Select Page

Community Garden President Mark Cesario calls Earth Charter Community Summit Week at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh “one of the best weeks of the year.”

Earth Charter Community Summit events begin on  Saturday, Oct. 1 and continue through Oct. 8. The goal of the Earth Charter festivities is to raise interest and support the values and principles of a sustainable future.

“It provides students with the chance to further their knowledge about the environment, community and social interactions,” said Cesario, a UW Oshkosh junior majoring in environmental studies. “Plus, it brings people together, makes them work together for a cause and is an outlet for sharing knowledge.”

About a dozen events will be held both on campus and throughout the community during this year’s Earth Charter Community Summit, said Stephanie Spehar, University leadership fellow for sustainability and event coordinator. Events include a walk/run/ride through nature, speakers, an art exhibition, tours of UW Oshkosh’s new academic building, Sage Hall and more. The Earth Charter Community Summit week wraps up on Oct. 8 with a harvest party at the very gardens Cesario is so passionate about.

“What I think is wonderful about the summit is that its goal is to engage not only members of the University community – students, faculty, staff – but also community members and businesses in Oshkosh and beyond.,” Spehar said. “We are really trying to strengthen those connections between the University and the community in which we live.”

Spehar said many partnerships are created between students and the community through the planning of the events. Plus, Earth Charter Community Summit aligns with the University’s sustainability initiatives.

“The Earth Charter Community Summit is really a wonderful example of UWO’s commitment to educating our students about sustainability, inclusiveness and the importance of engagement in their communities,” Spehar said.

In 2002, UW Oshkosh became one of only eight colleges and universities that, as an entire institution, endorse the Earth Charter, an international document that calls for the promotion of ecological integrity, social justice, democracy and peace. Plus, UW Oshkosh is the only institution of higher education in Wisconsin that endorses the Earth Charter.

The Earth Charter Community Summit is sponsored by the UW Oshkosh College of Letters and Science Dean’s Office, Provost Office, Campus Sustainability Office and Wisconsin Public Service.

A complete list of the 2011 Earth Charter Community Summit events:

Read more: