Galesburg Mayor and Knox College Professor Peter Schwartzman presents his green ideas to the SAU community.
On February 24, St. Ambrose Sustainability Committee welcomed Peter Schwartzman, Mayor of Galesburg as the month’s installment of their ’25-’26 Sustainability Round Table Series.
From solar power to compost to locally grown fruit and vegetables, the Knox College professor says SAU is ripe for green ideas. Schwartzman has held the title of Professor of Environmental Studies at Knox College since 1998, and was invited to share his knowledge and challenge SAU to find new ways to be sustainable.
Powered by the Sun
Schwartzman explained how his team of students installed solar panels at a facility on campus, highlighting solar energy’s effectiveness. “We should have solar everywhere. Even economically, it makes no sense not to.”
According to Solar Energy Industries Association, the cost of solar energy is becoming increasingly attractive and number of facilities and homes that are powered by it have grown in recent years. The professor also explained that a shift to renewable energy can decrease energy need by around 50%. Solar energy on SAU’s 188 acre campus would make our environmental footprint significantly smaller.
Some of his sustainability efforts also within the Knox College community involve the creation of a small produce garden on campus to grow food, a project that has grown in both size and success. He also assisted the college in reaching an all-time high rate of 60% of waste from campus being composted.
Schwartzman also introduced a number of new courses in sustainability into the Knox curriculum. Three courses he has identified as the most effective are Environmental Racism, Urban Agriculture, and Environmental Matters in Municipalities, proving that an understanding of sustainability among students, as well as getting them involved, is crucial in a step toward a more environmentally friendly campus.
Schwartzman challenged SAU students to evaluate their habits and consider how much they consume and waste versus how much they produce.
“I really liked his message about being a producer instead of a consumer,” says SAU senior Cadence Stemen. “Maybe we could start our own produce garden here, it would be sustainable and fun.” The environmental professor emphasized making that shifting our every day lives to create new habits, collectively.
Fruit Trees for All Residents
Schwartzman says serving as both a professor and the mayor of Galesburg provides the chance to make changes in his community outside of Knox College as well. He created what he calls “Project 350.” The project aims to plant 350 trees in the community within five years, a vastly underestimated outcome, as within 4 years, he says 710 trees have already been planted.
These 710 trees included fruit trees that that community is welcome to take from. The produce garden, planting trees, and an increase in composting, he says, are low cost, low maintenance ways that SAU could greatly increase overall sustainability.
Schwartzman’s passion for the topic was contagious and palpable, his message almost bringing him to tears more than once. “The biggest lie we’re told,” he says, “is that ‘we don’t have the money for these efforts.” He explains that the United States has a military budget of 968.4 billion dollars, and a global military budget of 2.5 trillion, money that he says could be reallocated to sustainability efforts.
“If we stopped killing each other, we could make the world a better and more sustainable place for everyone. Peace starts person to person.”
Following the presentation, SAU communications major and senior Sophia Holthaus asked, “What can we do as individual students to make a difference?” To this, Schwartzman suggested the SAU community reach out. “Make a connection, get to know your neighbor, and together, create new norms.” Human connection plays a big part in long term sustainability.
One Galesburg resident, who traveled to SAU to hear the speaker, asked what students can do to make sustainability changes happen here on campus. “Talk to administration. Organize, advocate, and really believe in what you’re advocating for,” he says. “Sticking to just recycling is selling ourselves short, there is so much more than can be done.”
Schwartzman ended his talk with a focus on the word “regeneration”, which is defined as “actively restoring and renewing ecological, social, and economic systems.” Only through this act, he believes, can we really make this planet healthy and equitable for everyone, on the SAU campus and around the world.
Schwartzman’s talks can be found on YouTube.com/onehumannow, or in his book, “The Earth is Not For Sale” which can be purchased at theearthisnotforsale.org.
The next talk in the Sustainability Speaker Series will be held on April 1 at 10 am, in McMullen 145, where Ambrose will welcome Lindsey Given Elgi from the Iowa Waste Exchange to present more new ideas to students.
