In the spirit of Earth Day and general environmental awareness, the Student Environmental Council at Iowa State and the Story County Conservation staff have planned activities for the public.

Story County Conservation has planned two prairie burns near Ames. The first one is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at Dakins Lake in Zearing, and the other burn will be held 3 p.m. Saturday at McFarland Park north of Ames.

The purpose of the burns is to return nutrients to the soil and to kill off any unwanted woody plants, said Ledah Harrison, Story County Conservation program support coordinator.

“It’s free and anyone can participate or just come and watch,” she said. “We do advise participants to wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants and bring a pair of gloves.”

The Student Environmental Council also is getting involved in Earth Day and began celebrating Monday.

“Our purpose is to educate students and hopefully make students more environmentally conscious,” said Jennifer Dostal, Student Environmental Council chairwoman.

Dostal, senior in environment science, said people need to be more conscious about the environment and its future.

“We try to open up people’s horizons,” she said. “It’s not just about chaining yourself to a tree or signing a postcard.”

Katie Theison, Student Environmental Council treasurer, said the council kicked off the week Monday with guest speaker Danielle Wirth, biology instructor from Des Moines Area Community College, who spoke about eco-feminism.

On Tuesday, Iowa Department of Natural Resources Director Paul Johnson spoke about his plans and direction as the new DNR director.

Ames environmentalist Joe Lynch spoke Wednesday about transportation issues and getting the ISU community involved in transportation decisions.

A fair to celebrate and recognize local businessowners, “Think Globally, Buy Locally,” will be held today in the Sun Room of the Memorial Union from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

“A few local businesses will be at the event, so you can actually have conversations … with them one on one,” said Theison, sophomore in environmental science.

EarthFest will be held later today from 4 to 8 p.m. south of the Campanile, showcasing three bands: Medulla Oblongata, Digikadi and Slushsicle.

Dostal said the outdoor concert will be held rain or shine.

“If the weather isn’t severe, we’ll still have the concert. So it would be a good time to take Thursday off and come do some dancing and chill out,” she said.

Theison said the council will participate in a satellite downlink conference out of Honolulu Friday from 1 to 2:30 p.m. titled “Greening Your Campus,” which will discuss how to make campuses greener.

“Colleges all over the nation will be hooked up to this downlink,” Theison said.