News
Monday, April 18, 2016
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Earth Week
Various NIU organizations and clubs will hold events and activities throughout campus today through Friday to promote environmental awareness. disproportionate impact of environmental hazards on people of color. Three students and two faculty members will be on the panel. They will discuss instances of environmental racism, such as the contaminated waters of Flint, Mich. The event will begin at 6 p.m. in Cole Hall, Room 100.
Madison Kacer Staff writer
DeKalb | The inaugural Earth Week will be offering a selection of environmentally-focused activities from today to Saturday. Fifteen organizations have come together to coordinate the week, which was proposed by Stuart Nissenbaum, Student Association director of Environmental Affairs. Planning began on April 3 during a meeting dedicated to Earth Week. “What this week is really doing is hitting every aspect of environmentalism,” Nissenbaum said. “This is supposed to bring attention and change the culture here at NIU.” For a full list of Earth Week events, go to bit.ly/20NSSVA. Today The Anthropology Club will be screening “Indigenous Voices on Climate Change,” a collection of short documentaries that focus on the global impact of climate change. The film highlights the impact of climate change on more vulnerable cultures, such as more powerful natural disasters and rising sea levels, Nissenbaum said. The event will begin at 6 p.m. in DuSable Hall, Room 206. Tuesday The Committee for the Preservation of Wildlife will be working with Incredible Bats, an organization from the Chicagoland area that focuses on the conservation of bats, to hold the Live Bat Show.
in Montgomery Hall, Montgomer y Auditorium.
The multimedia presentation will feature live Egyptian and African strawcolored fruit bats. Bat boxes, which can be used to offer homes to local bats, will also be on sale. Bats are being featured due to
Courtesy of Emela Puskar
their endangerment, a threat to humans because they are pollinators who also help to reduce the insect population, Nissenbaum said. The event will begin at 7 p.m.
Wednesday Supporting Opportunities for Latinos; Sustainability, Environment and Recycling Management Association and the SA will be holding an #OurHealthMatters panel discussion, which will focus on environmental racism and justice. Environmental racism is the
Thursday Communiversity Gardens will be holding the Garden Prep Party, which will engage students in preparing the garden for planting season. The Vegetarian Education Group will be at the event holding a vegetarian potluck and promoting the idea that meat has a large ecological footprint, Nissenbaum said. The event is intended to provide information about the benefits of locally grown food, which include preventing food deserts and providing fresh food to low-income communities, Nissenbaum said. The event is at 4 p.m. in Anderson Hall, Communiversity Gardens. Friday Green Paws Environmental Alliance will be holding the third annual Green Bash, which will feature food, live music, games, local vendors and information about environmental problems and solutions. The event aims to advocate for an environmentally-friendly lifestyle, Nissenbaum said. The event is at 10 a.m. in the Martin Luther King Jr. Commons.
SA Senate OKs Bangladesh organization
“Obviously [Nissenbaum] has been working full-time,” said Christine Wang, SA Senate Speaker-elect. “I’ve been doing the executive review and he’s been working overtime... at least now so he can receive some of that before he graduates.”
Alexander Chettiath News Editor
DeKalb | The Student Association Senate unanimously approved the creation of the Bangladesh Student Association. The objective of the organization is to promote the culture of Bangladesh and diversity on campus and to provide assistance to current and prospective Bangladesh students. This includes helping students get settled at NIU with housing and class arrangements, said Jarin Tasnim, treasurer of the Bangladesh Student Association, at a SA Senate meeting Sunday. The organization currently has about 35 to 50 members made up of undergraduate students, graduate students and faculty members, Tasnim said. “I would say in the last five to 10 years, there were probably two to three Bangladeshi students, but suddenly if you look at the last two years, there has been a growth of more than 200 percent, suddenly there is about 50 to 60 students,” said Rafi Hossain, vice president of the Bangladesh Student Association. “So those students need a platform to be represented.” Hossain said he expects about four to five graduate students to join every year. In fall 2010, four students came from Bangladesh
Alexander Chettiath | Northern Star
Christine Wang (right), SA Senate Speaker-elect, addresses senators as SA Senate Speaker Dillon Domke looks on at the SA Senate meeting Sunday. The SA approved of the Bangladesh Student Association and the full-time addition of the position director of Environmental Affairs, which is currently held by Stuart Nissenbaum.
and in 2015, that enrollment grew to 10 students, according to NIU Institutional Research. The Bangladesh Student Association will celebrate International Mother Language Day on Feb. 21, Bangladeshi Independence Day on March 26, Bengali New Year on April 14 and Victory Day on Dec. 16.
unanimously to become a fulltime position. The position was created to coordinate environmental service projects, collaborate with university environmental groups for programming as well as hold a minimum of one sustainability workshop per semester. The Senate approved the creation of the director of EnvironFull-time environmental director mental Affairs cabinet position at a The SA director of Environmen- meeting on Oct. 18. tal Affairs position was approved Stuart Nissenbaum was approved
as the first director of Environmental Affairs on Dec. 6. All directors in the president’s cabinet are allowed to work up to 20 hours a week, with the exception of the director of Environmental Affairs who was given 10 for a trial run, said SA Senate Speaker Dillon Domke. Domke said that with directors getting paid $9.50 per hour, they can receive a maximum of about $7,500 before taxes.
Combining director positions A bill to combine the director of Advertising and director of Public Affairs positions into one position was postponed until the next Senate meeting on April 24. The director of Advertising is responsible for coordinating the overall marketing and advertisement priorities of the SA and the director of Public Affairs is responsible for communicating, on behalf of SA, to the students of NIU and ascertaining the concerns of the campus community. Domke said many of the responsibilities overlapped and could be done by one person. Concerns from senators included finding candidates for the new position with experience in business, marketing and public affairs and the extent of their day-to-day responsibilities. The bill was pushed with the recommendation that the current holders of these positions address the Senate on Sunday.