CUEL hosts third annual Eco Expo

The UC Santa Barbara Greti U. Croft Center for Undergraduate Environmental Leadership hosted their third annual Eco Expo on Oct. 12, showcasing campus environmental organizations, initiatives, academic programs and other opportunities. 

The Eco Expo serves as a tabling event for environmental clubs and programs to advertise their purpose and activities to students who may want to join. The event featured a passport activity in which students could collect stamps in their passport from the different tables in order to get a burrito at the end. 

The participating organizations included many on-campus student organizations such as Off The Grid, Environmental Affairs Board, the Edible Campus Program, Turtle Up and Associated Students Recycling, among several others. Also participating in tabling were several academic departments and opportunities. 

The event was held on the first floor of the Student Resource Building and included free prizes for students who engaged with participating organizations.

The Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, offering UCSB’s environmental graduate programs, was present and tabling at the event. Additionally, the Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory, an on-campus marine research and conservation center, was present and advertising their undergraduate research and mentorship opportunities. 

The Eco Expo was hosted by the UCSB’s Center for Undergraduate Environmental Leadership (CUEL). CUEL is a department on campus that provides training, resources and opportunities for UCSB undergraduate students interested in working in the environmental field, regardless of their major. 

CUEL is primarily led by Executive Director Erika Zollett. Zollett emphasized how helpful CUEL is at providing resources for students interested in helping the environment. 

“CUEL offers several resources for undergraduate students, such as academic classes as well as opportunities with private, government and nonprofit organizations,” Zollett said. “It is a great opportunity for interested students to come out and learn more about these opportunities, since all the different organizations and departments are gathered together at the same time and place.” 

Though still a relatively new event on campus, Eco Expo has had growth in turnout this year, with about 25 organizations participating in tabling and over 500 students in attendance, according to Zollett. 

At the event, representatives of the different organizations and departments answered questions from students and emphasized the importance of being environmentally involved in the UCSB community. 

In the future, CUEL, along with the participating organizations, hope to help continue UCSB’s legacy of strong environmental activism and involvement, which is rooted in student activism following the Santa Barbara oil spill in 1969.

Zollett, in agreement with other CUEL administrators, noted that she “hopes to see the Eco Expo continue in future years” and that she would also like to see “more similar events in which environmental organizations collaborate.”

A version of this article appeared on p. 5 of the Oct. 22 print edition of the Daily Nexus.