By Jhoana T. Merino-Martinez
News Editor
Here we are on Earth Day in 2021, but all we’re hearing is cricket noises.
This Earth Day marks the second straight without a significant on-campus observance as we mark the start of a second year of living with COVID-19 restrictions.
Last year, we did not come back to campus after spring break and Earth Day passed by as we masked up, socially distanced and didn’t commute. The air was fresh and sweet without the usual tangle of traffic.
The Equinox reflected on sustainability and the climate crisis as we met with our fellow college media as part of the NJ College New Commons climate change seminar in February 2020 at Duke Farms, a sustainable nature preserve in Hillsborough township.
In 2019, table stands were set up on the university green field on Earth Day. Visitors could pick up fliers keepsakes like sunglasses, lanyards and Earth keychains as recorded in this Facebook post on the FDU Global Education page.
This year, there can be no FDU gatherings on Earth Day.
However, that doesn’t mean sustainable efforts have come to a complete halt.
FDU Metro’s Green Team hosted a Campus Cleanup event on April 2 as student volunteers picked up trash around campus. as featured on the @FDUwhatsnew Instagram.
While the FDU community is dispersed during this virtual year, student activities are expected to resume in-person for Fall 2021, according to the president’s update on March 24.
Hopefully, next year we can expect not just the pamphlet tables back, but greater group activities for Earth Day at FDU. There is much to do to save our planet.
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Art by Jhoana T. Merino-Martinez
