Accomplishments

download a Word doc of EAB’s Accomplishments

EAB Accomplishments 2007-2010

2007-2008

Won Student Organization of the Year from the Office of Student Life

2008-2009

  • Trayless Dining: EAB worked with Dining Services to eliminate trays from UCSB’s four dining commons. By eliminating trays, the cafeterias have eliminated 60 tons of food waste per year, and 1,000,000 gallons of water to wash the trays. Also less energy is used to heat the water to wash the trays. The dining commons are now using 54% less energy than before (check this)
  • Power Shift: Sent 24 students to the 2009 Power Shift Convergence in Washington, D.C. to lobby for climate legislation.
  • Climate Commitment: Worked with the UCSB Chancellor to sign on to the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment
  • LEED Buildings: Successfully lobbied the Chancellor’s Sustainability Committee to increase green building standards to LEED Gold.
  • Blue Recycling Bins: Collaborated with Marborg Industries to introduce blue recycling containers in Isla Vista to boost recycling rates.
  • Ash Urns: Worked with the Santa Barbara County Redevelopment Agency to acquire curbside cigarette urns for Isla Vista’s commercial district.
  • Won Project of the Year 2009 (US Electricity Policy 2009). This report was written by EAB members Quentin Gee and Nick Allen, is peer-reviewed, and was presented to members of Congress when EAB lobbied in Washington D.C. at Power Shift.

2009-2010

In 2009-2010, the goal of the Environmental Affairs Board (EAB) was to extend the environmental movement to more students by showing them that there truly is something for everyone in the green movement. The organization has doubled its general membership compared to last year, and now brings in an average of 90 student members on a weekly basis. The EAB team has undertaken a wide range of ongoing projects and campaigns, and has also hosted a number of major events this year that have provided opportunities for academic and professional development for students from all backgrounds and walks of life.

Major Events:

  • UN Climate Conference: Fundraised and organized to send 23 students to Copenhagen, Denmark as official delegates to the UN Climate Conference. Networked with youth and leaders from all over the world to progress the discourse surrounding international climate negotiations and the representation of young people therein.
  • Environmental Justice Week: Worked with the campus community to spread awareness about human and civil rights issues as they pertain to the environment. Built coalitions with various campus organizations including the Human Rights Council and the Black Student Union to organize a week long series of events.
  • Human Rights Week: As part of this coalition-sponsored event, EAB helped to obtain previously owned bikes and donate them to family members of the Family Resource Center in Isla Vista in order. EAB also helped to lead a workshop in order for the families to fix up the bikes.
  • Animal Rights Week: EAB put on a weeklong series of events focusing on the important but often controversial topic of Animal Rights. With this effort EAB hoped to engage an issue that is a vital part of environmentalism but often overlooked. The screening of the film Earthlings attracted more than 60 people.
  • Haiti Relief Benefit: Organized and co-sponsored an event that raised more than $9,000 for immediate disaster relief and long-term sustainable development in Haiti. These funds were matched by Associated Students, bringing our total contribution to more than $18,000 in a single night.
  • UCSB Climate Conference: Partnered with the Environmental Studies Department and a number of student and community organizations to host a conference at UCSB that brought major players from the grassroots, business, and politics to campus to share their perspectives on the climate solutions we need in the wake of the UN Conference in Copenhagen. The conference was a huge success, and reached a wide cross-section of the student body and Santa Barbara community. For the event, received the Campus Progress 2010 Best Event award, chosen out of 300 other events.
  • Spring Insight Sustainability Track: Partnered with Spring Insight and OSL to show off UCSB’s sustainability efforts to prospective freshmen. After a panel on opportunities for students at UCSB, we were approached by an incoming student who informed us he had decided to enroll at UCSB based on all that we shared about sustainability efforts here on campus.
  • Establishment of the A.S. Human Rights Board: EAB worked closely with the Human Rights Council to campaign for the formalization of a Human Rights Board under Associated Students. We were the main presenters to Legislative Council on the bill, which was approved by a vote of 20-1-1 on April 21. EAB is a permanent member of this council, indicating our organization’s commitment to environmental and social justice issues. Note: the Office of the President vetoed the bill, invalidating the Board, but the issue was brought up again in Fall 2010, and it was this time supported by the President. EAB’s Environmental Justice officers assisted in this second and successful attempt, and now sit on the Board.
  • Isla Vista Earth Day: Partnered with ES Department to promote 40th Anniversary celebration and integrate alumni and Santa Barbara community members more actively into the event. Brought bands and local vendors together to celebrate the Earth with the UCSB student body.
  • Kayak for Climate Justice: 63 students kayaked to Oil Platform Holly to demonstrate in solidarity with 350.org’s global day of action to demand effective and timely climate solutions. The theme of the action, “We Need a Real Solution,” is indicative of the passion UCSB students have for addressing climate change immediately.
  • California Student Sustainability Coalition 7th Annual Fall Convergence: Brought 29 UCSB students to Santa Cruz to network with environmental leaders from across the state. Shared best practices with student organizations to strengthen our group. This event provided an excellent opportunity for student leadership development with a sustainability framework.
  • Evolution of Man & Bag Campaign: Brought together a coalition of UCSB environmental groups to organize a weeklong expose on the negative effects of plastic bags. The ongoing goal of this campaign is to minimize and eventually eliminate the use of single use plastic bags in Isla Vista.
  • Ash Urn Installation: EAB collaborated with the County of Santa Barbara’s Redevelopment Agency to purchase and install four red ash urns in I.V. to reduce the amount of street cigarette litter. The ash urns are located on the Embarcadero Loop and are regularly maintained by EAB’s adopt-a-block team.  Success with the initial urns is spurring consideration for the installation of additional urns.

