2021: UMass Dartmouth celebrates Earth Month

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UMass Dartmouth celebrates Earth Month

The SouthCoast Earth Month Coalition has announced a variety of ways to engage and celebrate a 100% sustainable future throughout the month of April both on the ground and virtually

The SouthCoast Earth Month Coalition, led by the UMass Dartmouth Leduc Center for Civic Engagement, has announced a variety of ways to engage and celebrate a 100% sustainable future throughout the month of April both on the ground and virtually.

Activities and Events include:

Virtual Art Festival

Make your earth day statement and experience fun! Show your support for a sustainable SouthCoast with your creativity. Register your painting/illustration, sculpture, poetry/spoken word, dance, music or any creative work on our virtual map for all to see! The only requirements are that you must not use fossil fuels, it must honor the Earth, and you must be mindful of the 4R’s – refuse, reduce, reuse and recycle. Register your artwork via our Google Form.

Prizes will be awarded in the following categories:

Family - 1st place prize - Family membership Buttonwood park zoo 2nd Family membership Art Museum 3rd Day passes to New Bedford Whaling Museum and Rotch Jones Duff House and Garden Museum.
5-8th grade - Pizza Party for Your Class 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th sponsored by Domino’s pizza
9-12th grade 1st place – dinner for 4 at No Problemo / 2nd place ice cream for 4 at Oxford Creamery /3rd donuts and coffee at Donut Factory
College (1st $50, 2nd $25, 3rd $15 gift certificates to art store)

Need Art Supplies? Pick up an art kit at the following libraries: Dartmouth Southworth, New Bedford Main, Fairhaven and Mattapoisett. Act quickly, supplies are limited!

Need an Art Consult? Zoom with Art Lab on Sunday April 11 at 3 p.m. Meeting ID: 994 0733 2425Passcode: 097311

Need more info? Contact childrensartlab@gmail.com to find out more

Earth Month EcoChallenge: Drawdown

Join Team SouthCoast for the EcoChallenge, a solutions-oriented engagement program focused on individuals taking action to reduce greenhouse gases in our atmosphere. The actions in the EcoChallenge connect to global solutions highlighted by Project Drawdown, a research-based organization that is leading the efforts to map, measure, model, and describe existing, amazing solutions to climate change. Visit the EcoChallenge website for more information or contact Team Leader Elaine Sanchez at esanchez1@umassd.edu.

Trash Skimmer in Action

On April 8 at 4 p.m., see a Trash Skimmer in action with the Community Boating Center, Port of New Bedford, and Clean Ocean Access who have partnered to put a marine trash skimmer in New Bedford Harbor. Stop by Pier 3 between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. to learn more and to get some tips on what we all can do to help prevent marine debris!

Art Festival Kickoff with AHA!

On Thursday, April 8 at 5 p.m., join AHA! Night for Listening to Water: A dialogue to gather clouds and condensation between science and art. This event is a sharing of research and conversation hosted by CVPA New Directions Artist-in-Residence, Tracey Cockrell with Professor James Lawton (Art & Design, Ceramics MFA, CVPA), PhD Fellow Iury Simoes-Sousa, (Engineering and Applied Science), with special contributions from Professor Amit Tandon, PhD (Department of Mechanical Engineering/College of Engineering joint with DEOS/School for Marine Science and Technology) and a performance from 3rd EyE Unlimited.

Please register via Zoom to attend.

Southcoast Clean Ups

Join us to help clean up our region. Register for the below dates via our form.

Saturday April 10 at 1:30 p.m. - Fort Phoenix, Fairhaven with Be the Solution to Pollution.
Saturday April 17 from 9 a.m. to noon - Alfred J. Lima Quequechan Rail Trail Park with MASS in Motion & Be the Solution to Pollution.
Saturday April 17 at 1:30 p.m - UMass Dartmouth trail clearing and clean up – UMass Dartmouth students only.
Thursday, April 22 – Shingle Island River Reserve with Dartmouth Natural Resources. Register here.
Saturday April 24 at 11:30 a.m. - Palmers Island & West Beach, New Bedford with Operation Clean Sweep.
Saturday April 24 from 10 a.m. to noon - Maplewood Park, Fall River with Fall River Street Tree Planting Program.
Saturday, April 24, from 10 a.m. to noon - Community Trial and Green-up Day at several locations with the Buzzards Bay Coalition will be hosting on their properties in Acushnet, Mattapoisett, Fairhaven, and West Wareham. Please sign up at the link here to select the location you would like to help Green-Up!

Southcoast Earth Friendly Films

Join us virtually to watch interesting and informative films.

April 19 at 7 p.m. - UMass Dartmouth Sustainability Initiative Screens “DamNation”. "This powerful film odyssey across America explores the sea change in our national attitude from pride in big dams as engineering wonders to the growing awareness that our own future is bound to the life and health of our rivers." Join Zoom Meeting - Meeting ID: 921 5942 6681 Passcode: 133208.
April 22, 23, and 24 - SouthCoast FilmForum will be streaming (free) the film 2040. "Practical solutions to environmental concerns are addressed with the hope that the filmmaker's daughter, 21 years old in the year 2040, will face a hopeful future." Fun and optimistic! Sign up at socofilms.org for streaming link.

Earth Month Closing Ceremony

featuring Senator Ed Markey and Varshini Prakash, Founder of the Sunrise Movement

Join us via Zoom on April 27 at 6 p.m. to hear from MAssachusetts Senator Ed Markey andthe founder of the Sunrise Movement Varshini Prakash.

These initiatives are led by the UMass Dartmouth Leduc Center for Civic Engagement, the Earth Month Coalition includes: AHA!, SouthCoast Climate Reality, Operation Clean Sweep, UMass Dartmouth Sustainability Initiative, Southcoast Film, Masspirg, Art Lab, Fairhaven Sustainability Committee, Community Boating Center, Be the Solution to Pollution, DNRT, Sunrise Southcoast, 3rd Eye Unlimited, Buzzards Bay Coalition, Oxford Creamery, Buttonwood Park Zoo, No Problemo, Doughnut Factory, Domino’s Pizza, New Bedford Whaling Museum, Rotch Jones Duff House and Garden Museum.