The Keweenaw Youth for Climate Action (KYCA) held its fourth annual Art and Music Fest on Saturday, Apr. 5 in the MUB Ballroom. The event is a celebration of the environment through a community gathering.
Paige McKean, the President of KYCA, has organized the event for the past four years. She started the event to bring joy in contrast to the usual pessimism of climate activism. She says, “I want to remind people of what they’re fighting for.” Organizing is a logistical challenge, but worthwhile to her because of the excitement it brings to the community.
The event consisted of booths from student and community artists and sustainability-focused student organizations. Student musicians provided live music. Throughout the room, conversations happened between all kinds of groups across campus and community members. Katherine Schneider from the Green Campus Enterprise booth said, “At these types of events, there’s a shared appreciation for the environment. It’s also a link for people looking to get involved.”
Alan Turnquist, the Director of Sustainability at Michigan Tech, spoke to recognize groups and individuals promoting sustainable efforts on campus. “A lot of us feel a sense of urgency, but there’s a lot of good things happening,” he said. On the facilities side, the University is working to improve its campus-wide energy efficiency. New buildings are constructed to meet LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environment Design) Gold or Silver standards. Solid waste production has also decreased university-wide. For curriculum, the University received alumni donations to create courses about the climate. Students will be able to take these classes as an Essential Education requirement. The donations also created scholarships for students involved with sustainability and professional development funds.
Turnquist awarded Student Sustainability Leadership Awards to graduate students Lexi Tater (Sustainable Communities) and Gabe Ahrendt (Geological Mining and Engineering Science). Awards for undergraduate students went to Kellen Gasser (Sustainability Science and Society) and Arika Booms (Environmental Engineering).
Although the event was not as populous as in years past due to the venue change, it was an intimate gathering full of conversation and music. Attendees could make dog toys for the Copper Country Humane Society from old t-shirt scraps. Others chatted and learned about measures to promote climate resilience on campus.
KYCA holds meetings every Thursday in Fisher 126. Anyone interested in climate change prevention measures can attend. One of their current focuses includes University divestment from fossil fuels, with the first step being transparency in Tech’s investment portfolio. They have met with the Board of Trustees since 2021 about this issue and helped Northern Michigan University students achieve their administration’s commitment to divestment.
