One of Indiana University Kokomo’s eyesores has been given a facelift, due to the Student Sustainability Council’s diligent efforts to renew and preserve the courtyard in the Main Building on campus.  

Previously overlooked, the courtyard in the Main Building has been given a refreshed, new look, and this is just the beginning for the council’s efforts in ensuring a healthy ecology for IU Kokomo.  

Planting new trees and native plants within the courtyard is one of the most recent preservation efforts that the council has made.  

And there are already plans to expand beyond the courtyard within the next year.  

Many students have possibly already heard the “buzz” about IU Kokomo becoming a certified “Bee Campus” by the Xerles Society for Invertebrate Conservation, where students can learn how to practice beekeeping and assist in conservations for ecological environments. 

Partnered with the Shue Bee Farm located in Russiaville, this Bee Campus provides students the opportunity to volunteer to learn beekeeping practices.  

“Our campus strives to sustain local pollinators by offering them a healthy environment that is full of various plants that are native to the areas as well as being free of all pesticides.” Said Hannah Sandefur, Environmental Stewardship intern and Junior at IU Kokomo. 

Half of the honey collected will be donated to the Cougar Cupboard, the food pantry located on campus. Maintenance of the hives is encouraged for volunteer work and is located near the east side of the parking garage, surrounded by recently planted apple trees, another initiative that the IU Kokomo Office of Sustainability and the Student Sustainability Council has been advocating for.  

Dr. Andy Tuholski, Director of the Office of Sustainability and Assistant Professor of Political Science, is excited about what this next school year has in store for students on campus who are seeking experimental ways to engage with IU Kokomo’s sustainability efforts. 

“The last few years have been challenging and isolating for many students, so it is great to see Cougars revitalizing our student organizations and, in the case of the Student Sustainability Council, founding new ones with a clear sense of purpose,” Tuholski said.  

 The council has curated a wide range of opportunities for students to become involved and educated in IU Kokomo’s sustainability efforts and ecological concerns that can appeal to various sensibilities.  

Located in the cafeteria, the council hosts a game night every month that includes games that range from strategic to silly and collaborative to competitive. Students are encouraged to bring their own games and recommendations for maximized fun and learning opportunities for those participating. 

The council is eagerly awaiting this Nov. to participate with IU Kokomo in conducting a book giveaway as part of their Environmental Literacy Initiative. Hundreds of books ranging in different subjects on sustainability will be distributed, just in time for the holiday season. 

The Office of Sustainability and the Student Sustainability Council aim to make next year’s Sustainability Week in April the most efficient and involved tradition in IU Kokomo history, with plans to adapt more service-learning projects ecologically appropriate landscaping. 

 “Indiana University has committed to making sustainability a priority, and individual and collective student action is vital to instituting lasting change,” Tuholski stated. “Change begins at home, and that’s precisely what IU Kokomo is.”