Campus Sustainability Orgs Build Relationships and Trade Ideas at Inter-Org 2017

The first weekend in January 2017, more than 60 students, staff, alumni, and faculty representing 30 campus organizations came together for the 7th Annual Sustainability Inter-Organizational Retreat. “It was really motivating and inspiring. I feel like I learned a lot and made a lot of connections with Sustainabilibuddies on campus. It was a powerful and emotional experience.” said Dylan Huntzinger, an Education and Outreach Team Associate for the Sustainability Office.

The retreat, which was organized by a team of mostly students and a couple staff, was centered around social and environmental justice issues, following the theme “Decolonizing Sustainability: Challenging Myths and Disrupting Narratives.” The retreat opened with a keynote talk from UCSC alum mark! Lopez, Executive Director of East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice, who shared his stories of growing up in an activist household in L.A., the colonial history of environmentalism and conservation, what decolonizing sustainability means to him, and his experiences with community organizing. You can watch most of mark!'s talk here.

UCSC alum mark! Lopez giving his Friday night keynote.

After mark!'s talk, the audience participated in a World Cafe facilitated by Sustainability Office Manager & Events Coordinator Melissa Ott. This was Melissa's 6th Inter-Org Retreat and 5th and final time being an active member of the planning committee. (She is leaving her position to become an apprentice at the UCSC Farm in April, and applications for this job are being accepted until February 5!)  The discussion focused on two questions. The first was, "Reflect on the talk mark! Lopez gave before dinner. What did you learn or have re-affirmed? What are you curious about? How will you take what he shared into your work for the coming year?" The second question, which you are encouraged to consider for yourself, was, "As 2017 brings change for our country, as well as for each of us personally as we begin another year of our lives, what challenges do you foresee or fear related to the work that you do in the world (as a student, as an activist, as a changemaker, as an environmentalist, as a citizen, etc.)? What are you most hopeful for in our world in 2017?"

On Saturday morning, the retreat moved to Camp Campbell in Boulder Creek, CA. The morning featured a workshop with Khafre James, founder of Hip-Hop for Change, a non-profit based out of Oakland that “Empowers the community through Hip-Hop culture, dismantling systems of oppression that hold us down.” After sharing the history of hip hop, Khafre got everyone writing and performing raps in front of the group. Topics ranged from decolonization to coffee to justice issues and more. “It was really fun and empowering. I was especially impressed with Elida’s rap,” said Alana Mandrick, a Green Office Team Associate. Elida Erickson is the Director of the UCSC Sustainability Office.

Student Sustainability Advisor Edson Perez performs a rap he wrote during the Hip Hop for Change workshop.

A variety of other student, staff, and alumni-led workshops were held throughout the day including “American Indians 101" with Dr. Rebecca Rosser, Director of the American Indian Resource Center; “Acroyoga” with UCSC alum Carson Watts; and “Decolonizing Coffee: Cultivating Coffee Food Forest for Food Sovereignty" with Friends of Community Agroecology Network. You can read the full list of workshop offerings here.

The retreat closed on Sunday with Open Space Technology, in which participants designed the agenda together and hosted sessions on a variety of topics. Discussions included a wide range, including issues facing students on campus, active listening, family planning, vegetarianism, art and activism, and sustainability orientations for new students.

“It was an honor and very rewarding to be a part of the planning committee for the retreat. I learned so much from both our keynote speakers about Decolonizing Sustainability. The best part of the retreat was our ‘Open Space’ workshop, where students from different orgs were able to come together and discuss topics that we were all passionate about. Inter-Org really helped myself and other students find ways to collaborate and take action beyond the retreat!” said Jessica Sanchez-Sanchez, the Chancellor's Undergraduate Intern and Education and Outreach Coordinator for the Sustainability Office.

Jax Puliatti, the Sustainability Office Graphic Artist echoed this sentiment, adding, "I felt like we made some great plans on how we can take our ideas beyond the retreat.  We got organized and set our sights towards the future.  I'm excited to see where we go from here!"

