03 Apr Trash Matters, San Marcos

Every day, trash affects the health of the San Marcos community, river, and ecosystem. TRASH MATTERS will connect Texas State students with San Marcos and capitalize on existing student involvement with Keep San Marcos Beautiful to highlight sustainability research and education opportunities provided by Texas State.

For more information visit: http://trash-matters.org

Thursday, April 3^rd

KSMB Spring Concert and Recycled Art Contest
San Marcos Plaza Park | 6 P.M.

Kick-start the Trash Matters event with a free concert featuring the Crystal Creek Boys and The City Limits Us All. Local children will create innovative art from recycled materials. This art will be displayed along with the 5 Gyres ocean trash exhibit in San Marcos at the Texas Wild Rice Festival (April 11-12) and throughout June.

Friday, April 4^th

#Microbead Instagram Slam
Instagram & Twitter | All Day & Ongoing

Are you washing your face or brushing your teeth with bits of plastic? You are if any of your personal products contain micro-beads. These tiny bits of “plastic without a plan” are washed down our drains, unfiltered by wastewater treatment, and find their way into our lakes and oceans where they enter our food chain.

Take a look in your bathroom cabinet for products that contain microplastics (ingredient: polyethelene) and share your photos of them on Instagram or your favorite social media platform using the hashtags #microbead #TrashMatters #plasticpollution to help raise awareness of this problem. We will be collecting products containing microbeads and sending them to 5Gyres at every event.

Saturday, April 5^th

Don't Mess with Texas Trash Off
Dunbar Rec Center, San Marcos, TX | 9 A.M.

Join KSMB volunteers to pick up litter in the San Marcos community. This clean-up event is part of a national effort. Texas State students working with 5 Gyres on their assessment of plastic pollution will analyze the location, type and quantity of all plastic gathered by the volunteers.

Foodstock
Courthouse Lawn, San Marcos, TX | 1 – 6 P.M.

Foodstock is a tri-annual community concert program that raises money and gathers food for the Hays County Food Bank. Learn how Texas State is reducing pollution and developing the Habitat Conservation Plan.

Monday, April 7^th

Plastic Paradise film screening
Evans Liberal Arts, Texas State University | 7 P.M.

Every single piece of plastic that has ever been created since the 19th century is still somewhere on our planet. So if it never goes away, where does it go? Since its debut last March, Plastic Paradise has been screened around the country, including at SXSW in Austin last October. Come and join in a discussion about the importance of removing trash from our local environment.

Tuesday, April 8^th

5 Gyres Founders' lecture
Centennial Theatre, Texas State University | 7 P.M.

Anna Cummins and Marcus Eriksen will speak for 45 minutes about their founding of 5 Gyres, the research voyages that their organization conducts and the scientific research they sponsor. Local pollution organizations will join them for a panel discussion on the importance of research and community education in reducing the consumer impact on river and ocean ecosystems.