Sustainability Picnic to take place on Aug. 18

On Wednesday, Aug. 18, the Office of Sustainability will host a picnic at the Arboretum, located at 181 Garden Drive, from 4:30pm-6:30pm. The picnic will be free of charge and open to students of all ages and majors. Community members are also extended a welcome invitation. 

Free food, music and door prizes are just a few of the incentives for this event. Jennifer Morse, director of communications and outreach at the Office of Sustainability, said this is primarily a time for incoming students to learn about “all things sustainability at Auburn.” 

Present will be several programs for majors and minors, resources from student groups around campus and  animals from Pups on the Plains. Groups who will be present include the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, the Natural History Museum, the City of Auburn Parks and Recreation, AU-BEES, Students for Clean Water, Universities Fighting World Hunger and the League of Women Voters of East Alabama. 

Representatives and cosponsors of the event include the Waste Reduction and Recycling Department, the Arboretum, the School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, Academic Sustainability Programs and Tiger Dining. Tiger Dining will also provide food for the event, some of which is locally sourced from Auburn’s campus in the hydroponics lab. 

Music at the event will be performed by a local trio of Auburn University students. Molly Kilpatrick, the student outreach coordinator at the Office of Sustainability, said that the office loves to shine a spotlight on up-and-coming musicians and sees the annual picnic as an opportunity to do so. 

Upon arrival, attendees will enter through the south end of the Arboretum and walk down a path lined on both sides with the organizations present. The path will create a circle with music at the top and games in the middle. 

Bingo cards will be handed out at the entrance to the picnic with bingo words contributed from each organization. For every table visited, a word will be stamped or signed off on. When a bingo sheet is complete, it can be turned in to be entered into a door prize raffle. 

Volunteers are needed for the event and can register can help on Givepulse. In the case of rainy weather, the picnic will be moved to Aug. 25, maintaining the same time and location.