Thanks to everyone who made this year's retreat a success! Take a look at the fun photos from the weekend and tag yourself and friends!

We look forward to seeing you again next year at the retreat, and if you're interested in joining the planning committee for the 2018 retreat, please email sustain.education@ucsc.edu.

Amelia Maurer and Jason Simmons with their up-cycled succulents, products of one of the student-led workshops on Saturday at Camp Campbell.

June 2016: Adriana Renteria

Each month, our newsletter features a person or group on campus that is working toward a more sustainable world. This month we are featuring Adriana Renteria, the programs coordinator for the People of Color Sustainability Collective. 

Position Title(s): Program Coordinator for the People of Color Sustainability Collective

What is PoCSC?
The People of Color Sustainability Collective is an initiative that aims to make UCSC a leader in environmental justice by raising awareness about the contributions that people of color have made towards the environmental movement. We create opportunities for critical dialogue about environmental justice through student discussion spaces, student of color caucuses, social media awareness campaigns, workshops, and speaker presentations. PoCSC is an Ethnic Resource Centers’ initiative that works in collaboration with College Nine, College Ten, and the Campus Sustainability Office.

What does “sustainability” mean to you?
To me, it means living in a way that always stays true to my roots and honors my ancestors who paved the way for me. It also means living in a way that doesn’t jeopardize the ability of my future generations to live a healthy, safe, and happy life.

Why did you get involved with sustainability?
My dad was a farmworker and growing up I remember not being able to hug my dad when he got home from work until he changed out of his work clothes and into clothes that were not covered in chemicals. Growing up I always wondered why my dad would work in a place that could cause harm to himself or his family’s health. Once I got to college, I started taking courses and doing research that helped me better understand the causes of environmental injustices. I got involved with student organizing so I could learn more and help support communities like my own.

How has sustainability related to your role(s) at UCSC?
As an undergrad at UCSC, I was involved in several sustainability spaces: Take Back the Tap, Student Environmental Center, Education for a Sustainable Living Program, and IDEASS. I am currently the coordinator for the People of Color Sustainability Collective and as a part of this initiative, we host events, workshops, and speaker series where students can have dialogues about the intersections between race, ethnicity, class, gender, age, culture and the environment. Through these events we also work to challenge the mainstream definition of sustainability to be inclusive of underrepresented communities.

How do you practice sustainability in your daily life?
I try to practice sustainability in everything that I do. When I wash dishes, I’m conscious of the water I use. I try to keep track of my leftovers so I don’t waste food and I try to share rides when I can. In the winter time, I take out my Mexican blankets before I even think about turning on the heater.

Have you had a favorite sustainability moment at UCSC?
For me, I loved the 2016 Inter-Org retreat. It was great to meet new people and participate in such awesome workshops.

She asked the PoCSC interns about their favorite moments and this is what they shared:
Geena Talley: “My favorite sustainability moment was the PoCSC “Art Tools for Environmental Justice” chalk event-- I felt a huge sense of community as well as pride in our artwork and our goals."

Catherine Alfaro: “My favorite sustainability moment was going to camp Campbell and sharing a space of learning & growth with many different people all working towards different aspects of sustainability.”

Cristal Gonzalez: “My favorite sustainability moment was going on the InterOrg retreat that encompassed different perspectives and aspects of sustainability. It was great being surrounded with other folks with similar life experiences in a space that is not always reflective of that in my opinion. I also enjoyed our “Art Tools for EJ” event, in particular the aspect where we were able to create our own art. It was a very empowering experience.”

Raymond Lebeau: “I enjoyed co-facilitating Art Tools for Environmental Justice and learning about the history of the environmental justice movement.”

Are there sustainability practices you’ve picked up specific to your background or culture?
Yes, so many! When I think of sustainability, I think of “rasquachismo,” a term used in Chicanx art to describe a style that’s rooted in creativity, survival, and resourcefulness. Dr. Tomás Ybarra–Frausto who coined the term says it’s rooted in the saying “Hacer de tripas corazón” ––make do with what you have.

