Maine is a paragon of serene, pristine natural beauty, but has also been affected by pollution and other environmental harm. Lizzy Kaplan ’23 honors Maine’s environmental history—and celebrates 50 years of environmental studies at the College—in her exhibit “Woods, Water, and World: Environmental Studies at Bowdoin College.”
Though Bowdoin’s environmental studies department was founded in 1972, the College’s relationship with the environment dates much further back.
Sharing personal narratives of their ventures into and passions for the environment, Kellie Navarro ’23, Ebe Figueroa ’24 and Sejal Prachand ’24 captivated students on Thursday night in Lamarche Gallery. Orchestrated by Navarro as part of a three-part environmental storytelling series, the event intended to elevate the voices of students of color, who are often underrepresented in conversations of the outdoors.
Ayana Elizabeth Johnson was appointed this month as Bowdoin’s next Roux Distinguished Scholar. This award will bring Johnson to Bowdoin’s Environmental Studies Program and allow her to engage with the community on curricular and co-curricular levels.
On Thursday evening, glaciologist and artist Jill Pelto visited the Roux Center for the Environment to discuss her use of art to communicate ideas about climate science. The event was a collaboration between the Bowdoin Outing Club (BOC), the Earth and Oceanographic Science and the Visual Arts departments.
Students, faculty, staff and community members packed the Shannon Room last night to consider what types of environmental activism are most effective. The panel, titled “Consumerism, Activism, and Individualism: How to be a Better Environmentalist,” was planned by Lauren Hickey ’20 over the course of several months on behalf of the Office of Sustainability.
On Wednesday, the College announced plans to construct a new dry laboratory and convening center, complete with housing and dining services, at the newly renamed Schiller Coastal Studies Center (SCSC). This marks the College’s second major investment in the study of the environment in recent years, with the Roux Center for the Environment expected to open in September 2018.
