Nestled within the Lake Sunapee Region of New London, New Hampshire, Colby-Sawyer College (CSC) spearheads environmental stewardship. As a leading campus in sustainability, the college has achieved LEED Silver Certification, decreased its energy costs by $150,000 annually, and reduced its energy-intensive outputs by 50%.
But Colby Sawyer College’s efforts don’t stop at infrastructure. Campus Compact EnviroCorps (CCEC) members Beth Williams and Lucy Thompson are at the forefront of the college’s sustainable initiatives, turning campus visions into community action.
Revitalizing the Campus Garden
Beth and Lucy’s service goes beyond the immediate impact of removing invasive species like oriental bittersweet or honeysuckle. They are focused on creating a living laboratory that unites the community. By bringing the campus permaculture garden back to life, they are spreading awareness about biodiversity—a cornerstone to Colby-Sawyer College’s broader mission.
At its core, a permaculture garden replicates a natural ecosystem, designed to sustain itself with minimal interference once it reaches maturity. CSC intends for this project to be a community-led endeavor, where students on campus and New London residents alike have liberty to grow food in dedicated garden beds.
Translating this vision into reality, however, requires careful planning—and Beth and Lucy are doing exactly that.
To establish a sustainable foundation, Beth is drafting a garden management plan that aligns monthly planting schedules with community maintenance needs. By leveraging guides supplied by Spring Ledge Farm, she is also developing educational resources to help the public navigate the garden’s lifecycle.
This strategy is bolstered by a network of local support. The campus Seed Library is set to jumpstart the initiative as part of its mission to address food insecurity, while Kearsarge Food Hub’s “Tray it Forward” program will provide additional vegetable seedlings. To ensure the garden remains a purely organic resource, the duo is also cultivating partnerships with Berkshire Roots, CSC’s Dining Services, the Sustainability Core Club, and the Sustainability Club.
Beyond these physical assets, Beth and Lucy dedicate significant time to cultivating community partnerships—like with Berkshire Roots and CSC’s Dining Services, Sustainability Core Club, and Gardening Club—that ensure the garden remains a purely organic resource from planting to composting.
While the plan is sophisticated, the current state of the garden requires some heavy lifting. Though the COVID-19 pandemic stalled routine upkeep for a few years, the site is once again becoming a hub of activity. Students from the Sustainability Club, led by Lucy, contributed to ensure the space is both safe and welcoming.
“The bridge at the garden was actually falling apart,” Lucy laughed, recalling the hands-on-nature of the work. “My foot almost fell through!”
The moment peaked on November 7th, when Beth, Lucy, and five student volunteers across the Sustainability Core Club and Garden Club took the first major steps toward restoration. Together, they cleared vines of invasive bittersweet surrounding the garden and built a new compost container using only materials already on-hand at CSC—a commitment to upcycling.
(The compost container features wood planks interwoven together and contains leaves and mulch that will become fertilizer for the garden beds. | Photographed by Beth Williams)
While still in its early stages, the project has already proven to be a masterclass in initiative and resource management. By balancing the physical needs of the land with a long-term vision for education, Beth and Lucy are helping the community return to nature, teaching them how to learn from the natural world while actively protecting the planet and their own communities.
Unexpected Paths to Service
Beth and Lucy may share a mission today, but their paths to environmental service began in very different places.
Beth’s connection to the land started on her family’s farm in Pennsylvania. Surrounded by animals and completely entrenched in nature, she spent much of her childhood climbing large trees just to find a quiet place to read.
While she initially planned to follow in her dad’s footsteps to become a doctor, her pre-med track in college revealed a different calling. “I suppose I enjoyed learn about everything else,” she admitted, referring to the wildlife and ecosystems that felt more like home than a hospital ward.
While Beth was climbing trees, Lucy was viewing nature through a lens. As a New London native, Lucy spent her time practicing wildlife photography, snapping photos of the animals in her own neighborhood. Her hobby eventually turned into a deep curiosity about how humans and animals live in conjunction—and how both parties shape the world they share. This fascination with local ecosystems eventually led her to pursue Environmental Science at Colby-Sawyer.
