CLC celebrates Earth Week with free presentations and events

Learn about beekeeping, snakes, green building technologies and more from College of Lake County instructors and other experts during Earth Week activities April 18-25.

This year's theme is "CLC as a Living Laboratory," which will feature two different series of events, one family friendly and the other more technical, focusing on the college's planned green building technologies and environmentally friendly practices.

Adults and children can participate in hands-on activities or do environmental clean-up work during the events. Unless stated, all programs are approximately one hour long and will be held at the CLC Grayslake campus, 19351 W. Washington St. Due to construction of the new Science and Engineering Building, enter at the B Wing and park in lot 4 or 5 to access the C Wing.

For more information, call David Husemoller, sustainability manager, at (847) 543-2643. Earth Week events are free and open to the public.

Programs for the community:

• Saturday, April 18: Grayslake Campus Clean-Up, 9 a.m. to noon, B Wing entrance. Join CLC's Environmental Club and students for the annual Campus Clean-Up. Wear clothes and shoes that can get dirty and bring work gloves.

• Tuesday, April 21: Sustainable Landscapes and Gardens, 1 p.m., Horticulture Building. Rory Klick, horticulture department chair, will provide a tour of the arboretum, woodland and sustainable agriculture farm. All about Bees, 2 p.m., Horticulture Building, front entrance and Room H110. Edward Popelka, CLC staff member and beekeeper, will explain how bees provide for the Earth and what bees tell us about the environment.

• Wednesday, April 22: Environmental Chat, 9 a.m., Room T323. Members of the CLC Environmental Club will share information on composting, seasonal eating and herb gardens to try at home. Snakes Alive, 7 p.m., C Wing Auditorium (Room C005). Dr. Michael Corn, biology professor emeritus, and Rob Carmichael, curator/director of the Wildlife Discovery Center of Lake Forest and CLC adjunct biology instructor, will present their kid-friendly program, an up-close and personal introduction to snakes and other reptiles.

• Thursday, April 23: A Farmers Market will be from 3-5 p.m. in the Grayslake campus C Wing, lower level lobby. Purchase some of the first greens of the season and talk with Matt DeRose, local foods coordinator, about CLC Learning Farm's Community Sustained Agriculture (CSA) program, worm composting and where to find locally grown food. Climate Change, 7 p.m., C Wing Auditorium (Room C005). Steve Holman, dean of Biological and Health Sciences division, will discuss the Earth's vital signs, carbon dioxide concentration, global temperature, arctic sea ice, land ice, sea level and more. Learn about the science behind global climate change, its potential future effects and what you can do to help.

• Friday, April 24: Arbor Day Celebration, 10 a.m., Horticulture Building. Join Rory Klick, horticulture department chair, to learn how trees help moderate climate by providing shade and processing carbon dioxide and help people feel more connected to the landscape.

• Saturday, April 25: Grayslake Restoration Work Day, 9 a.m. to noon, corner of Willow Way and Lancer Lane, by Parking Lot 3. Join the annual campus restoration day and help cut buckthorn, pull garlic mustard and do other activities to improve CLC's natural areas. Wear clothes that can get dirty. Work gloves, long-sleeved shirts and pants are suggested; closed-toed shoes are required.

Green building technology and Sustainable Campus Master Plan events:

• Learn how the College of Lake County serves as a living laboratory. CLC has broken ground on its Sustainable Campus Master Plan this spring by drilling a geothermal field and starting construction of a new Science and Engineering Building. New buildings at the Grayslake and Lakeshore campuses will boast construction elements designed to earn them a LEED Platinum rating by the U.S. Green Building Council. Learn more at www.clcillinois.edu/masterplan.

• Monday, April 20: Implementation of CLC's Sustainable Master Plan, 1 p.m., Room T326-328. David Agazzi, vice president for Administrative Affairs, and Dorothy McCarty, program manager with Cotter Consulting, Inc., will cover the college's Sustainable Master Plan and upcoming construction projects.

• Tuesday, April 21: Lakeshore Campus Renovation and Expansion, 10 a.m., Lakeshore Campus, 1 N. Genesee St., Room 008, Waukegan. Burcin Moehring and Loren Johnson of Legat Architects will discuss CLC's plans to renovate and expand the CLC Lakeshore Campus. The Science Building and the Leadership for Energy Efficient Design Green Building Rating System, 7 p.m., C Wing Auditorium, Room C005. Vuk Vujovic and Scot Parker of Legat Architects will cover green designs being used in CLC's new Science and Engineering building, which will house new labs and classrooms for mechatronics, photonics and chemistry. Learn how this green building is designed to LEED Platinum standards with a rooftop photovoltaic array, geothermal heating and cooling, rainwater harvesting, LED lighting and a living wall.

• Wednesday, April 22: Heating and Cooling Systems and Geothermal Energy at CLC, noon-1:30 p.m., Room T326-8. Scott Allen, heating and air conditioning technology instructor; Jim Marison, HVAC department manager; and Dorothy McCarty of Cotter Consulting, Inc. will present information on the college's planned geothermal system and updated HVAC systems and how the HVAC curriculum is preparing students to install and maintain energy-efficient heating and cooling systems.

• Thursday, April 23: Take it to the Roof, noon, Southlake Campus, Room V336, 1120 S. Milwaukee Ave., Vernon Hills. David Husemoller, CLC sustainability manager and sustainable landscapes instructor, will discuss the Southlake Campus green roofs and rooftop food gardens. A drawing for three $50 gift cards will be held for the Chicago restaurant Uncommon Ground, the first certified organic roof top farm in the country.

• Friday, April 24, Aqueous Ozone Cleaner, noon, Room T326-8. See a demonstration of the new, sustainable cleaning and sanitizing product the college is using, which reduces packaging, shipping and waste and uses no harmful chemicals.

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