TSG hopes an incentive will promote Temple’s Sustainability Week.
Temple Student Government will be giving away 50 free SEPTA tokens on Wednesday, Oct. 26, from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m., in an effort to promote the use of public transportation, as well as recycling and water refill stations on campus, in honor of Sustainability Week.
Students must take pictures of themselves using three refillable water stations and two recycling bins on campus.
The first 25 students to bring their five photos to Leslee Everett, TSG director of the Grounds & Facilities committee, at the Bell Tower can each receive two free tokens. Students must be signed up for the Temple Advocates Legislative Outreach Network, or TALON, to receive the tokens, and may sign up in person if they have not already.
At TSG’s weekly meeting today, Everett also announced a panel discussion before the Tomlinson Theater’s production of “Urinetown” on Wednesday, Oct. 26.
The panel will include Dr. Christina Rosan, Temple professor of geography and urban studies, Drew Brown of the Philadelphia Water Department and choreographer Maggie Anderson.
“It’s [a play] about a lack of water and people taking water for granted,” Erica DeWispelaere, junior anthropology major, said. “So it’s about water conservation.”
Students at Penn State performed the musical last week.
“It’s really relevant because part of it is about corporations also, and their abuse…power. So it’s really relevant towards Occupy. Even though it was written a decade ago, I think that’s why a lot of people are putting it on recently,” DeWispelaere said.
Also on Wednesday, TSG Student Body President Colin Saltry and TSG Vice President of External Affairs Elliot Griffin will meet with Ken Lawrence, senior vice president for government, community and public affairs, to discuss Temple’s efforts toward improved state appropriations for higher education.
“This coming budget year, it’s going to be a tough year for Pennsylvania, so hopefully, we’ll be on the front lines to really make sure we’re bringing home the money for Temple,” Saltry said.
Saltry and Griffin had a chance to discuss budget concerns with Lieutenant Governor Jim Cawley at a Chairman Circle Induction Dinner on Oct. 11.
The dinner was held in honor of those who made donations exceeding $1 million to the university. Cawley, a two-time graduate of Temple and former TSG Speaker of the General Assembly, attended as a former Commonwealth trustee of Temple.
Saltry quoted Cawley as telling him that, during budget cuts, “the governor’s budget did what it had to do. That was his stance.”
“Obviously the cut wasn’t as substantial as was originally proposed. We should be trimming [with] a more forward thinking approach. Granted, when you’re in a $4 billion-dollar hole, as we were, it’s a tough thing to get out of,” Saltry said. “We didn’t disagree that it was a good thing, we just disagreed on the priority.”
Saltry, Griffin and TSG Chief of Staff David Lopez first spoke with Cawley at the Board of Trustees public session meeting, at which Cawley represented the state.
Cawley has also offered to be a guest speaker at the General Assembly, an arrangement TSG members hope to schedule before the end of the semester.
Amelia Brust can be reached at amelia.brust@temple.edu.
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