Cancellation of Mission Day and Resources and Activities for April (Earth Month)

March 30, 2020

Dear Students, Faculty and Staff,

In these challenging times I am thankful for the ways in which our university community is responding by making adjustments with creativity, thoughtfulness and spirit. Among the adjustments is the cancellation of large events, including our annual Mission Day scheduled for April 16.

We had originally planned to focus on environmental justice and sustainability under the title Just Sustainability: Caring for Our Common Home, inspired by the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and recognizing both the centrality of these themes for our Jesuit mission and its centrality in our Strategic Directions.

I am very grateful to the Mission Day Planning Committee, a 15-member group composed equally of students, faculty and staff, who invested their time, energy and creativity over the past few months to prepare for our day together (see the list of members at the conclusion of this note).

In place of gathering in person, I am inviting all of us to explore this theme through a range of online resources during April, which is Earth Month. Our Center for Environmental Justice & Sustainability (CEJS) and the President’s Committee for Sustainability (PCS) have partnered with the Mission Day Planning Committee to develop and adapt these resources. I extend my thanks to the CEJS team and to those who serve on the PCS for their hard work and leadership in this effort.

“Collaborating with others in care for our common home” is a priority of all Jesuit-inspired endeavors. It is central to our Seattle U mission. I encourage you to take advantage of these resources in your own personal Mission Day especially in this 50th year of Earth Day.

Thank you,

Stephen V. Sundborg, S.J.
President

 

Just Sustainability: Caring for Our Common Home
Resources for Earth Month

  • Seattle University and Sustainability: “SUstainability” video, created by CEJS, Film Studies students and Marcom
  • “Make Climate a Conversation”: Digital Resources
    Resources for conversations and digital classroom activities about climate action—the theme of this year’s global Earth Day—can be found at: www.seattleu.edu/earthmonth/#resources
  • Virtual Activities in the Month of April:

    For a full list of resources and event updates, please visit: www.seattleu.edu/earthmonth
    • April 7, “Solve climate by 2030” — Nationwide virtual teach-in on Climate Solutions and Justice: Share in broader conversations about science-driven policy through this nationally organized webinar series for higher education focused on climate action. Separate webinars are planned in each state. Washington’s event is scheduled for 6 p.m. on April 7. More information is available at www.solveclimateby2030.org
    • April 22, Earth Day Livestream: Earth Day Network, the global organizer of Earth Day, will mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day with its first digital celebration. A full schedule of all-day digital actions will be available at www.earthday.org.
    • April 22, Earth Talks at SeattleU, at 11 a.m.-noon and 2-3 p.m.: Seattle U is organizing a Zoom event with five-minute student and faculty presentations about environmental justice and sustainability. You are welcome to organize courses so that students can attend these presentations virtually and participate in the conversation. A list of speakers and topics will be posted by the first day of classes at www.seattleu.edu/earthmonth/#earthtalks.

Mission Day Planning Committee

Students: Yiqiu Cai, Cheyenne Carlson, Nicole Harrison (co-chair), Misty Louie and Hanna-Marie Lucero

Faculty: Lyn Gualtieri, Wes Lauer, Heidi Liere, Phil Thompson and Eric Watson, S.J.

Staff: Yolanda Cieters, Joe Orlando (co-chair), Arsenio Roddy-Little, Eddie Salazar and Jen Tilghman-Havens