Learning Beyond the Classroom
As an earth, environment and sustainability student, you can choose from various curricular and extra-curricular activities to enhance your learning experience.
Sustainability Opportunities at UD
Rivers
Institute
Students engage with faculty and community members to build community around the rivers by preserving and protecting our watershed.
ETHOS
ETHOS provides experiential learning through service-learning internships, student organization activities, collaborative research and hands-on classroom projects that support the development of appropriate technologies for the developing world, locally and globally.
Hanley Sustainability
Institute
Nationally recognized for work on campus and within the Dayton community, the Institute allows students to engage with faculty and community stakeholders to help make campus and the community more sustainable.
Sustainability Club
Open to all students at UD, Sustainability Club is a service and social action club with an emphasis on food, water and waste on campus and in the Dayton community. We have several waste collection programs in place that not only deter waste from landfills, but raise money for projects and feed the less fortunate.
Social events include, local hiking trips, TED Talk nights and organic and vegan cookouts. In addition to facilitating Sustainability Week and GreenSweep events, we educate ourselves and others about important environmental and sustainability issues as well as develop a collective language and vision among the students. We're also a resource to facilitate collaboration and help get project ideas off the ground.
Additional Student Organizations
The University of Dayton has a chapter of Beta Beta Beta, the National Biological Honors Society.
RE-volv is a national nonprofit organization, stationed in San Francisco, with a mission to empower people and communities to invest collectively in renewable energy.
Our Vegetarian Club and Outreach provides a supportive group to vegetarians, including social events like cooking classes and field trips.
Sustainability Community Partners
The University of Dayton has several local sustainability, energy, and the environment community partners that you can get involved with off-campus.
- Five Rivers Metro Parks: This area park system is dedicated to protecting Greater Dayton's natural heritage and to providing outdoor recreation and education experiences that inspire a lasting personal connection with nature.
- The Mission of Mary Cooperative: Mission of Mary Cooperative is an urban farming non-profit organization that works in east Dayton. They focus on the issues of food and economic social justice especially the issues of healthy food affordability and access. The work done at Mission of Mary aims to provide tangible benefits for the people of the community as well as the vacant and forgotten land of the neighborhood.
- Dayton Regional Green 3: Dayton Regional Green 3 is a leadership collaborative committed to enhancing the quality of life and environmental assets of the Dayton region by growing our economy, protecting a healthy environment, and promoting social responsibility.
- UpDayton: UpDayton seeks to spur economic growth in the Dayton region by attracting and retaining young creative talent. UpDayton wants to show young adults that the Gem City is a great place to live, work and play. And if top-notch creative young professionals want to live in our community, then top-notch entrepreneurs, businesses and investors want to be here, too.
- Energy Visitor Center: Located at the Dull Farm, the Energy Visitor Center provides information on conserving energy and demonstrates many working alternative renewable energies.
- Metroparks: Community Gardening: Since 1986, our Community Gardening program has been helping urban residents in Montgomery County develop and maintain community gardens and green projects, transforming vacant lots into productive open spaces. Community gardens are managed, maintained and owned by neighborhood residents and organizations. Community gardeners cultivate vegetable gardens, care for community-managed parks and beautify their neighborhoods with flowers and trees. The gardens provide many benefits: reduced crime rates, improved mental and physical health, and a greater sense of community.
- PNC Second Street Market: This marketplace strives to promote sustainable, local food systems in order to shrink the ecological footprint of Montgomery County. Over 40 vendors: local growers, bakers, culinary specialists, and artisans fill the charming historic freight house.
- Precious Planet Ministry: Called by our Catholic faith, Precious Planet Ministry seeks to engage the members of St. Francis of Assisi in a dialogue about environmental issues and to encourage parishioners to be thoughtful steward's of God's creation. St. Francis of Assisi Church, Centerville.
- Smaller Footprint Farm: This farm grows produce, flowers, herbs and chickens for a 45 member CSA and local farmers' market using natural and sustainable methods. Now accepting applications for summer apprentices.