Sneaky Salamander

Irrefutable, the depletion of our natural resources and environment stares us down with unabashed eyes. There seems to be no escaping the dismal vision of an earth torn asunder and raped by humanity. However, awareness spawns hope, and hope bears the heavy burden of change on its shoulders. The drive for self-sustainability and knowledge has finally begun to arise in the University of San Francisco (USF). However, considering the schools credo (Educating hearts and minds to change the world) and the value the University puts into social justice, should USF play a larger role in the education and promotion of self-sustainability?

A student group that was started this past February appears to be a promising advocate of environmental awareness. “Back to the Roots”, the club conjured up by Michael Aguilar, a junior Politics major at USF stresses the importance of drawing students back to their origins. “Everything starts small,” said Aguilar, “Right now it’s just for students at USF to understand that we have the power to grow food and we have the knowledge to be self-sustainable.”

News of the club has spread infectiously throughout the imaginations of the ecologically conscience at the University of San Francisco (USF) and as a result, two small gardens boasting a variety of vegetables have been dug in the back yards of willing students. The gardens have been planted with a mixture of onions, garlic, spinach, artichoke, lettuce, potatoes, tomatoes and more. But “Back to the Roots” harbors dreams of becoming more than just the avid gardeners recluse.

The club intends to engage in pseudo-activist movements to promote environmental awareness and to emphasis the futility of a consumerist nation. Aguilar said, “Maybe one day we’ll put an entire days worth of USF garbage out on the lawn… this is how much we consume.”

        Whispering to his sprouting beans and watering each wavering stock individually, Aguilar quietly conveyed his visions for Back to the Roots, could it potentially evolve into a future Coop? At this moment no one is sure as to what will become of the new club, but all involved have the utmost curiosity to see the growth manifest into a real cause, hopefully taking USF along for the ride.

Advisor and overseer of the project, Professor Stephen Zavestoski harbored some serious reservations about USF’s effort towards becoming more self-sustainable. Zavestoski said, “The university as a whole (and by that I mean the administration), needs to get more on top of sustainability issues.” His interest and support of the group stemmed from the belief that “Back to the Roots” could inspire students. “ I think that by promoting more support to a student group like this is one way for USF to kind of get behind its stated commitment of social justice,” said Zavestoski, who has recently suggested putting a garden in his own backyard.

The University of San Francisco is very involved in the San Franciscan social justice scene, why not extend that reach out to environmental awareness? “Back to the Roots” is by no means delusional in its goal of self-sustainability. As Zavestoski said, “It’s a university, it’s a place of higher education, it’s a place that has a stated commitment of educating minds and hearts. And I think that, in that spirit, it should become a leader in sustainability issues.”