Ongoing Campaigns:

  • Environmental Education for the Next Generation: Expanded our weekly environmental education program from a single 2nd grade classroom at Isla Vista Elementary school at the beginning of the year to 11 classrooms in 7 schools spanning from Goleta to Carpinteria today. Teach 1st and 2nd grade students about the environment in order to foster critical thinking about the way we interact with our surroundings and shape future leaders in the environmental movement.
  • Meatless Mondays: Promote a vegetarian diet one day a week to reduce the resource footprint of the UCSB student diet. Worked with UCSB Dining Services to host the first-ever Meatless Monday in the dining commons, and were received warmly by a student body that largely did not realize the negative environmental impacts that large scale meat production entails. EAB’s Meatless Monday won Most Creative Program 2010 at the Leadership and Activities Awards hosted by Office of Student Life.
  • Adopt-A-Block: Partnered with the IV Recreation and Park Department to host weekly clean-ups of our local community.
  • EAB Garden Plot: Established and developed a community garden plot at UCSB to raise awareness about the importance of local, organic foods. EAB now grows spinach, carrots, squash, beans, and tomatoes, among other produce, that we serve at our general meetings!

Community-Building:

  • UCSB’s Quarterly Green Chef Competition: Hosted a sustainable cooking competition that brought students together around home-cooked, healthy dishes prepared by our peers emphasizing local, organic, fresh and animal-free ingredients.
  • Camping Trips: EAB has taken members on 2 camping trips this year, giving students the opportunity to socialize in the great outdoors.
  • Hikes: Weekly excursions into the foothills and mountains around Santa Barbara.
  • Farmers Market Bike Rides: Introduced students to the benefits of buying food locally and seasonally.
  • Wednesday Friends-Day: These crafts activities (painting, bracelet-making, tie-dying, pumpkin-carving, more) allowed EAB members to socialize, meet new friends and have fun.

2010-2011

Major Events:

  • Educational Presentations: Facilitated several presentations and dialogues concerning the Gulf Oil Spill.
  • The Cove: Worked with community environmental groups to publicize and support the message of the film The Cove.
  • Carrot Mob at McConnel’s: Assisted in organizing a Carrotmob event with the Community Environmental Council and Sun Reconstruction in which the coalition raised $2,200 in additional profits for McConnel’s Ice Cream shop to retrofit the lighting and refrigeration system of their store, which will improve their energy efficieny and lower their carbon footprint.
  • CSSC Convergence: Hosted the annual Fall Convergence of the California Student Sustainability Coalition, bringing 200 students from around the state to learn about today’s most pressing environmental issues. Many EAB officers lead workshops and shared ideas and strategies with other schools. Students from Cal Poly were so excited by the idea of Green Chef that they planned their own cooking competition less than a month after the convergence!
  • Chico Conference: Sent 5 students to a statewide environmental conference hosted by CSU Chico.
  • Human Rights Week: Partnered with Human Rights Board to put on two Human Rights Week events, one focusing on struggles of indigenous peoples and one on water equity in California.
  • Koch Brother’s Rally: EAB members traveled to Palm Springs to demonstrate against corporate influence in politics.
  • Flow Film Screening: EAB’s water conservation sub-group along with UCSB’s coastal fund screened the film documentary FLOW, in Isla Vista Theater on January 19th.  This event was held to kick off the ongoing water conservation campaign started this year as well.

Major Events (to occur this year)

  • Recycle Mania: Work with A.S. Recycling to promote recycling on campus and throughout the nation.
  • Higher Education Week: Working with high schools in SB County to encourage environmental awareness in students and enrollment in environmentally-oriented majors in college.
  • Strengthening the Roots: Sending students to statewide sustainable food conference in Santa Cruz to network with youth leaders from across California.
  • Isla Vista Earth Day: Host the annual concert festival in Anisq’Oyo’ park, featuring local bands, vendors, food and activities. Draws 2,000 people yearly.
  • Water Competition: Promote water conservation in the residence halls and on campus more generally by educating students about how to reduce water consumption and about water issues both locally and globally.
  • Power Shift: Sending a team of students to the biennial national conference in Washington, D.C., which sees 12,000 youth converge for a weekend of workshops centered around a broad array of environmental issues. Students also are trained in lobbying and are able to meet with elected representatitves to actively push for environmental legislation.
  • CSSC Convergence: We will be sending a large group of students to the Spring Convergence in Davis, CA.

