Veishea is a week dedicated to the celebration of Iowa State, but this year there is something else that calls for celebration: the Earth. 

Chandra Peterson, intern for Live Green and co-president of the Green Umbrella, said the Live Green organization will be highlighting the fact that the last Sunday of Veishea is also Earth Day. She said many things are being done this year to make sure ISU students are aware of that. 

“I like to call it ‘Earth Week,’ but what it really should be called is ‘Earth Year,’” Peterson said. 

Kayla Nielsen and BJ Brugman, co-chairpersons of the Veishea committee, said this year the Veishea committee has been collaborating with the Live Green organization to make this year’s celebration one that will make a difference. 

Nielsen and Brugman said the Veishea office has already started its part in the green initiative by putting many things — such as scholarship applications, event schedules and other information — online. 

Tina Lovan, co-chairwoman of the Campus and Community Involvement Committee, said this year Veishea will be using fewer paper flyers and having more word-of-mouth advertising and writing on chalkboards in lecture halls to advertise to students.

“Any little thing helps,” Lovan said. “It’s your environment — take care of it.”

Peterson said she, Nielsen and Brugman have come up with ways to keep Iowa State’s campus clean during Veishea celebrations, such as putting more recycling bins on campus. 

Nielsen and Brugman said they will try to have at least one recycling bin for every few garbage cans. This will be especially important during soda sales and concerts, they added. 

Peterson said this year, four out of five of the meals served will not require silverware as an effort to reduce the amount of garbage created. She and Nielsen also said that the silverware and plates that are required will be compostable.

During this year’s Veishea Village, there will be a green section, Peterson said. Booths in these sections will be stressing the fact that Earth Day is the following day and students should help out. 

Nielsen and Brugman said there will be a campus cleanup on Earth Day. In past years, this has been specific to only cleaning up on campus, but this year, Campustown will be included in this cleanup. 

Peterson said businesses located in Campustown are very excited about this and are going to be adding their own efforts to the campus cleanup.

“Campustown needs just as much, if not more, cleaning than on campus,” she said.

Peterson said there is an event committee of the Green Umbrella group that has just begun meeting. She said the committee will be coming up with even more ways to keep the ISU campus — and Earth — looking beautiful.