The University of South Florida’s 2nd Sustain-A-Bull Symposium at the USF Botanical Gardens brought together eco-conscious organizations from across campus and Tampa Bay to highlight ways to become more environmentally responsible.
City of Tampa representatives shared information about what items are accepted for recycling. They also shared information about their app, “Tampa Trash and Recycling” that provides information about schedules and a waste disposal guide. (Photo by Anna Mayor)
“Earth Day is a day you should think about what your impact is on the environment,” said USF Geology Club President Charlie Smith, who is majoring in geology. He represented the student organization at the 2nd Sustain-A-Bull Symposium. (Photo by Anna Mayor)
The USF Botanical Gardens, which is part of the USF College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) Environmental and Conservation Outreach, Research, and Education System (ECORE), consists of 16 acres of gardens and greenbelt on the Tampa campus and maintains a living collection of more than 3,000 plants in managed and natural settings.
The four-hour symposium was held on April 21 to commemorate Earth Day. It was hosted by the USF Botanical Gardens and the student organization Global Leaders Outreach for a Better Environment (GLOBE).
It included an outdoor tabling expo with USF organizations and community organizations, such as the City of Tampa’s Solid Waste Department, Suncoast Compost, and the Little Red Wagon Tampa Butterfly Foundation, among many others.
Every hour, a highlighted speaker spoke to attendees about their services and shared ways their organization assists in becoming more eco-friendly.
One such eco-conscious organization in attendance was Heartwood Preserve, founded by USF CAS alumna Laura Starkey, who earned her master’s degree in applied linguistics and who also serves as the organization’s executive director.
CAS alumna Laura Starkey shared information about Heartwood Preserve and ways to protect the natural environment through green burials. (Photo by Anna Mayor)
The Tampa Bay Association of Environmental Professionals Student Chapter showing their USF Bulls pride during the 2nd Sustain-A-Bull Symposium. (Photo by Dakota Galvin)
Heartwood Preserve is a natural cemetery within a 41-acre conservation sanctuary located in the New Port Richey, Fla., that aims to protect longleaf pine trees. Heartwood Preserve provides for green burials—which are completed using a biodegradable shroud or casket (such as those made of pine).
“When you look at cemeteries today, you see big head stones, big permanent markers, plastic flower arrangements, lawns, but you don’t see these [longleaf pine] woods. We are giving people an opportunity to protect these woods. When you decide to be buried at a place like Heartwood, you are deciding that everything going to into the ground is going to be something that goes back to the Earth,” Starkey said.
Following burials, families are given native Florida wildflower seed and pine needles to sprinkle over the tops of the grave sites. Starkey also said burial fees also include the conservation efforts needed to maintain the land in the future.
“It is a way to protect the land from development and maintain the natural ecosystems,” she said. “This is a way to pay for land conservation, but it also is way for people to engage with the land, to learn about it and the importance of the natural environment by making their final decision to be buried here in this way.”
Angelika Kirkham, program assistant the Botanical Gardens and current CAS environmental science and policy student, joined the team three years ago.
Nature’s Classroom, a Hillsborough County Public Schools outdoor environmental education center, shared information on upcoming summer camps provided to students in the county. (Photo by Anna Mayor)
The non-profit Tampa Bay Watch Discovery Center shared information on how they aim to lead habitat restoration and protect Tampa Bay’s watershed through community-driven restoration project and educational outreach. (Photo by Anna Mayor)
“We’re trying to share more environmental initiatives that students can participate in on campus and in Tampa Bay,” she said. “[This event] is about giving those initiatives that outreach opportunity. Earth Day was the start of the environmental movement, during a time with a lot of pollution and lack of awareness, so it’s about getting involved and being aware of how the destruction of the Earth affects us all.”
Craig Huegel, director, said the USF Botanical Gardens plays an important educational role and commemorating Earth Day with this symposium was key in doing just that.
“We have been busy trying to increase our ability to both educate and provide a real value to the university itself, including students and faculty, and to the community. This kind of event fits in with that well, as a botanical garden with conservation role, we will hopefully do this year after year.”
View the full list of organizations who offer eco-friendly alternatives and services.