Racks of hanging clothes dangled at the University YMCA last Thursday, April 21.

Students buzzed from rack to rack, scouring the collection of donated clothing and

searching for recycled items to take home. Some like Jackie Genova left satisfied with

new treasures.

“Look at this sweet jacket that somebody got rid of … like who would donate this?” said

Genova, senior in LAS.

The find to which Genova was referring was a gray fleece jacket that was found at the

Students for Environmental Concerns annual clothing swap. The clothing swap is an

event created to promote sustainability during Earth Week by promoting recycling and

reusing clothes.

“Basically how it works is you can bring a bag of clothes you want to donate, and in

exchange, you can take the same number of items from the clothing swap,” said

Genova, who is also an officer in SECS.

Rather than simply donating clothing, students are encouraged to reuse other peoples’

old items in an effort to reduce resources associated with buying brand­new clothes.

People who didn’t get a chance to donate clothes could then purchase items for as little

as $1.

The clothing swap has been around for a couple years and took a lot of time and

preparation leading up to it. The event was part of SECS’ Earth Week. The swap itself

also needed careful attention because of the popularity of the event.

“It’s usually one of the bigger Earth Week events … it’s one of our main events that

takes the most time to prepare for, ” said Catherine Yee, sophomore in LAS and Earth

Week co­chair for SECS.

Yee was involved in preparing for the event and started collecting donations about three

weeks prior to the clothing swap to ensure a large selection on the day of the swap.

“It’s a lot of manual labor … taking the clothes and then carrying them back to the

University YMCA … where we sort through all of them,” she said.

Yee said the hard work was all worth it, and the swap was a success at raising

awareness for environmental sustainability.

This event highlights the recent success of SECS and their passion on campus for

addressing environmental issues. This year, their passion earned them the title of

Outstanding Student Program of the Year, an award given to them by the YMCA.

“SECS is one of our strongest groups,” said Kasey Umland, associate director and

student programs adviser for the University YMCA.

Umland helps SECS, along with other student programs, connect with the resources

they need to thrive in wherever their passions lead them. For the swap, Umland said

SECS did a great job organizing and executing the event.

Though Umland gave advice and was present in case the organization needed help,

she was proud to be able to step back and watch the student leaders flourish.

“Seeing that growth and development of students as leaders who are smart and

competent and passionate is really energizing,” Umland said.

Umland said she is encouraged about the future of SECS and the students involved in

it. To her and the students involved, the clothing swap was a successful gesture that

raised environmental awareness and developed leaders.

“The students who are planning ‘Clothing Swap’ today could be (influential) 40 years

from now,” Umland said, “You can really see the impact.”

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