Grace Jordan, arts & living editor 

Berry hosts more than 75 student organizations catering to the different interests of students in the community. A club formerly known by the acronym S.A.V.E., Students Against Violating the Earth, has recently rebranded to the “Eco Club.” Junior Sydney Nelson, biochemistry and biology double major, is the acting president for the Eco Club. 

According to Nelson, some faculty and staff within the environmental science and studies department didn’t like the original name because it was unclear as to what the club was about. 

“[Former Eco Club members] use the term ‘violating’,” Nelson said. “It turned a lot of people off who thought that [the club] seemed not very approachable or really hardcore and intimidating. We didn’t want to sound that way, we wanted to sound like we were open to anyone who was at any level in their commitment to environmental activism.” 

The Eco Club did not just change their name, they have also changed how they handle their bi-weekly meetings. In recent semesters, meetings were opportunities for officers to come together and plan future events. However, that system no longer works. According to Nelson, newcomers felt weird coming to meetings because the club would plan future events for the bulk of the metting. 

“While we’ll be going over these plans and allowing people to give their input, we’re also going to be shifting to more of a discussion or topic based kind of meeting format.” Nelson said. “Every two weeks, we’ll come up with a new topic or idea to advertise for our next meeting.” 

Furthermore, the club is looking to collaborate with other clubs on campus. According to Nelson, numerous clubs align well with the Eco Club’s values, like the Vegetarian and Vegan Society and the American Chemical Society(ACS). Plans for a meeting with the ACS are already underway. 

“One of our meetings we’re going to do an interactive green chemistry activity, where both clubs are invited to use natural light paint products and paint hearts for Valentine’s Day,” Nelson said. “We’ll talk about why we often default to these synthetic products that are often really toxic and how different industries can benefit from looking to the natural earth for inspiration while they’re making products.” 

Outside of meetings, the club also is looking to host multiple events. The Eco Fair is an event that has happened in the past few years but was put on hold due to COVID-19. Nelson is hoping the club will be able to organize the fair again this semester. 

“The Eco Fair is where we bring environmentally-oriented vendors and educational groups to campus,” Nelson said. “They have tables or booths all over the Krannert Ballroom and they sell their stuff or do giveaways. They have posters and talk about their businesses or their groups.” 

The Eco Club also has some initiatives planned that they hope to get up and running. Their first act of business is to bring awareness to recycling on campus. According to Nelson, there is a lack of education about recycling and their goal is to improve understanding of the topic. Not only are they looking to educate the Berry population, but also take action. 

“We’re hoping to start introducing more recycling bins within the residence halls instead of just the big dumpsters in the back,” Nelson said. “We’re also trying to get a student site to dispose of electronic waste for recycling.” 

Additionally, the club is looking to introduce better to-go box alternatives for the Dining Hall. 

According to Nelson, the Dining Hall has been rotating between multiple containers, however, none of them are very eco-conscious. 

“We’re looking for options for funding and just making sure that they could logistically accommodate for washing the reusable ones and implementing a system where students borrow and return them,” Nelson said. “We’re trying to show them that there are a lot of reasons to change the things they will have to in order to implement it.” 

The Eco Club is looking forward to a busy semester and is hoping to accomplish many goals. The club meets every other Thursday in Krannert 106 at 6 p.m. The next meeting is in person on Feb. 3, but it is also offered on Zoom. The code is located on the Berry Events app.