Starting this week, the LLCC garden is opening up to LLCC employees only, and the plots will be free this year. There is still time in the growing season to plant tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and squash! Inquiries about reserving a space or to get more details can be sent to Tom Spears, thomas.spears@llcc.edu.

Starting next week, the LLCC garden will be opened up to LLCC employees only, and the plots will be free this year. There is still time in the growing season to plant tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and squash! Inquiries about reserving a space or to get more details can be sent to Tom Spears, thomas.spears@llcc.edu.

In celebration of Earth Week, the LLCC Sustainability Committee would like to invite you to participate in the annual Earth Week vendor fair today, Wednesday, April 25, 2018, from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in A. Lincoln Commons. This is one of the most popular events on campus for students and employees, and it is a great time to promote sustainability and learn about environmental issues and solutions in a fun, educational atmosphere of celebration.

More and more students, staff and community members are excited about energy, the environment and the overall wellness of Earth. Vendors will provide information, merchandise for purchase, samples and hands-on activities. Bath soaps, vegetable plants, bee bombs, a hive display, environmental fashion alternatives, coffee products, fiber weaving demonstrations and Goat Yoga are just some of the products and activities at the fair this year. Come celebrate Earth!

Faculty, staff, students and community members can now register for a raised bed in the LLCC Community Garden, located behind the Workforce Careers Center and Montgomery Hall. As a garden participant you will manage your own space to grow the fruits or vegetables of your choice all season long. A $20 garden fee allows you to choose one or two raised beds, depending on the amount of space you are willing to manage. Raised beds are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis until filled. First-time gardeners are welcome!

There are many documented benefits of gardening — it is cheaper to grow your own food, you can reduce stress through gardening activities and connecting with the soil and you can eat a healthier, more delicious diet by incorporating whole foods that you grow yourself.

Contact Darla Cochran at 786-2407 or darla.cochran@llcc.edu for more information about the LLCC Community Garden and to inquire about garden space availability.

Today is Campus Sustainability Day! The LLCC Sustainability Team is proud to announce a new online guide, called “A Walk Through the Prairies,” that outlines the walking paths around the LLCC campus prairies. It also describes the various plants walkers will encounter at various times of the year, and allows you to share your own prairie photos. The online guide will be unveiled today as part of Sustainability Day activities.

If you find a special painted rock along the walking path, you can win a prize from the Green Center! Stop by the Sustainability Team Green Center table in A. Lincoln Commons from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. today to get more details. They will also be demonstrating how to download and navigate the online guide.

The online guide was created by LLCC GIS student Megan Cantrall during a summer internship with LLCC Facilities. It is available on the LLCC website at www.llcc.edu/maps under “Springfield Campus Maps” for either desktop or mobile viewing. The LLCC Sustainability Team hopes you enjoy your walks through the prairies!

Other Campus Sustainability Activities:
In A. Lincoln Commons from 10 a.m.-2 p.m., you can also taste the inaugural honey harvested from campus bee hives, paint a kindness rock and watch “Death by Design,” a movie that brings to light what happens behind the scenes in the electronics industry (showtimes: 10 a.m., 11:20 am and 12:40 p.m.)

Campus Sustainability Day 2017 poster

Spread the word to students and join us in celebrating Campus Sustainability Day tomorrow, Oct. 25 from 10 a.m.- 2 p.m. in A. Lincoln Commons. Taste the inaugural honey harvested from campus bee hives, test out the new LLCC walking trail map, paint a kindness rock and watch “Death by Design,” a movie that brings to light what happens behind the scenes in the electronics industry (showtimes: 10 a.m., 11:20 am and 12:40 p.m.)

Campus Sustainability Day 2017 poster

You can buy produce grown on campus today at the LLCC farm stand, located outside the A. Lincoln Commons. It will be open from 1:30-4:30 pm (or until sold out). Available produce includes salad mix, spinach, parsley, cilantro, dill, tomato plants, and a few other surprises! Please note the stand accepts cash only, and small bills are appreciated.

LLCC has recently been recommended to receive a $2,000 grant from the North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (NCR-SARE) for the project, “Sustainable Agriculture Youth Workforce Development Program.” The grant was awarded as part of NCR-SARE’s Youth Educator Program, which supports educators who seek to provide programming on sustainable agriculture for youth.

The focus for each of the NCR-SARE grant programs is on research and education. Funding considerations are based on how well the applicant presents the problem being addressed, the project’s relevance to sustainable agriculture in the 12-state North Central region, and how well it aligns with NCR-SARE’s goals, among other factors specific to each grant program.

The grant will be used for a hands-on sustainable agriculture training program for low-income, disadvantaged community youth in partnership with the Boys and Girls Club of Central Illinois. Participants will be introduced to all aspects of gardening from soil to harvest. The students will be given entrepreneurial experience through the management of a farm stand. In addition, in order to develop leaders and future employees, the kids will learn life skills such as problem solving, working in a team, communication, and time management.

Bird Banding, 8-11 a.m., (NOTE NEW START TIME.) Bird Banding Station (behind Cass Gym). Join Biology Professor Tony Rothering and Lincoln Land Association of Bird Banders President Vern Kleen and learn about their process to capture, band and release birds, and record information which is added to a data pool on bird migration patterns. Observers may stop in for a visit or stay the entire time.

Earth Day Vendor Fair, 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., A. Lincoln Commons. Discover and learn about the various organizations, individuals, and businesses on campus and in the community working on programs, projects and educational tools geared toward sustainability and earth stewardship. Visitors can experience a human-powered bicycle making fresh fruit smoothies, recycled paper being turned into art and demonstrations on making recycled beads. Locally grown items will be available for purchase. The LLCC Environmental Club will sell Earth Day T-shirts and take orders for heirloom tomato plants, and the LLCC Epicurian Club will provide snacks. Vendors include: Acbees Apiaries, City of Springfield Public Works Division of Waste and Recycling, Elevate Energy, Food Fantasies, Girl Scouts, Grow Springfield (a network of community gardens), Habitat for Humanity, Inspiro Café, Jubilee Farm, LLCC Epicurean Club, Springfield Vegetarian Association and Willow Creek Farm.

Honey bee presentation, 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., A. Lincoln Commons. Learn about the life of a honey bee and its role in human lives and the environment from a longtime beekeeper.

Planting Successions, noon, LLCC Community Garden (behind LLCC Workforce Careers Center). Learn how to space plantings to harvest your favorite crops all season long.

Art Viewing, path from Sangamon Hall annex to the bridge. Tour a selection of natural land art created in the style of earth artists by LLCC 3D design students using materials from the LLCC environment. Display complete Tuesday afternoon, weather permitting.

More information is available by calling 217.786.4993 or emailing marnie.record@llcc.edu.