2023 DESIGNATED AS FIELDING’S GLOBAL ECOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL JUSTICE YEAR

To commemorate our 49th Anniversary, the President’s Sustainability Advisory Council designated 2023 as our Fielding Global Ecological and Social Justice Service Year throughout the world. In March, Fielding’s annual Call Across the Globe also centered on Sustainability: Acting for Social and Ecological Justice.

Fielding is a community that acts to secure the sustainability of our biodiverse ecosystem, health equity, society, and culture. The President’s Sustainability Advisory Council consults with the president on environmental and social sustainability matters that align with the university’s mission and values. Our colleagues on the President’s Sustainability Advisory Council would like to inspire acts of kindness and service in the interests of social and ecological justice.

The purpose of this service-year designation is to collect stories of Fielding community members engaged in service in their communities. We know from scholarly research that it only takes a small number of people to create the conditions for positive social change. When people take collective action, their communities benefit.

Fielding is a higher education institution committed to the overall development of student-practitioners who have a raised awareness and consciousness of their kinship with all living and non-living entities of this earth. We will continue to center sustainability on the ethics of Indigenous knowledge and approaches to learning, relating, and collaborating with all environmental partners who have a vested interest in just and sustainable communities. This includes Indigenous Elders; diverse communities; artists; storytellers; researchers; students; and plant, animal, and mineral life. Our framework envisions a future where representation is broad and forward-thinking while honoring the past and building a just, equitable, and vibrant future. This encompassing view aspires to a more socially just and inclusive future for all.

Examples of Service:

• Activities such as cleanup days, neighborhood bird counts (such as Project Feeder Watch), invasive plant removal, and creating a natural lawn.

• Volunteering for any nonprofit organization. Examples could include homeless shelters, animal shelters, food banks, literacy volunteers, organizations that focus on specific illnesses, local environmental groups, and so on.

Share Your Stories:

Whenever you volunteer in your community this year, send us a paragraph at media@fielding. edu about your experience. Please include photos. Stories will be posted on our website, social media, and other communications channels.

Learn More: fielding.edu/about/office-of-the-president/sustainability-advisory-council