Florida Atlantic University is making great strides towards becoming a more environmentally friendly and “green” campus largely in part to the efforts of the Mission Green Student Association. Co-President Johnny Yuen, a third-year mechanical engineering student joined Mission Green in 2010 with a goal to promote campus sustainability as well as environmental awareness. “I have this idea where I want to create a better world with my knowledge of engineering so it’s either going to be renewable energy or creating the next generation technology that will lower our carbon impact on the environment,” says Yuen.
(Johnny Yuen)
Mission Green recently hosted its first Green Market of the year on Jan. 31 as part of its effort to “bring the market to the students.” Vendors included a local clothing company, an herbs distributor, kettle corn station, among others. Last semester, the Green Market was held near the football stadium but due to low foot traffic it was relocated to the breezeway. “I stopped by for ten minutes and it was a lot more successful on the breezeway than at the stadium. The vendors looked really busy. It was exciting,” said FAU sophomore Sarah Huang.
Throughout 2013, Mission Green plans to enhance the community garden, develop a bike share program in which students can rent a bicycle to ride around campus and expand the Green Market. Club members will also be organizing a camping trip during the second week of April and attending the Green Schools National Conference at the end of February.
The newly constructed community garden took almost 3 years to gain approval. It currently houses ten beds and yields a variety of herbs like sage, rosemary, tomatoes, pigeon peas, sunflowers, basil, and scallions. Faculty and students are welcome to rent one of the 4-by-8 foot beds for a cost of $20 per year—a relatively inexpensive price according to members.
For more information about Mission Green, click here.
Green Earth Gypsy 