December 2025
Wishing You the Happiest Holidays
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Happy December! Have you ever read the children’s book Winter is the Warmest Season? It is colorful and delightful in capturing the comforts and joys of winter – including bundled up outdoor play, snuggling under warm covers, books in hand, hot chocolate, and gathering for fun with friends and family. While we had an exceptionally warm and beautiful autumn, colder days are here at last. As our nights lengthen and the winter solstice nears, we wish you the best for the holiday season. May it warm your heart, rest your mind, and bring you what you need.
The WSU Sustainability Team
Sustainability Research Awards
Have you completed, or will soon complete a sustainability research project? Submit your project for a 2026 Sustainability Research Award offered through the Sustainability Practices and Research Center (SPARC) at Weber State. (1).png/Untitled (56)(1)__300x300.png)
Awards will be granted to both faculty and students. Two awards of $1000 each are available for faculty submissions in one or both of the following categories; traditional scholarship (i.e., conference or journal-targeted academic research/writing) and applied scholarship (i.e., tangibly benefiting community, campus, students, etc.). WSU students can submit for consideration of one of two $500 awards, if they have completed a sustainability research project during the 2025 calendar year or in the 2026 Spring semester. If you’ve completed a sustainability-related senior capstone or other project, take advantage of this opportunity.
The deadline to apply is Monday, March 30, 2026. Award recipients will be recognized at the WSU Sustainability Awards event on April 16. For more information and to apply visit the Student Research Awards page or the Faculty Research Awards page.
Visual Verse: Art, Poetry, and the Great Salt Lake
This fall, the SUS-designated Honors course Visual Verse: Art, Poetry and the Great Salt Lake invited students to explore the intersection of creativity, place, and environmental awareness. Combining the elements of poetry and visual art (i.e., watercolor, photography, videography, letterpress, sculpture and a collaborative zine), the course encouraged students to reflect deeply on the Great Salt Lake’s beauty, complexity, fragility, and ongoing transformation.
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Through field trips to the lake and conversations with scientists, artists, and poets working directly with this critical ecosystem, students gained firsthand context for their work. The result is a body of art that captures personal relationships with the landscape while prompting broader questions about sustainability, loss, resilience, and responsibility.
Emily Michie, one of the students shared their experience, "In this class, I finally feel like I can use my art skills to advocate for the Great Salt Lake and climate change, whereas I felt so useless before. Art is a great voice to inspire action; you cannot lead people to push for change if you cannot get them to care about the problem in the first place."
The class will share their final projects in a public exhibit on Saturday, December 6, from 1-3 p.m. at the Eccles Wildlife Education Center at Farmington Bay. All members of the WSU campus and community are warmly invited to attend. Whether you’re drawn to sustainability, the arts, or the future of the Great Salt Lake, this exhibit offers a meaningful window into how creative practice can deepen our understanding and connection to place, as well as inspire action to help save the lake.
Student Poster Contest
Submissions are now open for the Student Poster Contest at the 2026 Intermountain Sustainability Summit (ISS).The ISS is a lively gathering of hundreds of sustainability professionals, industry practitioners, policy experts, educators, and students from across Utah and the Intermountain West. The annual two-day event will take place on March 19 - 20, 2026.
The Student Poster Contest is a great opportunity to present your work, build your resume, and showcase your ideas and research to professionals in the sustainability field. Those who are selected to share their work will receive complimentary registration to the ISS main day of events. .png/Untitled-2 (36)__300x300.png)
Students are invited to submit posters based on a project for a class, internship, or independent study that relates to sustainability. Submissions will be accepted through  Tuesday, February 17, 2026. Poster categories include:
- Sustainability Research
- Green Design
- Sustainability in Action
- Sustainability in Creative Arts & Humanities
- Sustainability Education
If you have any questions, contact brinleyboatright@weber.edu. For more ongoing information regarding the ISS, sign up to receive updates.
A Greener Way to Gift: Furoshiki Wrapping
This December, let’s celebrate the festivities in a way that’s both memorable and mindful. According to an article by Ecology Center, Americans use about 4.6 million pounds of wrapping paper every year, most of it during the holiday season, and about half of this ends up in landfills. So instead, here’s a more charming and eco-friendly alternative: furoshiki wrapping.
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Furoshiki, the Japanese art of wrapping gifts with fabric, is a simple way to elevate your holiday gifting while also cutting down on waste. All you will need is a square piece of cloth, which can be made from old t-shirts, scarves, tablecloths or any fabric that you want to repurpose. Not only will this save you the cost of wrapping materials, but you would also be giving new life to fabrics that you don’t use anymore.
