Associated Students held the annual Campus Sustainability Day on Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. They brought out several on-campus programs to help educate students on eco-friendly practices, connect with the outdoors and learn about the importance of sustainability.
Students played games on the library lawn and relaxed during their free time in between classes. Cornhole was played by students the most; friendly competitions among friends began to sprout as students spent their time on the lawn.
Campus Sustainability Day also offered several arts and sustainable crafts stations where students could decorate little flower pots with several different colors and materials to make their own beaded plants.
Liz Cartojano, a member of Associated Students, expressed her interest in how eco-friendly practices can change a community and how important Campus Sustainability Day is for the on-campus programs presented at the event.
“I think it’s important because I think there are just a lot of things happening on campus and it’s a little bit hard for these groups to sometimes get visibility,” said Cartojano.
Cartojano highlighted that students should take advantage of the many opportunities that the organizations brought to the table.
Athens Services set up a booth with a soccer-based mini game that displayed the different sorts of waste: trash, recycling and composting. This was meant to represent the grey, blue and green colored bins displayed around campus to help students associate what waste goes where.
The Institute for Sustainability was a major focal point of the event because of the many resources that it brings. The garden lets students grow food for themselves and for larger-scale events; students can volunteer to get involved.
Every week brings a new event; even if students missed Sustainability Day, there are more Associated Students-based activities throughout the semester.
“AS Sustainability is a program we do pretty much every week; we also host Thursday Thrift every Thursday on Byramian Lawn where you can thrift or donate clothes,” said Cartojano. “We do refills and repairs once a month where students can get free home and body care, as well as getting their clothes repaired.”
Another group that was in attendance was CSUN’s Outdoor Adventures program. Christian Juarez, a trip leader for the program, was looking for new applicants to take on their next adventure.
“We help a lot of people get out into the outdoors for the first time, which is something that I find really amazing about the program. I love seeing the spark that it can bring about in some people.”
Outdoor adventures trip leaders take students out for all kinds of trips where they’ll be hiking, backpacking or camping. They also cook for students and provide gear to help facilitate their experiences.
Sustainability Day gave students many opportunities to learn how to be more environmentally conscious while giving them the chance to have a good time and get a green thumb.
