WASHINGTON (April 15, 2011) – Howard University will mark Earth Day on April 22 with major projects and campus activities involving hundreds of students, faculty and staff. The kickoff event will start at 9 a.m. on the Undergraduate Library (UGL) rooftop terrace.

Howard University Earth Day 2011 events include:

Organic Garden: Student groups are spearheading an effort to create a 6,000-square-feet organic vegetable garden at the corner of Sherman and Barry Place Northwest. The garden will be maintained by students.

Campus Beautification Projects: The community will participate in re-vitalizing 20 garden beds on campus. Approximately 3,600 flowers will be planted as part of the projects. In addition, the University is planting a new weeping cherry tree in front of the School of Business to commemorate Earth Day 2011.

Shred Day: Kiron Enterprises, a University business partner, will provide free shredding services to all campus faculty, staff and students. An on-site shredding truck will be parked on the yard near Blackburn on Earth Day. In addition, pick-up services will be available to those who cannot make it to the truck location.

Sustainability Fair: Several sponsors and Howard business partners will participate in Earth Day with booths to showcase green initiatives. Student “green” groups will also set up tables to highlight sustainability causes and distribute information.

Earth Day Pledge: Individual student sustainability pledges will be collected in the days leading up to Earth Day. A large pledge board will be installed on campus and pledges will be announced on Earth Day.

To participate in Campus Beautification Projects, volunteers are asked to pre-register as individuals or through their respective student organizations and University departments. Volunteers can also sign-up at UGL at 9 a.m. At that time, organizers will begin forming Earth Day beautification teams. For more information about volunteering or to participate in the Sustainability Fair, please contact Carla Annang, cannang@howard.edu, or send an email to huearthday@gmail.com.

For shredding  pick ups, a box truck will make the rounds to locations throughout the Howard University campus system to collect documents to be shredded. The service requires a 48-hour advance notice to allow Kiron staff to schedule times and locations for collections. Kiron is a recycling and shredding company, so the destroyed documents will enter the recycling process, decreasing the Howard University carbon footprint. To sign up, contact Roberto Reyes, 202-957-7057, or email to rreyes@kironenterprises.com.