Morgantown senior Julie Scott and Clifty senior Heather Williams got their hands dirty this weekend helping plant Western’s herb garden and learning to take apart a bicycle.

They attended the Campus Community Partnerships for Sustainability Conference, an annual event to bring together Kentucky colleges and communities to work toward a more sustainable future.

The conference is hosted by a different college each year.

The conference took place April 24 through 26.

Sara Ferguson, chair of the Student Sustainability Committee, helped with the conference.

“It definitely exceeded our expectations,” she said.

Workshops on the herb garden and the Big Red Bikes program, which lets students rent bicycles, were part of the conference.

Scott said she learned a lot about the use of herbs and was glad to help out for a good cause.

Louisville sophomore Joey Coe, SGA sustainability committee chair, also worked in the garden.

“There’s nothing like getting out there and getting your hands in the dirt,” he said. “This is a conference about the earth.”

The conference also featured presentations by college faculty and students and professionals from around the state on various sustainability issues and projects.

Ferguson said she enjoyed hearing her fellow students speak about projects they’ve been working on.

Jerome Ringo, president of the Apollo Alliance and the first black chair of the National Wildlife Federation, opened the conference on Friday night in the Downing University Center Theater.

Ringo said he sees a generation of college students that understand the environmental crisis. He challenged students to do something about the crisis.

He said their children would look them in the eyes some day and ask them what they did to stop the melting of Mount Kilimanjaro.

“This is your opportunity to prepare your answer for 10 or 20 years from now,” he said.

Chad Pregracke, whom Ryan-Downing called her “personal hero,” spoke on Saturday night at the fine arts center amphitheater.

Pregracke told the crowd about starting Living Lands and Waters, an organization that works to remove trash from rivers, at the age of 23.

His organization has removed about 5 million pounds of trash from rivers since 1998, Pregracke said.

He advised students to find what they want to do and do it.

“I hope to hear your guys’ story in five or 10 years,” Pregracke said.

Saturday night also included a local foods dinner and a performance by bluegrass band The Colonel’s Secret Recipe. They performed on a stage powered by solar power.

The conference ended on Sunday with the Water and Climate Change Film Festival, a national film festival sponsored by Berea College, and field trips to sites such as Mammoth Cave National Park.

Williams said the conference allowed her to connect with people and find out more about what Western is doing.

Scott agreed.

“It’s good to be involved in the campus you live on,” Scott said.