My mom practices rasquachismo all the time. She loves going to quinces/baptisms/weddings because it means she usually gets to take home the centerpieces that she then repurposes into a wide variety of things. She even re-gifts them sometimes! Whether it’s reusing plastic cups and utensils for parties or using old rags to stuff pillow cases, my family’s always instilled the importance of finding as many different purposes for something as possible.

If you know of a person or group on campus that you think we should profile, or if you would like to be profiled, please send us an email at susted[at]ucsc[dot]edu.

Inter-Organizational Sustainability Retreat Highlights

Jay Luce Nelson, the Sustainability Office CUIP Events Coordinator, reports back on the Inter-Organizational Sustainability Retreat.

Over the weekend of January 8th-10th, members and representatives of 42 different UCSC organizations came together to enjoy the 6th Annual Inter-Organizational Sustainability Retreat. The retreat, coordinated by leaders of social and environmental sustainability efforts around campus, aims to build leadership skills, explore concepts of sustainability, build community, and promote collaboration between sustainability-minded organizations.

Friday's events included an alumni panel, dinner catered by Vivas Mexican Food, and small alumni group discussions. Student and staff attendees were given the opportunity to talk to alumni about their lives and careers post-graduation.

Saturday and Sunday's events took place at YMCA Camp Campbell in Boulder Creek. Saturday began with a group activity that explored our understanding of words and ideas such as "space" and "decolonizing," led by Adriana Renteria, People of Color Sustainability Collective Coordinator, and Elida Erickson, Interim Sustainability Director and Sustainability Programs Manager. Following was the keynote presentation by Pandora Thomas, environmental educator and co-founder of the Black Permaculture Network, who spoke about her experiences regarding community education, environmental racism, and the importance of recognizing and celebrating the sustainable practices of communities of color. Workshops later in the day explored topics such as self care, food sovereignty, the power of storytelling, global agricultural coalitions such as La Via Campesina, and more.

As a coordinator of the retreat, seeing the Planning, Programming and Logistics Committees' plans come to fruition was an amazing experience. The Inter-Org Retreat allowed me to meet members of other organizations that I might not have the opportunity to interact with otherwise; it was wonderful meeting so many people with such varied interests and backgrounds, each bringing their own ideas of sustainability.

On Saturday I attended the workshop "Food Justice & Oppression" facilitated by Adriana Renteria and Crystal Owings, Food Equity and Access Specialist for the Center for Agroecology & Sustainable Food Systems. Participants at this workshop were enabled to examine bias and injustice inherent in our food system. Later I attended "La Via Campesina: Globalizing Hope, Globalizing the Struggle" with People of Color Sustainability Collective interns Amran Khan, Catherine Alfaro, Raymond Lebeau, and Cristal Gonzalez. Through role-playing, we learned about the various agricultural groups comprising the agricultural justice coalition La Via Campesina. I highly encourage others to look into this movement if you, like myself before attending this workshop, do not have prior knowledge of it.

Special thanks go out to the Sustainability Office Zero Waste Team for providing funding used to make Friday a zero waste event; everyone involved in the planning process; our many carpool drivers; the workshop leaders; Camp Campbell, which has recently made the switch to reduce waste by using reusable cloth napkins; and keynote speaker Pandora Thomas. Pandora's website can be found at pandorathomas.com.

Pictures from the retreat can be found on Facebook here. For future updates about this annual retreat, please visit the website here.

UCSC Alumni Panel at Inter-Org Retreat

The Planning Committee for the 6th Annual UCSC Inter-Organizational Sustainability Retreat is in the midst of preparing for our 2016 retreat, which will take place Friday, January 8 - Sunday, January 10. We are currently seeking alumni who were active with campus sustainability, social justice, equity, and/or inclusion efforts as a student who have continued to do this kind of work in the "real world" beyond UCSC. We have space for five panelists to participate in a discussion about the opportunities, challenges, and experiences that they have faced in their chosen fields that might be interesting, helpful, or valuable to current students doing this kind of work at UCSC. This panel will take place Friday, January 8, between 5-8 PM on the UCSC campus.

