There were many ways that students at the University of Georgia celebrated Homecoming Week over the past several days, but on Friday, UGA junior Melissa Puckett chose to commemorate the event in an unconventional and socially-conscious manner.
All dressed up for homecoming, and wearing a white sash that read “Homecoming 2030,“ the 26-year-old Athens native stood silently at The Arch, the entryway to UGA’s North Campus.
The statement she was making was symbolized by the oxygen mask that covered her face and was attached to a small, clear tank containing a single tree sapling.
"The purpose of the statement was to make people uncomfortable, kind of to say, ‘You can distract yourself all you want and go about business as usual,’ but the climate crisis is happening, and it needs to be addressed,” Puckett said.
“This will be our future if we don't make drastic changes, and I really want more of the student body to be aware of that,” she said.
Puckett is a mother of two who majors in forestry and is a member of the Georgia Climate Change Coalition and the Extinction Rebellion movement,
Puckett said she planned to stage on-campus awareness activities each Friday while continuing to work towards a clean, renewable future.