A UN Day event at SIU Carbondale invited students and community members to attend discussions on sustainability and climate change.
"The theme of UN Day this year is Our Planet, Our Future," said Karen Schauwecker, sustianability program coordinator at SIU.
The UN has 17 sustainable development goals meant to create a better future for all people.
"One of the 17 sustainable development goals is climate action," Schauwecker said. "The goals are focused on the social, economic, and environmental sides of sustainability, but the important part is that these goals are interconnected."
Darcy Hemphill, president of the United Nations Association, Southern Illinois University chapter, said she hoped that people would come away from the event thinking about actions they could take to support sustainability.
One example she gave is handing waste. The food and utensils leftover from Thursday's event would be composted and recycled instead of thrown in the trash.
"That is a very easy thing that everybody can take away," Hemphill said. "Everybody eats meals, we all have the opportunity to recycle and to compost."
In addition to presentations and discussions, attendees also had the opportunity to find out more about local organizations promoting sustainability and climate action.