If you are interested in being considered for the panel, please reply to sustain.education [at] ucsc [dot] edu by December 7 and include the following information:

• Graduation year
• What you were involved with as a student at UCSC (organizations, college affiliation, major of study, etc.)
• What you currently do (either professionally or as a volunteer)
• One story or experience you might share with students about your work after UCSC
• The Planning Committee will review all emails and notify those who have been selected by mid-December.

Alumni are also invited to attend the Friday night event, even if you are not selected for the panel. Please RSVP by December 7th to guarantee your spot.

We are also seeking alumni proposals for workshops to lead on Saturday, January 9th at Camp Campbell in Boulder Creek. There is limited space for alumni-led workshops, so please let us know soon if you are interested, and we can send you detailed information about workshop criteria.


What is Inter-Org Retreat?

This annual retreat brings together students, staff, and faculty from many campus sustainability organizations for a weekend of team building, skills sharing, collaboration, and fun. This year, we are hoping to reimagine what "sustainability" means to our campus, and the planning committee--made up of students and staff from a number of organizations--is working to bring topics like social justice, equity, and inclusion into the forefront of the retreat. Learn more on the website.

November 2015 Sustainability Profile: Jay Luce Nelson

This month features Jay Luce Nelson, a second-year College Eight affiliated student and this year’s Chancellor’s Undergraduate Intern (CUIP) for the Sustainability Office’s Education and Outreach Team. Jay Luce uses the pronouns they, them, and their.

What does "sustainability" mean to you?
To me, sustainability means preserving cultures, ways of life, and individual well-being while creating a safer global climate both socially and environmentally. I believe the idea of sustainability is inseparable from environmental justice, and that the preservation and restoration of natural systems and resources must work together with the empowering of marginalized peoples to create a better living standard for all.

What projects are you working on?
As a member of the Education and Outreach Team, I assist with the monthly newsletter and tabling. This quarter, my main goal is to work with an assortment of students from various social and environmental sustainability-related groups on campus to coordinate the Inter-Organizational Sustainability Retreat. A main objective for the retreat is to create conversation regarding environmental and social sustainability with both aspects supporting each other on an equal playing field. This balance of the two aspects will be new to this year’s retreat and I hope that attendees will gain a greater understanding of sustainability as a result.

How does sustainability relate to your role at UCSC?
As a proposed Ecology and Evolution major with an interest in restoration ecology, environmental sustainability is key to the path I wish to pursue in life. My role as a student at UCSC—and in life—is to constantly increase my capability to practice ecology without sacrificing social sustainability. I am also of the belief that the preservation of marginalized groups is a key aspect of social sustainability; often I feel that neurodivergent and mentally ill trans survival should be counted as a sort of self-sustainability.

How do you practice sustainability in your daily life?
I would like to think that living on campus in the Village makes environmental sustainability a part of my daily life. Food comprises most of my consumption, and living on campus makes recycling and composting automatic parts of life. I try to be conscious of what I do buy and avoid plastic packaging and companies known for unfair workplace or environmental policies. Mindfulness is key.

If you wish to get involved in the planning process for the 2016 Inter-Organizational Sustainability Retreat, please contact Jay Luce at jusnelso [at] ucsc [dot] edu

What We Did: Inter-Org 2015

On January 9th-11th, the Campus Sustainability Office planned and hosted their 5th annual weekend retreat for a variety of organizations. The beauty of the Inter-Organizational retreat is that attendees' primary focus does not have to be sustainability. Groups with a variety of interests and foci were in attendance. The unique point of view that every organization brought made for a far richer experience. The first night, Friday, took place on campus, while the remainder of the retreat took place in Boulder Creek, California at the YMCA Camp Campbell.

