about 20 submissions, ranging from an original rock video about recycling to a brief documentary about a sustainability project in Mexico and a proposal for an aquaponics system,” she said.

This year’s competition includes both advertising-style posters and scientific posters that explain a research problem, along with video submissions, May said.

May added that entries should contain an explanation of a problem and indications of what people can do about it, and be visually compelling, entertaining or emotionally powerful.

May said that the best submissions would also combine science, policy and communication.

“The Office of Sustainability Initiatives is very interested in the combination of science, policy and communications, because we believe that a lot of the issues we face today are intertwined, and the solutions are out there but people need to know about them and know how to act on them,” she said.

Christopher Junium, an assistant professor of earth sciences at SU, said in an email anything that works to raise awareness of the lasting effects of humans on the Earth, even if it is small, is a great idea.

“Efforts like the Showcase for Sustainability are good for the average student passing by, but can be transformative to the participants who become intimately aware of a particular issue,” he said. “From there, these students can share what they have learned.”

Published on March 19, 2014 at 12:50 am

Contact Justin: jmatting@syr.edu | @jmattingly306