Earth Days events to begin with festival Saturday

Earth Days 2014, from the Associated Students Environmental Center, begins Saturday, April 19, with an Earth Day festival.

That event will take place from noon to 5 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center Plaza, or the Viking Union Multipurpose Room if it's raining. The festival will include live music, dancing, food and activities.

Juniper Stills, Well Wishers and Buyani Nguni will provide the music, and the keynote speaker will be Tara Villalba from Community to Community Development. Among the activities: Portraits A GoGo, Yoga, Learn to Square Dance, DIY crafts, bird watching in the arboretum, and many more activities put on by local environmental organizations and WWU environmental clubs. Free food catered by Students for Sustainable Food 

The entire festival is free, but donations will be accepted for Community to Community Development.

More events:

• From 5 to 6 p.m. Monday, April 21, Students for Sustainable Water will hold an event celebrating the ban of the sale and distribution of bottled water on campus that took effect April 1.
• From 4 to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 22, in ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­VU464, the Environmental Center will hold an Eco-Feminism Workshop led by the Canopy Collective. Space is limited, so please email as.earth@wwu.edu to register.
• From 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 23, in the Outback Amphitheater, the Environmental Center will hold a Huxley Campfire where students of all majors can come out to hear how your professors got started in the environmental movement and what inspires them to continue their field of work. S’mores and hot chocolate, cider and tea and will be provided.
• From 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, April 24, in the Fairhaven Auditorium, the Environmental Center and the Ethnic Student Center will hold a presentation and group discussion event regarding the inequality in the distribution and access of healthy, wholesome food. Local food activists will speak about food deserts and communities’ efforts in bringing local food to communities often dominated by marginalized identities. The event will end in the Outback Farm for homemade, cob-oven pizzas and fun gardening activities.

Western's Office of Sustainability also will lead green campus tours from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday, starting in the sixth-floor lobby of the Viking Union.

All events are free and open to the community. Email as.earth@wwu.edu for more information on any events.