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This Earth Day, the Peralta Colleges will salute the environment by doing what we do best at Peralta: teaching. On Thursday, April 28 Peralta is celebrating Earth Day by inviting faculty across the district and across all disciplines to dedicate their classroom teaching that day to themes relating to environmental sustainability, and if possible, opening their classrooms to class visitors.

In addition to this district-wide environmental teach-in, at Laney College from 11:30 to 2, we will have a Sustainable Peralta Culinary Cook-Off (where YOU will be one of the judges), live music, a mini farmers market, seed-planting, community partners with information tables, a community garden work party and estuary clean-up day. Come on down!

The "Pedal-A-Watt", made by Mary White and James Cline using salvaged materials, show just how much human energy it takes to light some traditional incandescent bulbs.

This unique course covers a brief history of the environmental, Eco-Art and community art movement, with distinguished guest artist and scientist lecturers.

Students create art, installations, visual, oral presentations or performances based on extensive research about an important “matter” of their choosing. The work is then exhibited in a professional gallery on campus or in the community.

Oakland Green Jobs Corp students celebrate their graduation by raising their commemorative green hard hats. (photo courtesy Ella Baker Center)

200 hundred people, including Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums and Peralta Colleges Chancellor Elihu Harris, packed into Laney College’s Theatre at 4pm this afternoon to celebrate the graduation of the 1st class of the Oakland Green Jobs Corp, the first program of its kind in the world.

“You folks, all 35 of you, are the astronauts of the Green Jobs movement,” said Mayor Dellums to the graduates sitting next to him. “You have gone where no one else has gone, but where thousands of people will go. You folks on the cutting edge you are part of an elegant idea, fight poverty and fight pollution simultaneously.”

Laney College’s Career Technical Education programs provide classes in home energy efficiency, solar photovoltaic panel installation, electrical, carpentry, insulation, heating, ventilation and air conditioning.

The students received life- and job-skills training at the Cypress Mandela Training Center, based in West Oakland. Cypress Mandela also selected the first group of trainees from its on-going programs.

Meanwhile, San Francisco-based Growth Sector is working with regional green businesses to place graduates into full-time jobs.