Earth Day Programming Spread Across Entire Month

By CICADA HILL

For the entire month of April, Setonians have worked together in efforts to effectively celebrate the Earth. From April 8 to April 28, students have participated in activities regarding the environmental issues which concern both us and our planet. From cleaning up litter to sharing environmental research findings. Earth Month at Seton Hill has been both a celebration as well as a call-to-action for the care of our common home–the Earth. 

With GenAI (Generative Artificial Intelligence) becoming a pressing topic within environmental health conversations, an AI Ethics Bowl was held in Cecilian Hall on April 8, 2026. The event invited students from various disciplines to discuss a case study concerning the ethics of GenAI datacenters and their environmental implications, specifically on farm/agricultural land. 

“As someone starkly opposed to generative AI, it was concerning to me the idea that anyone would sacrifice our environment for something that is not only unhelpful but actively harmful to many communities,” Kira Bork, a sophomore graphic and interactive design major, said in reflection of the AI Ethics Bowl. “It was also surprising to me the fact that people would suggest moving the datacenter to an unpopulated area as if the human impact was the only important part,” Bork continued. 

“It [the AI Ethics Bowl] really opened my eyes to how many people do not see the environment as having inherent value that needs to be protected regardless of how many humans live there,” Bork said. 

A second part of the AI Ethics Bowl took place on April 28 in the Greensburg Room, where more discussion surrounding the environmental implications of GenAI-use occurred.

Setonians have also been participating in other Earth Month activities, such as volunteering at local food banks, banding together with the Westmoreland Land Trust, as well as committing to Seton Hill’s Earth Day of Service, which occurred on April 25. Sponsored by the Chemistry Club and the Service Advisory Board, Earth Day of Service consisted of students cleaning up litter on the side of the road around Twin Lakes Park in connection with Adopt-A-Highway, along with supporting the Delmont Public Library with their garden revitalization project in their Outdoor Learning Center. Additionally, students traveled to Smithton, Pa. for their annual “Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful” clean-up in their parks and pollinator habitats. 

On Seton Hill’s Earth Day of Service, Setonians involved in Seton Hill’s School of Business and Technology also hosted the “Green Games,” or “SHU-Shoe Recycling,” a space where athletics met sustainability. During the Seton Hill versus Gannon University baseball game, Setonians collected gently-used footwear to donate to those in need, as well as to keep the clothing articles out of landfills. 

In relation to the other Earth Day projects, Seton Hill’s annual tree blessing took place on April 23 in acknowledgement of the class of 2027. Student Government’s Vice President of Campus Traditions, Rachael Cameron, organized the annual tree blessing.

“The tree blessing ceremony may not be the biggest campus tradition, but I think it can be one of the most meaningful because it connects our current classes to past and future generations,” Cameron said. “It may seem like one more tree on campus isn’t very significant, especially after 106 class trees have been planted. What’s significant, though, is the opportunity to gather as a community and define something as important to the class— that’s what the tree represents.

“This year, the class of 2027 dedicated the tree to peace and unity, which is something we could definitely use more of in the world today,” Cameron said. “It [the tree] exists as a symbol that reminds us and future Setonians how important peace and unity are and reminds us to actively strive to promote peace and unity in our world.” 

On Seton Hill’s day of Scholarship, April 28, in addition to the second half of the AI Ethics Bowl, Setonians shared their environmental-based research findings in connection with Earth Month. The students of the SCA 320 course, Corporate Ethics & Social Responsibility, hosted “The B Corp Case Competition: Water, Energy, and Action.” Along with this, the collective students of SBL 153, General Biology II, hosted a “Micropollution Research Symposium.” 

Even as Earth Month came to an end, our actions of environmental conservation and protection should not. As Pope Francis speaks to us within Laudato Si, “We have forgotten that we ourselves are dust of the earth (cf. Gen 2:7); our very bodies are made up of her elements, we breathe her air and we receive life and refreshment from her waters.” 

As Setonians, and as humans, we must care for our common home, and act against what seeks to destroy it. Let the Earth be the muse for all which you do; Earth Day is EVERYDAY.