Sustainability was the word Tuesday as students gathered on the Parade Ground to celebrate the environment at ECO at LSU’s fifth annual Earth Day festival.The event, hosted by the Environmental Conservation Organization and sponsored by Student Government, focused on the message of individual sustainability.”We’re trying to elaborate on the individual role in conserving resources,” said Matt Wyatt, ECO co-president.Though Earth Day was April 22, the event was held Tuesday because the Parade Ground was booked during the previous week for LSU Day setup, Wyatt said.The Earth Day event featured various booths giving away items like free plants and bike tune-ups, and the LSU AgCenter was also on hand with animals like pigs and goats for students to interact with.The various booths and attractions were all meant to be fun and informational reminders about how students’ actions affect the environment, said Katherine Boy Skipsey, ECO co-president.”People don’t pay attention to things that surround us every day,” she said.ECO member Valeria Socorro said having the event outdoors on the Parade Ground is important to remind people what the festival is about.”If people were outside more, they could appreciate the Earth more,” Socorro said.Meredith Hunt, coastal and environmental studies senior, said the wide variety of booths and activities at the event contributes to its appeal.”Diversity is probably the best thing they have going,” Hunt said. “They can attract animal enthusiasts, people who are interested in solar energy and who want information about programs.”Students were able to partake in a photo petition to promote legislation allowing local apartment complexes to offer their residents solar energy.A representative from the company Lite Solar, University alumnus Justin Runnels, was at the event to educate students about solar energy and collect photos and signatures for the petition. Runnels said the petition got about 50 signatures at the Earth Day event. He said he attends ECO meetings and works closely with the organization to promote solar energy, which he said many college students are interested in exploring.Student Government President J Hudson and Vice President Dani Borel were also at the festival.Hudson said one of the pair’s goals while in office is to increase both large and small sustainability efforts on campus.Goals like reducing printing of receipts in the Union and ensuring on-campus buildings hold up to environmental standards are among the things they hope to contribute to the University’s sustainability efforts, Hudson said. Wyatt said the event was meant to educate students about sustainability not only on campus, but also in the Baton Rouge community.”Even though this is mainly a celebration mostly students are inclined to attend, students are also part of the Baton Rouge community,” Wyatt said. “LSU isn’t a segregated part of Baton Rouge.” Socorro said it’s important for students to think about their environmental footprint in the largest scope possible.”It’s the ‘think globally, act locally’ mentality,” she said.–Contact Ryan Buxton at [email protected]