(Shots Lucy took of backyard wildlife in New London. Left: Eastern chipmunk | Right: Common Eastern bumble bee)
Those early interests solidified into a professional calling when they discovered Campus Compact EnviroCorps.
For Beth, the spark was a friend’s positive experience as a VISTA at Bucknell University. As part of her senior year capstone project, Beth participated in urban forestry initiatives with a local organization in Pennsylvania with the support of a VISTA as a mentor.
“He was very happy, and that’s what inspired me to join,” Beth reminisced. She came across the listing for a CCEC member at Colby-Sawyer College, and she sought the opportunity.
After graduating with a double major in Biology and Environmental Science, she came across the CCEC opportunity and knew she had to take it. She viewed it as the perfect bridge to graduate school.
Lucy’s entry into the program was a bit more serendipitous. While searching for an internship during her junior year at CSC, her current site supervisor, Noelle Bassi, pointed her toward EnviroCorps. It proved to be a perfect fit for both her academic goals and personal life: Living with health conditions that can limit certain typical field tasks, Lucy found that CCEC offered a unique way to protect the environment through education and community organizing.
Both Beth and Lucy have moved from theory to impact. Beth has traded her senior capstone for the real-world logistics of conservation, navigating funding complexities, and building partnerships with organizations like the Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum. Meanwhile, Lucy has been serving since May 2025, guiding the campus through the transition from the quiet summer months to the high-energy academic year.
Together, they’re proving that whether you come from a Pennsylvania farm or right here in New London, there is a vital place for everyone in the work of environmental stewardship.
While large-scale projects are vital, it’s often the smaller moments that resonate most. Beth finds herself reminded of her impact whenever students approach her on campus for help with their own sustainability ideas. Meanwhile, Lucy is assisting with a student-led initiative to collect 1,000 pounds of plastic recyclables, which will be turned into a high-quality recycled bench for the campus. This provides a tangible win for the community, ensuring plastic stays out of the environment and landfills and students enjoy the outdoors.
When they aren’t out in the field, the duo can be found in the Sustainable Classroom, one of the most unique spots on campus. Built by over 100 students and a recently retired professor, the room features walls insulated with straw and cellulose, with south-facing windows that naturally heat the concrete floor and “cob” benches.
“There’s three hammocks,” Lucy gleamed. “Hammocks! In a classroom!”
The Road Ahead: Protecting the Lake
As the semester shifts toward the spring, the duo is preparing to combat the winter blues of environmental work. Their focus pivots toward the garden volunteer days, Earth Month festivities, and critical conservation projects with the Lake Sunapee Protection Association (LSPA) to ensure positive lake quality.
In a town like New London, a premier destination for boating and fishing, lake protection is a top priority. Beth and Lucy will educate visitors on the “Clean/Drain/Dry” method for watercraft as the weather warms.
By ensuring boats and kayaks are properly cleaned before moving between bodies of water, they hope to prevent the spread of invasive species that threaten the lake’s fragile ecosystem.
Spiny water fleas, for instance, have an affinity for rapid reproduction. With their hooked tails that deter native predatory fish, a population boom quickly overwhelms a closed body of water.
Similarly, algae blooms caused by cyanobacteria in freshwater systems are a significant concern. When left unchecked, these blooms deplete oxygen stores in the water and produce dangerous toxins that damage the skin, liver, and/or nervous system of wildlife. By teaching the community about biotic resistance and biodiversity, Beth and Lucy are helping the lake defend itself against these invaders.
While spring activities are still in early stages, their project has already served as a masterclass in taking initiative. When asked what advice they would give to those following in their footsteps, the duo emphasized sustainability is a lifestyle, not simply a job title.
“Don’t forget about environmental stewardship outside of your job,” Beth urged. “Think about these things in your everyday life.”
Lucy added a final nudge to her fellow students: “Participate in these events. You gain valuable experience, a resume booster, and you actually make the world a little bit better.”