‘EAGER TO LEARN’
Skidmore College and Sustainable Saratoga hosts Sustainability Fair
>> Skidmore College’s Office of Sustainability and Sustainable Saratoga teamed up this past weekend to put on the Saratoga Sustainability Fair at the Skidmore Case Center.
This is the third time the event has been put on, attracting hundreds to Skidmore’s campus to listen to panels and learn from local organizations about cutting-edge green products, eco-friendly solutions, and sustainable lifestyle innovations.
“It’s been great to be able to foster that relationship between us and the Office of Sustainability and to find a way to engage with the community, as well as students on campus,” Executive Director of Sustainable Saratoga Kelsey Trudell said during the Saturday event. “People seem really interested and eager to learn. They want to know how they themselves can improve sustainability in their own home and their lifestyle, so this is a really great one-stop shop for all things sustainability, business, nonprofits, volunteer opportunities, maybe even job opportunities.”
“Anyone who wants to learn about sustainability and how they can reduce their impact on the environment, this is a great place to come and learn all about that.”
The fair offered many different avenues of learning for people of all ages. For kids, there were several activities like making rubbish robots with the Children’s Museum out of recycled materials, making paper with Sustainable Saratoga or windsocks with STEAM author Kathy Ceceri.
There were also panels for people to sit in on to hear from experts, like “Cultivating a Sustainable Future: Regenerative Agriculture at the Intersection of Climate Action, Environmental Justice and Human Health” which featured urban agriculturalists and upstate farmers, and “From Waste to Wisdom: Unwrapping the Plastic Problem and Its Impacts on People and Planet,” which featured advocates and educators talking about plastic pollution.
“We’re really just exploring what living sustainably looks like, what building a sustainable community looks like whether it’s solar panels or how you get around with a bike, car or public transit, or what sort of wastes we all generate,” Assistant Director of Sustainability Programs at Skidmore Jennifer Matyzak said. “What’s really cool and interesting about this sort of event is that there’s a lot of local businesses and a lot of organizations doing this work that’s focused on people making independent decisions, that’s based on policy and advocacy and more.”
The fair also brought together 35 different organizations from around the broader Saratoga area to come in and discuss what they are doing in the realm of sustainability. From solar companies to Saratoga Pub
lic Libraries to the city government, these groups and businesses were excited to talk with members of the public and share what they are doing, as well as, how others can be involved. A full list of the exhibitors can be found on the Sustainability Fair’s website.
Chip Friends with the Friends of the Saratoga Spa State Park shared that he and the organization attended the fair to raise community awareness about the activities, such as volunteering for various projects and committees, assisting with the dog park, gardens, trails, and providing extra support for the state parks renovations and maintenance. Friends also emphasized the significance of events like the Sustainability Fair in not only promoting their group but also to foster the community as a whole.
“This fair helps to build a community and to be able to sustain a community,” Friends shared. “I think it’s very important, for example, this park has been there and it’s sitting right in the middle of this community but a lot of people are shocked and have no idea that there was so much to it and so much to do inside. If they can go from booth to booth here and just learn more about what’s out there, it just proliferates community relationships.”
Outside the fair was also an electric car and bike show where the public could come to chat with owners and dealers of electric vehicles. There was also a tiny house that people could tour and talk to the owners Karl and Carol Schnitzer about tiny houses as eco-friendly and affordable housing options.
With the event being on a college campus, it provided a unique opportunity for the students to also take part in learning about sustainability efforts. Trudell shared that it’s been really great to see the student engagement as well as to witness the exceptional environmental program and sustainability program that already exists on Skidomore’s campus. She shares that it’s fantastic to have the opportunity to help continue to inspire and work with younger generations and to provide examples of what a leadership position in sustainability can be like.
“I hope those who attend take with them the knowledge and the resources but also leave knowing that all of these groups who are here today are a resource to them in the future,” Trudell said. “So say if they have a question about backyard composting, they know that we have the resources on that. If they have a question about water or preventing pollution or any and all of the things that may be in everyday life, now, hopefully, they know who’s working in that space and they know who to reach out to for questions or volunteer opportunities or other future events.”
Matyzak also expressed her hope that those who attended the Sustainability Fair felt encouraged to take action and walk away armed with more knowledge than they might have had before.
“Action looks like thinking about the purchasing decisions we make, thinking about the organizations that we support, thinking about the organizations we volunteer our time with, thinking about how we vote, and if we vote, who we’re voting for,” Matyzak explained. “We’re facing complex climate problems, and there are a myriad of solutions, so I hope this event is an upbeat, positive call to action and provides lots of connections between folks in our Capital Region and specifically the Saratoga community.”
More information on the sustainability fair is available at https:// sustainablesaratoga. org/2024-saratoga-sustainability-fair/