Ongoing Campaigns:

  • Student Food Collective: Created the UCSB Student Food Collective, an OSL group which will be launching a student-run food cart on campus in Fall 2011. Continue to support the organization’s endeavors and co-sponsor events.
  • Meatless Mondays: Currently hold weekly events to promote a lower-impact diet, and are in talks with the Dining Commons to create an enduring partnership around this issue.
  • Committees: Provide students with a variety of committees and issues to become involved with, including Sustainable Foods, Sustainable Business, Environmental Justice, Water Conservation and Energy Auditing of campus buildings.
  • Chancellor’s Sustainability Committee: EAB officers sit on the Chancellor’s Sustainability Committee to provide recommendations about how to implement environmentally-conscious policies.
  • Environmental Education for the Next Generation: EAB partners with this local, student-founded nonprofit to send student instructors to elementary schools in Southern California to teach an environmental curriculum and serve as mentors to the younger generation.

Community-Building:

  • Green Chef: Hosted a fantastic Green Chef cooking contest with over 70 participants, who were both EAB members and not affiliated with our group. The competition featured 35 different dishes, local bands and a guest speaker and sought to educate UCSB about sustainable food.
  • Hikes: Hosted hikes almost every week during Fall to favorite local trails.
  • Gardening: Provided students the opportunity twice weekly during Fall to hone their gardening skills in EAB’s garden plot.
  • Adopt-a-Block: Led students on a trash-clean up every week.
  • Beach Clean-Up: Organized a large clean-up of the Isla Vista beach.
  • Leafnotes: EAB publishes a yearly arts and culture magazine that is distributed free to the student body.

Other:

  • Summer Meeting Attendance: Doubled the attendance of our weekly general meetings, with 30 students on average participating each week.
  • Kick-Off Event: Hugely successful event with around 300 students attending
  • Large Weekly Meetings: Weekly meetings averaging 90 members
  • Freudenberg Lectures Taping: Provided funding to record the Fall quarter lectures of the late Environmental Studies professor William Freudenberg so that future generations of students can benefit from his immense knowledge and body of work.

EAB in the last 12 months (12/2009 – 12/2010)

The Environmental Affairs Board (EAB) is the central student environmental action group at UC Santa Barbara. With the environmental movement growing stronger every day, especially at the college level, EAB provides a gathering point for all students interested in discovering their niche in the fight to preserve our planet for generations to come. EAB promotes change through local, community oriented action, broader legislative and political action, and community building through social activities.

EAB hosts weekly on-campus meetings organized by its leadership of over twenty-five officers and provides numerous opportunities for students to get involved in environmental advocacy and community building every single week. Every week, EAB runs Adopt-A-Block trash clean-ups in Isla Vista, leads hikes in the beautiful Santa Barbara foothills, provides gardening lessons at our own garden plot, and partners with other campus groups to do programs like energy audits and tree plantings. Beyond weekly activities, EAB has facilitated an impressive list of events and accomplishments over the past year that have both spread awareness about specific environmental issues and made tangible changes to campus life and policies.

  • Organized to send 23 students to Copenhagen, Denmark as official delegates to the UN Climate Conference.
  • Organized an event that raised more than $18,000 for immediate disaster relief and long-term sustainable development in Haiti.
  • Worked with the campus community to spread awareness about human and civil rights issues as they pertain to the environment.
  • Put on a weeklong series of events focusing on Animal Rights.
  • Obtained previously owned bikes and donated them to family members of the Family Resource Center in Isla Vista.
  • Partnered with the Environmental Studies Department to host a major conference on campus that brought political, grassroots and business leaders to discuss solutions to climate change.
  • Installed 4 cigarette ash urns on the streets of Isla Vista.
  • Organized annual Isla Vista Earth Day celebration.
  • Sent 63 students to kayak near Platform Holly to demonstrate for clean energy solutions.
  • Sent students to Santa Cruz and San Diego to network with environmental leaders from across the state at the California Student Sustainability Coalition (CSSC) Convergences.
  • Brought together a coalition of UCSB environmental groups to organize a weeklong expose on the negative effects of plastic bags.
  • Played a key role in establishing the Associated Students Human Rights Board.
  • Expanded our environmental education program into its own non-profit organization, Environmental Education for the Next Generation, now active in 8 schools in Santa Barbara County.
  • Partnered with the Dining Commons to hold first-ever Meatless Monday at UCSB to reduce the campus’ carbon footprint.
  • Hosted 4 Green Chef educational cooking competitions in Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall 2010.
  • Created The Student Food Collective, an OSL organization dedicated to opening a student-run food cart by Fall 2011.
  • Worked with the Community Environmental Council and Sun Reconstruction to raise $2,200 for McConnel’s Ice Cream shop for energy efficiency improvements.
  • Hosted Fall 2010 CSSC Convergence at UCSB, with 200 attendees from across the state.
  • Hosted two educational events as part of the Human Rights Board’s Human Rights Week.