Whether you are attending an event, joining a student organization, educating yourself, or applying for funding, we invite you to participate in Earth Month to celebrate the university’s steps to achieve its sustainability goals.
Earth Month is just one of many initiatives to support Assignment: Earth, USC’s sustainability framework for creating a healthy, just, and thriving campus and world.
Take Action
- Read an Earth Month message from USC’s Chief Sustainability Officer
- Get the USC Earth Month Zoom backgrounds
- Join the conversation on social media
- Ditch plastic – find a water bottle refill station
- Vote for the tree you want planted on campus for Arbor Day
- Visit the newly launched Exploring Sustainability through Campus Living Labs website
- Play an Earth Month game to help Tommy Trojan refill his water bottle!
- Order an EatWell meal for a chance to win a brand-new pair of Apple AirPods
- Participate in USC Hospitality’s Vegan Recipe Competition
- Bring your obsolete electronics to the e-waste collection in STU 101 on April 30
- Get Assignment: Earth merchandise at the USC Bookstore
- Subscribe to the Annenberg Earth Desk Newsletter
Attend an Event
Spring 2025 Tommy’s Closet: Clothing Drive
Tommy’s Closet is a signature Student Basic Needs program that collects lightly used donations from the USC community and distributes these items to students who could benefit from additional clothing.
Climate Forward Conference 2025
In celebration of Earth Month, the USC Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability and the USC Dornsife Center for the Political Future are hosting a series of conversations around advancing climate change issues.
Arts & Climate Collective Festival
Celebrate Earth Month with USC’s Arts & Climate Collective (ACC) at its annual festival and be inspired to create a healthy and sustainable city for all!
Student Sustainability Town Hall
This event is an opportunity for all students to ask questions and engage in an ongoing conversation with sustainability leaders on campus.
Read the Latest News
USC Earth Month events raise awareness of environmental issues
More than 60 events are planned across USC campuses throughout April.
- EARTH MONTH: Megan Fieser, the Gabilan Assistant Professor of Chemistry at USC Dornsife, is working to resolve the vexing problem of plastic accumulating in our environment.
- EARTH MONTH: A USC study introduces an electrochemical process that sequesters carbon dioxide to create resilient and fire-resistant materials.
- USC Price Dean Chris Boone discusses how his approach to sustainability — rooted in understanding interconnected systems — guides his work in addressing the complex environmental and social challenges facing our planet.
- EARTH MONTH: More than 60 events are planned across USC campuses throughout April.
- Endowment funds established by chemists and entrepreneurs Massoud and Ferial K. Arvanaghi will drive research aimed at building a more sustainable future and a healthier environment.
- The USC-led California Solar Canal Initiative could transform major portions of the state’s 4,000 miles of canals into a powerful source of clean energy and water conservation.
Play an Earth Month Game
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Game Over!
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Plan An Event
April 1-30, 2025
- Community Conversations
- Trivia Games
- Lunch & Learn
- Networking Opportunities with alumni, professors, professionals
- Wellness Workshops
- Submit each event to calendar.usc.edu
- USC Calendar How to (visual guide)
- To Add Events to the USC Calendar
- Navigate to calendar.usc.edu.
- Click on “Submit Event” in the top right of the page.
- Login with USC credentials and follow the form prompts.
- Event Type: select “Sustainability”
- Department field: select your department
- Tag Field (for calendar admins): add “Sustainability”
- Each event is reviewed and approved before it appears on the calendar.
- Recognized Student Organizations & Student Affairs Departments should also submit events to EngageSC.
- EngageSC Calendar How to (visual guide)
- Marketing Materials:
- Add the Assignment: Earth logo to your graphics.
- Download Assignment: Earth Marketing Material.
- If in person events are allowed, remember to reserve space with the appropriate department. Each department will provide information about capacities, protocols, etc as it becomes available.
- Trojan Event Services manages space reservations for TCC, Bovard Auditorium, Ground Zero, Tommy’s Place and most outdoor spaces. For spaces not managed by Trojan Events, contact the respective academic unit in which that space resides.
- Ensuring all participants can fully access your events is crucial to ensuring an equitable experience for all.
- USC’s Disability Services and Programs office has created helpful guides to help you create accessible content and host accessible programs.
- Event planners should include in their materials the following event accessibility statement:
- “Individuals with disabilities who need accommodations to attend this event may contact [insert event sponsor’s name, phone, and email address]. It is requested that individuals requiring accommodations or auxiliary aids such as sign language interpreters and alternative format materials notify us at least 7 days prior to the event. Every reasonable effort will be made to provide reasonable accommodations in an effective and timely manner.”
- “How To Make Your USC Event Sustainable” Guide
- USC Single Use Plastic Bottle Policy toolkit has a vendor compliance checklist, visual aids, and a contact for additional assistance.
- For catering or other event needs, consider supporting diverse and local small businesses at Trojan Shop Local.
- The USC FPM Events checklist. See pages 7-8 for pre- and post-event steps you’ll need to take to ensure that your event is zero-waste. You also can reach out to USC’s Waste Diversion Supervisor at gwhisena@usc.edu for general support.
- Prioritize using reusable service ware – provide communal beverage dispensers with reusable cups.
- If reusables will not work for your event, compostables and products made from more sustainable materials such as aluminum or glass are the next best alternative. Note: Products in cartons – such as boxed water – have a plastic lining that renders them un-recyclable, which means they go to landfill.
- Ask guests to bring refillable water bottles and share the map of campus hydration stations
- Prioritize plant-forward menu choices over meat-based meals, and when appropriate, encourage guests and colleagues to take surplus food so it doesn’t get thrown away.
- Finally, please ask your event attendees who are USC faculty, student, and staff to take the the annual USC Sustainability Survey. It gauges sustainability literacy, culture, and behavior, takes less than 15 minutes to complete.
Email us at sustainability@usc.edu