IRONTON — Earth Day 2009 is less than a week away and students at Ohio University Southern are looking to share the “green generation” with all of Lawrence County.

Students and faculty at both the Ironton and Proctorville campuses plan on demonstrating their recent recycling accomplishments along with activities intended to increase knowledge in the importance of living a sustainable lifestyle at the school’s first ever Earth Day awareness celebration on April 22.

Seminars, educational programs and activities related to Earth Day and green initiatives are scheduled in the courtyard and in the rotunda from noon to 6 p.m. at the Ironton campus.

Lunch and refreshments will be served from noon to 1 p.m. with entertainment provided by the band “4-Mile” at 1 p.m. Poetry reading will also take place.

The Earth Day celebration comes on the heels of a successful recycling campaign that kicked off at the OUS campus in December. In just two months the school eliminated more than 5,300 pounds of recyclables from the waste stream in only eight weeks, according to OUS biology major Joe Bass who championed and founded the program.

OUS was the last of the Ohio University regional campuses to initiate a campus recycling program.

“We hope that through such events as Earth Day 2009 we can help expand recycling efforts on campus and introduce other pro-green agendas. The best way for a college to become a “green” campus is to start from scratch,” said Adam Reihl, director of facilities management at OUS.

Those interested in volunteering or for additional information can call the school at (740) 533-4618.