Redesigning Our Future

By Annabelle Nagy On Thursday night, after a long day of speakers and focus groups, the campers got to go to Catawba's observatory. And have s'mores. Photos By Cathy Green To wrap the night up the counselors set up a fun night of relaxing and having fun. Groups of people went up to the observatory to look for planets in the major microscopes at the college. Saturn and Jupiter made their appearances last night. The microscopes were so magnified that you could see the stripes of Jupiter and rings of Saturn. Many students stood looking in the microscopes with their mouths wide open, amazed at what they saw in the sky. The planets moved surprisingly quickly and the microscope would have to be readjusted every couple of minutes or so. While certain groups were in the observatory others stayed below making s'mores and eating pizza. Off to the side there were students playing cards, goofing off, and having a good laugh. Students of all different backgrounds bonded ...

High School Students, Counselors, Faculty, and Staff at Redesigning the Future Redesigning the Future: National Environmental Camp 2014 went by really fast. Our days were packed with lots of activities. We learned a lot and played hard too. Here is a final thought from one of our campers this year: “At the Summit, I loved being able to see all of the collaborative efforts between the students.   Our ability to find common interests and come together for a special purpose was amazing.   The people that I have met here are inspiring and I will never forget this experience.”   -Savannah Swinea Visit the Center for the Environment page for information about previous summits and be watching for opportunities for 2015. You'll also find loads of other projects and activities hosted by the Center. 

Showcasing our Environmental Knowledge and Projects from the Week After a super busy week at Redesigning Our Future: Environmental Summit for High School students, groups spent Friday afternoon coming up with creative ideas to share what was learned and how we've all grown. There was a flurry across campus as we all tried to develop creative ways to capture the spirits of our various focus groups. Everyone was running here and there picking up poster boards, markers, tape, and various other odds and ends. Dr. Sue Calcagni Has a Safe Spot with a Good View in the Environmental Center   The view from above at the Center for the Environment at Catawba College was probably the safest spot with so much going on and only forty-five minutes to get things together and over to the Peeler-Crystal Lounge. You Need WHAT to Make WHAT? Every group had a different overall personality and work style. Some groups had traditional table discussions while others scattered a...

Name State  Summit Campers from Dr. Eric Hake's Focus Group              Thoughts on making a difference . . . Natasha Anbalagan NC I plan to convince my school to install low-flush toilets by creating a cost-benifit analysis that shows the net benifits of low-flush toilets. Saloni Choudhary NJ I'm going to talk to my school administrators about selling re-usable water bottles in our school store. It's such a simple way to make a difference. Emma NC I plan to establish a school garden, which through programs here we've learned is a SMART goal. Gabby NC I hope to do work with the NCSEA and spreading awareness on the topic of using green energy in NC. I hope to join them in one of their annual meetings. Chas VA I want to bring more in-depth environmental information to my school since it lacks envionr...