Friday night began in the Stevenson Event Center with a delicious dinner prepared by volunteers, and the Inter-Org Foods subcommittee. The planning team would like to thank PICA for letting them use their kitchen and supplies to cook the meal on Friday evening. The meal consisted of delicious, spicy vegan chili and tortilla chips. Dessert was a delicious gluten-free, dairy-free brownie. There was assigned seating so that attendees were forced out of their comfort zone by being required to meet new people and mix and mingle with other organizations and individuals. Thanks to Lily Urmann and Chris Kane, two UCSC student leaders, we were all able to silk screen our white t-shirts after dinner, with the weekend's motto: "Communi[ty]cation!"

Next, we were introduced to the Recreation Department's Experiential Leadership Program. It consisted of an awesome group of student leaders who taught us activities that allowed us to practice the skills necessary to working well in a group. One activity that stood out as particularly fun was the blind-fold maze. We were placed in groups of two, and one member wore a blindfold. The other member of the pair had to guide the blindfolded individual across the maze through their directions- no physical guidance was allowed! If you stepped on the cones, you were frozen! Communication and trust were absolutely integral to playing this game; just as communication and trust are an integral part of working together in an office and organization!

Friday night ended with fun skits! Each of the team building groups were given about 15 minutes to create their own original cheer, chant, rap or story that was representative of their evening at the Inter-Org kick off dinner. Shortly after, most went home to pack and get their camping gear in order for our early morning the following Saturday.

Saturday morning kicked off with a great seminar by Generation Waking Up, led by Mira Michelle of PICA, Tawn Kennedy of Green Ways to School/People Power/Sierra Club, and Maiya Evans of UCSF. Generation Waking Up is an open source curriculum that works to ignite the passion in young people to bring forth a more sustainable world.

After Generation Waking Up, attendees were treated to a variety of workshops presented by our fellow student organizations. Some workshops topics included Cultural Resilience, Biomimicry, and Compassion. The workshops left everyone feeling energized and full of new knowledge and understanding. After the student-led workshops, everyone shared a delicious dinner together and then gathered at the campfire for the annual talent show! It is amazing how much talent each and everyone individual who attended possesses!

The following morning, the retreat wound down with a delicious breakfast and break out sessions for individual organizations to gather and discuss ways to incorporate their newfound knowledge and inspiration into future projects. Inter-Org ended with a group circle where everyone shared a word that personally summed up their experience at the retreat.

Thanks to Lauren Korth for the photographs, and to everyone who made this retreat possible! If you are interested in getting involved in planning next year's retreat, please email Melina at mmeserol[at]ucsc[dot]edu.

Inter-Organizational Retreat Announcements

These announcements were written by various organizations and students on a community announcement board during our 5th Annual Sustainability Inter-Organizational Retreat.

• Gaia Magazine is accepting student submissions of articles, photos, recipes, and more for our Spring 2015 publication! The theme this year is environmental justice and social change. Please submit your work to gaiamagazine [at] gmail [dot] com by 1/31 - we want to showcase your work!
• Banana Slugs for Animals welcomes all to our weekly meetings. During our meetings we discuss Animal rights and plan events! We will be having a film screening of "Earthlings" (Date and time TBD). If you would like to know more please email us at slugsforanimals [at] gmail [dot] com. We can add you to our emailing list! Yay!
• Program in Community and Agroecology (PICA) Workdays are starting Saturday, January 17. Join in for gardening and a free lunch! They will be every Saturday 10-2pm in the A-quad  in the village.
• Mixed Ethnicities Student Headquarters (MESH) meets every Thursday at 5pm in the Redwood Lounge (e^2). For more information, email mesh.represent [at] gmail [dot] com.
• Education for Sustainable Living Program: Are you interested in social justice, food systems, renewable energy or any other Blueprint for a Sustainable Campus topics? Take the ESLP class for 2 or 5 units next quarter! Designed and led by undergraduate students. Go to eslp.enviroslug.org to learn more about class offerings and how to enroll.
• Circus Slugs: throw a juggle jam every Thursday at 2pm on the Porter quad! All levels are welcome.
• College 8 Earth Week Team: Interested in facilitating an event? We are looking to collaborate with various organizations for Earth Week 2015 (the week of Earth Day). This year's theme is "Your Plate: The effect your food choices have on you and the world around you". Questions? Contact Derek Dean at drdean [at] ucsc [dot] edu.
• Come to the Earth Summit Forums happening every Wednesday from 5-8pm in the College 8 Red Room! Join in and learn, discuss, and plan about super important social and environmental topics! (FREE FOOD!)
• Interested in sustainability, films, and social justice? The 50th Anniversary Sustainability Film Festival Planning Committee is seeking input and ideas from throughout campus. The film festival will take place in fall 2015, but planning begins now! Please email Melissa at mott [at] ucsc [dot] edu to learn more and get involved.

