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TAMUK goes green for Earth Day First Earth Day gives students opportunity spread environmental awareness By Edwin Vasquez |
 Edwin Vasquez / The South Texan Chaye Smithwick-Peña, assistant director of student activities, hands out information out to TAMUK studentts in front of the Memorial Student Union Building. |
Earth Day was celebrated for the first time at Texas A&M University Kingsville, April 22.
“Earth Day is a celebration of our environment and a time to promote and protect the natural gifts of our planet,” Ricardo Contreras Jr., energy manager and organizer for the event at TAMUK, said.
“It gave the opportunity for students to learn ideas from professionals about environmental awareness as well as protecting the environment of South Texas,” Contreras said
During the event held in the Memorial Student Union Building south courtyard, Kim Jones, Ph.D., chair of the Environmental Engineering Department and co- chair of the South Texas Environmental Institute and Associate professor at TAMUK, explained the differences between organic pollutants in South Texas and the water conservation applications to protect the natural sources in the area.
Also, Yifang Zhu, Ph.D., assistant professor at TAMUK, addressed the crowd. Zhu’s research interests include the analysis of automobile traffic related air pollutants.
Zhu was the lead author of two seminal studies evaluating how pollutant concentrations vary with distance from the road.
Contreras said the event will now be an annual celebration.
He hopes the event will help promote recycling as a positive effort to protect the environment.
He urged students to take part in recycling, re-use and to conserve resources by doing simple things like turning off lights and computers when not needed.
The organizers also passed out information about how to win the war on global warning.
Also organizers presented the movie “The 11th Hour,” narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio.
The event was sponsored by support services, student activities and Life Services &Wellness..