Beginning on February 10th, 2014, St. Edward’s University will participate in the Small Steps, Big Wins Campus Challenge, a friendly competition from Net Impact which empowers students to take small steps towards creating big social and environmental change. Undergraduate and graduate students will team up to see who can take the most positive actions such as choosing alternative forms of transportation, donating blood, and organizing a volunteer day.
Net Impact, the nonprofit organization behind Small Steps, empowers young people to drive social and environmental change on campus and throughout their future careers, backed by sponsors such as Alcoa Foundation and Newman’s Own. In 2013, Small Steps inspired 45,000 actions across 74 campuses, with a goal of 100 campuses worldwide in 2014.
Rewards for top student participants, teams, and schools range from gift cards, to cash awards, to free trips to leadership conferences. Students share their actions online, and are able to compete at the individual, team, and campus levels. This year, Net Impact will re-launch Small Steps on a customized collegiate version of myActions, the social network for the planet. Students will benefit from enhanced social interactions, improved action reporting, and a mobile app to capture actions and photos in real-time.
Thomas LaPoint, St. Edward’s University’s Graduate Sustainability Assistant and this year’s team leader, believes that “This is a great opportunity for students because it empowers them to pursue sustainable actions in a fun, competitive way, as well as informing students of additional ways that they can make a positive impact in society.”
Interested students and schools should visit smallsteps.netimpact.org for more details on how to get involved. You may also contact Thomas LaPoint at tlapoin2@stedwards.edu for more information.