Environmental Programs and Creation Care

Internal Resources

Bunker Interpretive Center: The Bunker Interpretive Center, at the Calvin College Ecosystem Preserve provides approximately 5,000 square feet of space which serves as a home base for programs, a study center for the college community, and an educational resource for the general public to the preserve
Bunker Center Solar project: The purpose of this website is to provide information about the 20 kW solar photovoltaic system that is installed on Calvin College's Vincent and Helen Bunker Interpretive Center building in 2004.
Calvin Dining Services: "at Creative Dining Services, sustainability is not just another topic of conversation - it is a mode of operation"
Calvin Environmental Assessment Program (CEAP): CEAP is a collaborative effort of faculty across Calvin’s campus, but mainly in the sciences, whose focus is the understanding of the campus and local ecosystem.
Calvin Sustainability Statement: This Statement is proposed as a positive step as we seek to interpret, wisely use, and compassionately care for God's creation.
Community Engagement: The Office of Community Engagement exists "to coordinate and envision for the purpose of academic engagement Calvin’s efforts within the community in which it resides."
Ecosystem Preserve GIS system: Interactive map with information about Calvin's campus and particularly, the Ecosystem Preserve
Environmental Geology major program: required courses and cognates, along with a list of related elective options
Environmental Sciences, Environmental Studies (pdf): The Environmental Science major program of concentration is intended for students who plan to pursue a career requiring scientific training in environmental problems and their solutions. The Environmental Studies group minor program of concentration is intended for students who are following a disciplinary major and who also have an interest in studying
a broad range of environmental problems and issues at the local, national, and global levels.
Environmental Stewardship Coalition: The mission of the ESC is to raise campus consciousness regarding current environmental issues and to emphasize Christian stewardship as a personal and community responsibility.
Green Wiki (KnightVision login required): This wiki, maintained by the Calvin Sustainability Community (CSC), provides our campus with information about where conservation can be improved, recommendations about how to best preserve our natural resources, and enables cross-campus collaboration about personal and institutional stewardship.
Plaster Creek Watershed Working Group: Since the spring of 2004, representatives from the West Michigan Environmental Action Coalition (WMEAC), Calvin College, and the Christian Reformed Church have been meeting to discuss a plan to address the problems and the potential of Plaster Creek. This group has evolved into the Plaster Creek Working Group (PCWG).
President's Report 2006: "I thank you for joining us in redeeming a good spot of earth on the corner of Burton and the East Beltline. "
Renewable Energy Organization (Wind Energy): The Wind Turbine Project is aimed at researching and providing resources for wind-generation to Calvin Students and the community. Throughout the project the goal is to make a "Significant Impact" on Calvin's campus using wind energy.
Service Learning Center: The Service-Learning Center is here to help you connect with people who want to make a difference in metro Grand Rapids. Whether you attend or teach at Calvin, work in a nonprofit agency or want to introduce service-learning at your own college, you'll find your next best step on these pages.

External Resources

A Rocha: A Rocha is a Christian nature conservation organisation, our name coming from the Portuguese for “the Rock,” as the first initiative was a field study centre in Portugal.
Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE): AASHE is an association of colleges and universities that are working to create a sustainable future.
Au Sable Institute: Au Sable Institute of Environmental Studies provides university-level courses with transferable credits to over 50 colleges and universities, the framework and services for sustainable community-building, environmental education and restoration for school children and adults, facilities for community and environmental organizations, community and regional conferences and retreats, and outreach services.
Creation Care Studies Program: The Creation Care Study program is a high-caliber academic semester abroad connecting Christian faith with the most complex, urgent global issues of the coming decades.
Footprints: The official website for the Michigan State University Office of Campus Sustainability, and the University Committee for a Sustainable Campus.
Grand Rapids Community Sustainability Partnership: The Community Sustainability Partnership is a diverse network of community organizations in West Michigan who embrace and support sustainability guiding principles in their planning and operations and are striving to make a positive impact in our community.
Grand Valley State University's Sustainability Initiative: The purpose of Grand Valley State University's Sustainable Community Development Initiative (or SCDI) is to provide the necessary skills, analytical tools, and resources to address global, national, regional, and local sustainability issues.
Greener by Degrees: Exploring Sustainability through Higher Education Curricula (online book): This book contains 37 chapters exploring different aspects of sustainability within the undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum. The disciplines covered range from marketing to design; landscape architecture to leisure management, broadcast journalism to geography.
Holy Ground: A Gathering of Voices on Caring for Creation: Holy Ground features essays, sermons, and other short pieces from, among others, Pope Benedict XVI, Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I, Islamic scholar Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Rabbis Zoe Klein and Arthur Waskow, Evangelical pastors Joel Hunter and Brian McLaren, environmental justice proponents Allen Johnson and Kristin Shrader-Frechette, Native American novelist Linda Hogan, and writers Wendell Berry, Gary Snyder, Terry Tempest Williams, and David James Duncan.
Michigan Higher Education Partnership for Sustainability: This learning network models and informs the sustainable development of Michigan, the nation, and the global community.
Piedmont Project: This project, at Emory University, has grown from a focus on course development to include a broader group of experiences, both in and outside the classroom, expanding from faculty to graduate students, in ever-widening circles of dialogue.
Pierce Cedar Creek: Set on 661 acres in Southwest Michigan, Pierce Cedar Creek Institute provides visitors with a unique exposure to a rare blend of diverse habitats including wetlands, forests, marshes, streams, lakes, and prairies.
Rain Gardens of West Michigan: Rain Gardens of West Michigan is an environmental education program focused on stormwater education, and on the values of using rain gardens and native plants in the landscape to improve urban and suburban water quality.
Restoring Eden: Restoring Eden makes hearts bigger, hands dirtier, and voices stronger by encouraging Christians to learn to love, serve, and protect God's creation.
US Green Building Council: The Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is a 501 c3 non-profit organization committed to a prosperous and sustainable future for our nation through cost-efficient and energy-saving green buildings.
West Michigan Environmental Action Council: West Michigan Environmental Action Council (WMEAC) is a non-profit, 501C3 organization working to protect and enhance West Michigan’s natural and human environments by translating the concerns of people into positive action.
West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum: The West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum exists to promote business practices that demonstrate environmental stewardship, economic vitality, and social responsibility.