Over 120 students collaborate at the Sustainability Inter-Org Retreat

The 4th Annual Inter-Organizational Retreat on January 10-11 brought together campus sustainability organizations for a collaborative, fun, and inspirational adventure. This year's theme was "Beyond the Campus and Ourselves: Creating Impact Through Collaboration." There were over 120 attendees at the retreat stemming from all sorts of organizations, including, for the first time, the Brain, Mind, and Consciousness Society and Sea Slugs.

On Friday, January 10th, we enjoyed a dinner that was made by a team of students led by Tim Galarneau, Food Systems Education & Research Program Specialist for the Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems (CASFS). After we stuffed our stomachs with delicious food, we imitated animals in a team building activity designed to have fun and get to know each other better and played other teambuilding games. Finally, at the end of the night, we were all inspired by Brock Dolman's keynote presentation entitled "Basins of Relations: Restoring Our Watershed!"

After a great night, bright and early the next morning, we all packed our belongings and headed to Camp Campbell, a YMCA camp a half hour up Empire Grade, to enjoy the rest of the weekend. There was hiking, workshops, an Open Space Technology, and even a campfire talent show, where we were intelligently told that everything that happens at the campfire, stays at the campfire - but, let's just say it was truly magical. Who knew that so many people could bond and become a family in such a short amount of time?

To those that came to the retreat, thank you so much for contributing to the sustainability movement and UCSC and for sharing your ideas and accomplishments at the retreat.

And thank you so much to all of the students, staff, and faculty that helped plan the best Inter-Org Retreat thus far!

Pictures by Lily Urmann (Student Environmental Center)

To read a student perspective that mentions the retreat and discusses UC Santa Cruz sustainability work in general, read this post on the Civinomics blog by Melanie Fornes, a UCSC Campus Sustainability Council member. 

City on a Hill Press Seeks Sustainably Minded Reporters

City on a Hill Press, the student-run newspaper at UCSC, is currently looking for new members for the coming quarter who are interested in covering the environment and sustainability. Interested applicants can apply online for next quarter at www.cityonahillpress.com/joinchp

UCSC Cap and Trade, a Student Perspective

by Ariel Wexler, second year Environmental Studies major

A couple weekends ago, Lacey Raak, Director of Sustainability, led a workshop at this year's Sustainability Inter Organizational Retreat called "GHG Emission and Cap and Trade at UCSC." Her presentation provided students with a summary of greenhouse gases and how they are being regulated in California and at UC Santa Cruz.

I found the presentation interesting, and it prompted me to learn more. As a member of the Education and Outreach Team in the Sustainability Office, I thought this information might be of interest to our newsletter readers. Here's what I've come to learn.

There are three different scopes of greenhouse gases, the first being sources that are owned or controlled by a business, meaning direct gases. On our campus this includes our cogeneration plant, which creates both energy and heat. California's Global Warming Solutions Act (AB 32) commits California to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, the cap is set for 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide.

After looking at projections on graphs of UCSC's scope 1, our gas emissions are supposed to go over this cap by 2014. This is largely due to a new cogeneration plant that the University has purchased in order to replace the old one which will soon be out of commission. If we go over these projections, the University will have to pay until they go below the threshold for a three year compliance period which could cost the University over $2 million. That's pretty shocking information.

