After warm weather ignited blooms earlier in April, these cherry blossoms near Gordon Hall lingered into Earth Week. As part of the celebration at HMS, Herbert Benson of the Institute for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital spoke about the relationship between nature, stress and health. Photo by Jake Miller

Fourth-year medical student Sherman Jia gets a tune-up at the free bike clinic, co-sponsored by Quad Bikes in Cambridge, the Harvard University Office of Sustainability and Harvard Medical School. The clinics, offered in spring and fall are designed to encourage eco-friendly commuting habits throughout the year. Photo by Angela Alberti

Mike Berlinger of Quad Bikes tuning up a derailleur on the Quad. Cambridge-based Quad Bikes is a non-profit bike shop for the Harvard Community. Photo by Jake Miller

Emily Bingham, a Best Bees beekeeper, and Alicia Murchie, sustainability program manager for the Longwood campus talk with Christian Nasciemento, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee inspection officer, and Moira Sheehan, clinical veterinarian and research associate in surgery at the Harvard Center for Comparative Medicine, about urban beekeeping at the HMS Sustainability Showcase.

From left: Brian Bender, BCMP research technician; Shariya Terrell, PhD student in BCMP; and Jarom Chung, PhD student in Cell Biology, learned about more energy efficient lab practices and supplies at the sustainability fair at Elements Café in the New Research Building. Photo by Lindsey Bourcier

Noah Wilson-Rich, a bee-biologist and founder of urban beekeeping consultancy Best Bees spoke about the crucial role of bees in agriculture and the potential health benefits of urban honey. Photo by Jake Miller

Beth Beighlie, HMS senior client services representative gets a closer look at honey bees before the Urban Beekeeping talk by Noah Wilson-Rich from the Best Bees Company. Photo by Angela Alberti

Thousands of tiny feet tickle the hands of a participant in the urban beekeeping demonstration. In the face of sharp worldwide declines in honeybee colonies since 2006, urban beekeeping provides bees with a diversified environment and what seems to be a safer, more productive habitat than the countryside. Researchers at Harvard School of Public Health recently announced that they had found “convincing evidence” of a link between Colony Collapse Disorder and a widely used pesticide. Photo by Jake Miller

The Somerville-based Taza Chocolate says that its vegan-friendly chocolate, made using traditional methods and organic, fair-trade cacao give farmers an incentive to practice sustainable agriculture and consumers a heart-healthy treat rich in antioxidants. Photo by Jake Miller

This Hermit Thrush, a relatively common migrant along the nearby Muddy River made a rare campus appearance on the Quad. Choosing sustainably cultivated products, like shade-grown coffee, can help protect the Central American wintering grounds of our spring and summer birds. Photo by Jake Miller

Growing your own food—from herbs to pineapples—is a simple way to get fresh, delicious, environmentally friendly food. This spring the Countway Library will open a new community garden on campus. Photo by Lindsey Bourcier

Sampling sweet sustainability at the Courtyard Café. Students, staff and faculty learned how delicious healthy and sustainable eating can be at the sustainability fair at Elements Café in the New Research Building. Photo by Lindsey Bourcier