Every Wednesday at 12:00 PM, West Chester University’s Office of Sustainability (OoS) will offer a look into how West Chester University (WCU) scholars, students, and staff explore and apply principles of environmental, social, and economic sustainability in their research and on-campus work. At 50 minutes each, these Sustainability Research and Practice Seminars introduce an array of topics related to sustainability in easily digestible segments.

The seminars are free and open to both campus and community and they are presented via Zoom with passcode 711670 or in person in Sykes Student Union 255 A/B.

Two of the April programs will take place in different locations. The Apr. 10 program is the University’s second Zero Waste Summit, held in Sykes Student Union Ballrooms, and the Apr. 17 program will take place in the Science and Engineering Center and The Commons, room 107.

Calli Lambard from the WCU Office of Sustainability opens this semester’s programs with “Rewilding Our Story: Using Storytelling to Combat Climate Change” on Jan. 31, 2024. A graduate of Susquehanna University with a double major in environmental studies and creative writing, Lambard joined OoS last fall after serving as the sustainability bookseller at Commonplace Reader in Yardley.

The complete schedule is below. Unless otherwise indicated, speakers are WCU staff and faculty members. Please note that there will not be a seminar during spring break (week of Mar. 3, 2024).

Programs are recorded and archived on the Francis Harvey Green Library’s Digital Commons site. The series is co-sponsored by the Office of Sustainability along with the Office for Research and Sponsored Programs and the Sustainability Council’s Scholarly and Creative Activities Committee.

Program Schedule

• Jan. 31, 2024
  • Calli Lambard (Office of Sustainability): Rewilding Our Story: Using Storytelling to Combat Climate Change.
• Feb. 7, 2024
  • Emma Craven (junior, English), Cheryl Wanko (English), William Lalicker (English), Megan Schraedley (Communications & Media), Maxine Gesualdi (Communications & Media), and Joey Miller (Philosophy): The Environment and the Humanities.
• Feb. 14, 2024
  • Thomas Pantazes (Teaching & Learning Center): Sustainability Considerations of Generative A.I.
• Feb. 21, 2024
  • Mia Ocean (Graduate Social Work): The Role of Humor in Sustainability: Focusing on Well-Being, (In)equity, and Community.
• Feb. 28, 2024
  • Greg Turner (Biology): Lichen Ecosystem Services and a Study from the New Jersey Pine Barrens.
• Mar. 6, 2024
  • Devin Arne (Music Theory, History, and Composition): Listening to the Gordon Natural Area: Field Recording as Means of Connecting with the More Than Human World.
• Mar. 20, 2024
  • Phyllis Schoen and Amanda Baker (Twardowski Career Development Center): Sustainability and Careers in the 21st Century.
• Mar. 27, 2024
  • Adam Rainear (Communication and Media): Coo-Coo for CoCoRaHS: Participation in a Nationwide Meteorology Citizen Science Program.
• Apr. 3, 2024
  • Zachary Wooten (Honors College): Mourning the Planet and Signs of Hope: The Role of Grief and Resilience in How Students Understand Climate Change.
• Apr. 10, 2024 (Sykes Student Union Ballrooms)
  • Second Annual WCU Zero Waste Summit special guest speaker.
• Apr. 17, 2024 (SECC Room 107)
  • Stefanie Schwalm (Associate Provost for Accreditation, Assessment, and Planning): Building a Strategic Framework with a Sustainability Lens at West Chester University.
• Apr. 24, 2024
  • Madeline Mulcahey (senior, anthropology): Amending the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act: Human Rights, Sovereignty, and Cultural Sustainability.

Learn more about WCU’s weekly sustainable seminars and how the university offers a comprehensive public institution, with a diverse range of more than 200 undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programs in more than 50 fields of study.