Articles by Grist staff

An eco-pentathlon puts students to work on Earth Day

As your Outlook/Blackberry/secretary administrative professional has no doubt alerted you, Saturday is Earth Day: a celebration of all things green and, um, earthly? A celebration not lost on the youth of today. And since lists of the best ways to help the planet on Earth Day are all the rage these days -- hell, even Vanity Fair's green issue has one -- I've decided to compile one of my own.

Or rather, I'm reprinting one put forth by the University of Montana - Missoula. And this isn't just any list of five things you can do to help the planet. This is an eco-pentathlon! I'm serious! It appears to be a tradition at the school. A series of service events are set up at various locations on or near the campus on Earth Day, and eco-pentathletes ride their bikes from one event to the next, working about an hour at each.

Here's the line-up for Saturday's events:

• 9 a.m. - noon: Help clean up the Clark Fork River.
• 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.: Work on prairie restoration at Mt. Sentinel.
• 1-2:30 p.m.: Dumpster dive and sort recyclables.
• Noon - 4 p.m.: Build a bike at the Festival of Cycles.
• 2 p.m. - 5 p.m.: Do farm chores (make compost, plant trees) at the PEAS farm.

Whew! What a (Earth) day!

Know of any other cool Earth Day related events happening at a campus near you? Post 'em in comments!

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