COLORADO – Rivers in the West are drying up, and increased incentives for conservation may be the natural next step. Droughts can have dire ecological and economic effects. This would threaten Colorado’s wildlife, ecosystems, and be detrimental to the health and agricultural practices of people throughout the Western states. Recently, farmers in Colorado’s San Luis…
There are about 2,250 toxic mine sites in Colorado, according to Mark Rudolph, project manager at the Summitville Mine Superfund cleanup site. These toxic waste-emitting mines have degraded landscapes throughout the state, but the EPA’s Superfund program has proved effective in remediating these sites and giving them new futures. At Summitville, mine operators poured liquid…
CRESTONE – The San Luis Valley holds 3.1 million acres of land, and the San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council advocates for keeping its ecosystem protected. “I represent the people who care about this valley and systems who don’t have a voice,” the council’s director, Christine Canaly said in a recent interview. Canaly enlists the public…
ALAMOSA – Agriculture has been the base of the San Luis Valley’s economy since before farmer Cleave Simpson can remember. “I’m the fourth generation in my family trying to eek out a living here,” Simpson said during a recent meeting with Colorado College students at his Rio Grande Water Conservation District office. Like most farmers…
GREAT SAND DUNES NATIONAL PARK – At Great Sand Dunes National Park, sand steadily rises to tower over visitors as they stare up at hikers who choose to trek to the dunes’ peaks, way above their heads. Walking among the dunes, one realizes their insignificance relative to the grandeur of nature. Visitors are attracted to…
COLORADO SPRINGS – As the implications of climate change grow more dire, scientific reports are encouraging a faster shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy in order to reduce emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases. Some municipal utility officials are beginning to address harm their power plants may be causing to the environment. Colorado Springs Utilities…
DENVER – A freezer that operates at -11° Farenheit is an extreme setting for a workspace. For Richard Nunn, this freezer is his office. However, he doesn’t mind because he believes he has one of the most important jobs in the world. Nunn organizes and slices ice cores stored at the National Science Foundation Ice…
COLORADO SPRINGS–According to the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) report based on information from Colorado College in 2017, only 17.4% of expenditures on third-party products are verified under recognized food & sustainability standards. 498 out of the 604, or 82.62% of products that Colorado College’s catering company, Bon Appetit, sources from third parties…
As a first-year student at Colorado College, I am interested in studying either environmental studies or sociology. I was able to spend a semester in high school studying the effects of colonialism and apartheid in southwestern Africa, which sparked my interest in social and environmental justice, as well as experiential learning. Having lived in Atlanta…