A University committee will decide sometime by the end of the academic year what to do to prevent going over our cap. One of the options the University is considering is to explore both short term and long term biogas purchases, but no decisions have been made. Biogas, although more expensive then other types of gas, is less harmful to the environment.

Students are encouraged to get involved and share their thoughts with key decision makers.

For more questions or concerns about this feel free to contact Camille Carrillo at clcarril@ucsc.edu, the Climate Action CSI and student representative on the Chancellor's Executive Committee.

What are your thoughts on this? Share in the comments!

Inter-Organizational Sustainability Retreat 2013 a Success!

The first weekend of the quarter, eighty students and staff convened for the 3rd Annual Sustainability Inter-Organizational retreat for a weekend of community and leadership development, workshops and a whole lot of fun! The theme for the weekend was Community, and by the end of the weekend, the community of sustainability students and staff had certainly been strengthened through a jam-packed couple of days of activities.

Read about the sustainable ways in which we got all those people to the retreat center here!

The weekend began with an opening ceremony led by Tim Galarneau, Research Educator for the Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems. He had us thinking about food memories, getting our senses fully engaged with fruits and vegetables, and performing spoken word mad libs about avocados and apples. It was a fun and engaging way to open the weekend.

Cammie Yarros and Andrew Plebanek of the Student Environmental Center talk about food memories during Friday's opening ceremony.

On Saturday morning, student leaders from many of the sustainability organizations at the retreat facilitated team building activities with the guidance and support of Miranda Allen-Brower, Director of the UCSC Experiential Leadership Program. Teams of students and staff participated in team building games, experiencing what it's like to work together to achieve goals and problem solve. At the end of the morning's team building games, each team performed a skit that represented what they had learned through the various stations.

On Saturday morning, participants walked around and said hi to as many other participants as possible in a game called "Speed Greet."

After lunch, participants attended workshops throughout the retreat center. Topics included workflow management, best practices for tabling, energy auditing, campus funding bodies, a waste relay, social media, cap and trade, a LEED tour of the camp, and non-violent communication. The workshops provided students and some staff an opportunity to share skills and knowledge with other students and in some cases generate discussion about best practices.

Crystal Owings and Victoria Salas who work with the Food Systems Working Group and UCSC Dining led a workshop on best practices for tabling.

Following the second round of workshops, participants spent some time with their independent organizations, visioning and planning for the coming quarter. For some groups, this was a chance to reconnect with the mission and values of their organization. Knowing one's unique role in a community is important in building connections with others. Other groups used this time for planning for the quarter or having discussions as an organization.

Casey Wing and other students who work on waste reduction through Green Office Certification and Zero Waste in the Sustainability Office led a discussion about how to reduce waste and sort recycling properly.

In the evening after dinner, students and staff participated in a world cafe on the topic of Organization Cultural Awareness and Best Practices, sharing different processes and best practices from each organization. A conversation blossomed from this activity that led to ideas for how to find more ways to come together inter-organizationally more often, and students seemed invigorated with a drive for more collaboration.

Saturday's activities closed with an hour-long campfire and open mic night, during which students sang, played music, spoke poetry, hula-hooped, and more. It was a fun way to end a long day of activities and getting to know one another.

Sunday morning, organizations had more independent time for planning, and then the eighty participants gathered on the steps of the lodge for a group photo. The retreat officially was brought to a close with a closing ceremony in which each participant taped a piece of paper on his or her back and others wrote to them about inspiring moments or memories from the weekend related to that individual. It was a creative and personal way to share gratitude and feel part of a community after a full weekend of community building.

During the closing ceremony, students and staff wrote gratitude and appreciation on the backs of other participants. Wearing the orange scarf is recently hired UCSC Sustainability Director Lacey Raak. 

Thank you to everyone who participated in the planning of this fantastic retreat, and thank you to all of the attendees! You made the retreat what it was, and our office looks forward to collaborating with you and continuing to foster the relationships that began or were nourished during the weekend of time together. Let's all have a productive, sustainable, and fun quarter!

Click here to view the Facebook photo album from the weekend!