ESS Open House

On November 13th, the School of Environment, Society & Sustainability threw its very first Open House, and it was a total hit! Over 60 curious students attended, learning about the world of environmental research and sustainability. 

The event kicked off with a scavenger hunt that had students wandering around the ESS offices and research labs, uncovering hidden items while embarking on lab tours. Students also had the opportunity to learn about student organizations. The Geography Club and the newly formed Climate Resilience Student Group shared their missions, upcoming events, and how to get involved. 

Attendees also got a peek behind the scenes of four ESS research labs. Here’s what they saw: 

• RED Lab (Records of Environment and Disturbance) 

This lab is all about piecing together the past, using methods like analyzing sediment cores, packrat middens, and pollen to reconstruct past environments. 

• SNOW HYDRO Lab (Snow Hydrology Research-to-Operations Laboratory)

Graduate students from the SNOW HYDRO Lab gave an eye-opening tour of their work, explaining how they use everything from drones and LIDAR to study snow and its role in hydrology and climate change. Students even got to check out ice cores from Iceland chilling in the walk-in freezer (literally!), watch carbon being extracted from tap water, and marvel at the snow spectrometer. 

• SAGE Lab (Shah Analytical Group for the Environment) 

Students explored methods used to detect E. coli and analyze water samples for various nutrients and familiarized themselves with the lab’s equipment, including the vortex and fumehood. 

All in all, the first ESS Open House was a huge success, leaving students with a deeper understanding of the world of ESS and plenty of ideas for how to get involved. Whether you’re into research, finding a student community, or discovering new ways to make a positive environmental impact, ESS has something for everyone! We can’t wait to do it again next year — in the meantime, stay tuned for more exciting events and opportunities!