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UNM’s 6th Annual Sustainability Expo and Lobo Growers Market will be held today at the Cornell Mall in front of the SUB.
The expo, which runs from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., is held each year to give students the opportunity to learn about sustainable initiatives on campus and in the community, meet local farmers and provide cultural entertainment, according to UNM’s Office of Sustainability’s website.
The expo includes more than 50 information booths, vendors, live music and events. The expo will also include the Lobo Growers Market.
The market portion of the expo was organized by UNM sustainability studies students as a way to invite others to sample locally grown foods, said event organizer Olivia Marin.
“We have more farmers and more food trucks than ever; live music and local art,” she said. “It’s going to be a great event.”
Mickayla Hodgman, a conservation biology and sustainability studies major, said sustainable agriculture means growing food in a way that is healthy for the planet, the economy and the community.
She said one aim of the expo is to get people excited about Albuquerque’s local sustainable food movement.
“I think today there is a disconnect between the food we eat and where it comes from,” Hodgman said. “We’re giving people the opportunity to see where their food comes from.”
Marin said there is a preconceived notion that locally grown food is more expensive; but she said that doesn’t have to be the case.
“If the whole community moves towards this support, it creates jobs in our local economy and it shifts away from those cheap outsourced products,” she said. “Then those prices can go down because (local farmers and vendors) are not facing so much competition.”
Sustainability is a core value at UNM, said Terry Horger, program administrator of the sustainability studies program. In 2008 UNM adopted a sustainability policy that includes guidelines for campus departments, buildings, academic programs and classes.
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A bike auction will also be held during the expo, Lt. Tim Stump of UNMPD said. There will be approximately 40 bikes on the block, all of which have either been stolen and recovered by UNMPD or left on campus, with bids starting from $5.00.
“If you’ve lost a bike or had one stolen, it could be at our auction,” he said. “Come look.”
The expo will also host food trucks, including Firenze Pizza, Le Paris Bakery, Santa Fe Honey Salon, Tio Frank’s Chile Sauce and South Valley Soap.
BOX
UNM Sustainability Expo and Grower’s Market
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Cornell Mall
