Baruch College’s Environmental Cooperation Organization is a club that is promoting sustainable choices, bringing awareness to environmental issues and encouraging the students to connect with nature.
ECO club is responsible for the stickers that line the first-floor stairs, which encourage Baruch students to take the stairs instead of escalators every day.
The club organizes activities both on campus and off-campus to help its members understand the effects of their daily choices on the environment.
They have gardening and hiking events outside, as well as information sessions and general meetings on campus.
Nearly every Thursday, they have meetings on campus during club hours about environmental and sustainability issues, including discussions about the Green New Deal.
Even though some of these topics seem more advanced, there are activities that make it easier for students who are not as informed to easily get involved.
The Ticker reached out to Jason Engongoro, the ECO club’s president, to ask if they find it hard to reach out to students at Baruch specifically.
“I think it is getting easier every year. The general awareness on the environmental issues is increasing, and we are happy to see more people get included. We are trying to make information more accessible by playing games and organizing different kinds of activities during our events,” Engongoro said.
ECO club has two big events coming up in April and May. The biggest on-campus event is Earth Day Trivia, which will be taking place on April 18 on the second-floor lobby.
The club will teach students about environment friendly decisions and climate change and give out succulents.
“We would like to reach out to more people. I feel like there is a disconnection and people do not think about how their everyday choices can affect the environment,” said Violet Webster, who is training to become the president of the ECO club next year.
“We realize that sometimes it is not easy to make the best choices for the environment as college students in a city environment, however, even just trying recycle more and taking faster showers can make so much more difference than one would expect,” she continued.
The club is also organizing the “Bearcats on Mountains” hiking event as their off-campus event on May 5 as an opportunity to connect with the nature.
The tickets are $10 dollars each, which include transportation, breakfast and snacks.
Being a member of the club is not a requirement to attend this event.
All Baruch students are welcomed.