Traditionally used in Japan as a way to bundle and carry items to bathhouses, furoshiki has grown into a versatile and creative wrapping method. By folding and tying the cloth in different ways and adding everyday items, you can create beautiful, and reusable gift wraps.
Check out this short video to learn some easy furoshiki tying techniques.
Using the furoshiki method, you’re not just wrapping presents – you’re also wrapping sustainably, with intention, creativity, care and bringing a little extra joy this holiday season.
WSU Students Drive Significant Impact at Annual Free Swap
This year’s annual Free Swap was a huge success with record donation numbers, reuse on campus, and strong overall participation. Most notably, the event’s success is a direct reflection of the commitment and leadership demonstrated by Weber State University students. The initiative was led by Allison Brown, a senior at WSU and the Zero Waste Coordinator within the Energy and Sustainability Office (ESO). Her leadership, combined with the ongoing support of members of the Environmental Ambassadors club and a dedicated group of 26 volunteers is what made this event possible.
Through the collective efforts of the student team and the broader campus community:
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Over 100 individuals donated more than 3,200 pounds of items
Nearly 400 attendees participated in the pick-up event, helping redirect over 2,600 pounds of donations back to the campus community and significantly reducing waste.
These outcomes highlight the strength of student involvement in advancing sustainability efforts and fostering a culture of reuse and community engagement at Weber State. The Free Swap is just one example of how student initiatives are driving meaningful environmental impacts.
The WSU Sustainability Team extends sincere appreciation to everyone who participated in or supported this event and is looking forward to continuing this momentum at the Free Swap in 2026.
Hulet Round River Scholarship
Wildlife conservation programs through Round River Conservation Studies (RRCS) provide an immersive experience. Through RRCS, you can live and study in the very landscapes you are conserving. Programs are currently offered in Botswana, Taku, Belize, Mongolia, Patagonia, and the Sky Island Borderlands, providing students with opportunities to study abroad beyond the classroom.
Thanks to a generous grant from the Hulet family, WSU students can apply for funding to participate in the RRCS program. This scholarship provides partial support for a WSU student to participate in one of the summer or semester-long courses. Participants ear.png/Untitled-2 (37)__300x300.png)
n 9 academic credits for summer programs and 15 academic credits for semester-long programs. Qualified applicants who are not awarded the Hulet Scholarship may still qualify for scholarship support directly from Round River, so please be sure to indicate on the application that you are interested in learning about other support.
Applications are available from John Mull (jmull@weber.edu) in the Department of Zoology. Questions about the program can be directed to the same email address.
Applications are due Friday, January 16, 2026 by midnight. The application file and the requested letters of recommendation can be submitted to John Mull via email. Please be sure that the name of your application file includes your first and last name.
More information about Round River and its field courses is available here.
WSU students who have taken part in Round River Conservation Studies describe the experience as life-changing. Apply now and broaden your horizons this year!
Green Badge Program Update
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Participate in the Green Badge Program and start earning your badges today!
December's green badge will help you explore
“Health & Wellness.”
Students are actively engaging with the campus community and expanding their learning through the Green Badge program. One of November’s participants, Iris Crum, reflected on her experience with the Free Swap:
“I learned that the Weber community really cares for each other. People didn’t just donate old items but brand new ones with the tags still on. I found that many people love helping out those who are in need. There were so many donations, it was wonderful...”
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The Green Department Program is for faculty and staff to learn ways to make their departments or offices more sustainable. Green Teams work together to earn points and recognition by implementing change and taking actions outlined in a Green Team checklist.
Upcoming Events & Important Dates
Food Recoveries
Einstein Bros Bagels, Shepherd Union Building
Tuesdays and Thursdays
1 – 2:15 p.m.
Volunteer here
Thrifted Thursdays
The Bell Tower Plaza
Thursdays
10 – 11 a.m.
Learn more
Stress Relief Center with the Environmental Ambassadors Club
Swenson Gym
Wednesday, December 3
12:30 – 1:30 p.m.
Register here
Assembling Hygiene Kits for the Unhoused with the Environmental Ambassadors Club
Shepherd Union Room 301
Friday, December 5
12:30 – 1:30 p.m.
Register here
Group Exhibit - Visual Verse: Art, Poetry, & Great Salt Lake
Eccles Wildlife Education Center at Farmington Bay
Saturday, December 6
12 – 2 p.m.
Learn more
News & Resources
A Climate ‘Shock’ Is Eroding Some Home Values. New Data Shows How Much | New York Times (WSU students and faculty can access the New York Times for free using their Weber email)
How the Utah Trail Network will help improve transportation in the state | Deseret News
How Batteries, Not Natural Gas, Can Power the Data Center Boom | Yale E360
Klamath River Ecosystem is Booming One Year After Dam Removal | Underscore Native News
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