Be Good. Be Orange.

Submitted by Sarah Howey

Within the Oregon State University community there are several values that are identified with the campus and beaver life. These include such values as: accountability, diversity, integrity, respect and social responsibility (“Strategic Plan”). These are indeed appropriate values to have when incorporating the entirety of the students within the university. By having these common goals and ideals to that the students can aspire to achieve, it makes the entirety of the university unified.

I personally believe in the values that have been previously listed. However, there is one value that I think is the primary value that represents the OSU community and that is compassion. Though, with this being said, the values that are identified in the OSU Strategic Plan are the backbone to this value of compassion. One cannot have compassion without having integrity or respect. I feel that Oregon State has those qualities. We embrace them during our time on campus and it is my hope that we continue to embody those values after graduation. OSU students practice compassion through our progressive studies in being energy efficient and creating new ways of being environmentally friendly. Examples include minimizing parking spaces to encourage students and faculty to bike, walk or take the bus. Another example is the system of renewable energy in Dixon; having the treadmills wired to produce energy that is reused for campus operations.

To be compassionate, based on my personal definition, is to practice thoughtfulness towards others. In terms of OSU, this means actively being conscious of the environment and being stewards of the earth. Being compassionate is being respectful to those around you, whether human or animal. “OSU’s agricultural programs have received national top-tier rankings from the Chronicle of Higher Education for research, with wildlife science and conservation biology ranking 1st, fisheries science 2nd, botany and plant pathology and forest resources at 5th, and agricultural and resource economics 7th” (“Oregon State ranks 8th best worldwide in agriculture and forestry”). Other scientific research towards our common goals of energy efficiency and compassion towards all life includes the Oregon Sea Grant, which enabled the community to harness power from the ocean waves and wind (“Power from Ocean Waves and Wind”).

Pride is an Aristotelian virtue and I believe that being compassionate encompasses pride. Aristotle states that pride is a man who is and thinks of himself doing great things; in addition, being a Beaver is something worthy of having pride. Pride is having honor and love and loyalty for something that is of importance and within this community, sustainability is considered to be of great importance. We have to embody compassion first, before we can begin to understand and make progressive movements towards sustainability and energy efficiency. I understand why the values of accountability, diversity, integrity, respect and social responsibility are incorporated into the ideals of the university. We have to accept our impact in this world and accept that we all have a role to play in improving the lives of all. In order to do this, we have to accept diversity, practice integrity and respect. We all have a social responsibility to the earth and to each other. But most of all we have to be compassionate to all: we are Beaver Nation!

“Oregon State ranks 8th best worldwide in agriculture and forestry.” College of Agriculture Sciences. Oregon State University, n.d. Web. 10 Mar 2014.

<http://agsci.oregonstate.edu/feature-story/cas-rank-8>.

“Power from Ocean Waves and Wind.” Oregon Sea Grant. Oregon State University, n.d. Web. 10 Mar 2014.

<http://seagrant.oregonstate.edu/marine-renewable-energy>.

“Strategic Plan.” Leadership. Oregon State University, n.d. Web. March 10 2014.

<http://oregonstate.edu/leadership/strategicplan/>.