World Issues Forum to focus on the environment
Scholars and activists from diverse backgrounds will have the opportunity to engage and inform individuals on a variety of global and local issues for the Winter 2014 World Issues Forum/Paths to Global Justice lecture series, held by Western Washington University’s Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies.
The following forums are free and open to the public, and are from noon to 1:20 p.m. every Wednesday in the Fairhaven College Auditorium, unless noted otherwise:
Wednesday, Jan. 15 - The Science of Climate Change: A Settled Matter?
Presenter: Jack Herring, dean of Western’s Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies
Understanding the human impact on the Earth’s climate is one of the most pressing and complex scientific questions of this time. While our understanding of climate dynamics is improving, those opposing immediate action on climate change often point to scientific uncertainty to bolster their arguments. In some cases, the science is largely settled, but many key climate feedback mechanisms are poorly understood. This leaves global humanity with immense ethical questions about how to decide what risk of climate change is tolerable and who will bear the brunt of preventing the change or adapting to it.
Wednesday, Jan. 22 - Protecting the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
Presenter: Princess Daazhraii Johnson, executive director of the Gwich'in Steering Committee, one of the oldest indigenous nonprofit groups in Alaska
The Gwich'in Nation has been working to protect the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for more than 30 years. The birthing and nursing grounds of the Porcupine Caribou Herd – which Gwich'in villages throughout Alaska and Canada depend upon for food –is located on the coastal plain sometimes referred to the 1002 Area, which continues to be the target for oil and gas development. In addition to this immediate threat, Alaska is also at the forefront of climate change. Johnson will discuss the grassroots efforts of the Gwich'in to protect their way of life and how they have been able to sustain these efforts over the years.
Wednesday, Jan. 29 - The Global Environmental Challenge of China
Presenter: Robert V. Percival, Robert F. Stanton Professor of Law; director of the Environmental Law Program at the University of Maryland’s Francis King Carey School of Law
China’s rapid development has come at a staggering cost to the environment. More than 1.2 million Chinese die each year from exposure to air pollution, which at times has been so bad as to shut down economic activity in major Chinese cities. As the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases, China now has more impact on the health of the planet than any other country, giving everyone a stake in efforts to combat Chinese pollution. This lecture will explore why the enactment of extensive bodies of environmental law has not been enough to turn the tide in China and the prospects for overcoming this immense challenge to the world’s environment.
Wednesday, Feb. 5 - Global Food Production and Climate Change
Presenter: David Battisti, professor of Atmospheric Sciences and Tamaki Endowed Chair, University of Washington
By the end of the century, the season averaged growing temperature will very likely exceed the highest temperature ever recorded throughout the tropics and subtropics. By 2050, the increase in temperature alone is forecast to cause a 20 percent reduction in the yield of all of the major grains (maize, rice, wheat and soybeans). The breadbasket countries in the midlatitudes will experience marked increases in year-to-year volatility in crop production. Increasing stresses on the major crops due to climate change, coupled with the increasing demand for food due to increasing population and development, present significant challenges to achieving global food security.
Wednesday, Feb. 12 - Climate Change and Human Rights: Lessons from Alaska
Presenter: Nancy Lord, author and former Alaska State Writer Laureate
Lord will present ways in which indigenous Alaskans, with long histories of resilience and adaptability, are challenged by climate change that threatens their abilities to live on ancestral lands and gather traditional foods. She'll share examples of their strategies for coping with environmental change and suggest what we might learn and do as good global citizens.
Wednesday, Feb.19 - Red Sky at Morning: Ethics and the Climate Crisis
Presenter: Kathleen Dean Moore, distinguished professor of Philosophy at Oregon State University; director of the Spring Creek Project for Ideas, Nature, and the Written Word
Global warming and the souring of the seas are real and dangerous threats to all ecosystems and the people who depend on them. This is a scientific and political issue, but it is fundamentally a moral issue and it calls for a moral response. Come hear author and activist Kathleen Dean Moore speak about our responsibility to take urgent action. What must be done? What can we do?
Wednesday, Feb. 26 - Tropic of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence
Presenter: Christian Parenti, professor at the School for International Training Graduate Institute
Drawing on his recent book, “Tropic of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence,” (2011) and recent travels in the Global South, Christian Parenti will discuss the intersection between war and climate change and what can be done about it. This lecture will be repeated at the Bellingham Public Library, downtown, at 7 p.m., and is co-sponsored by the Mount Baker Sierra Club.
Wednesday, March 5 - The Next Energy Economy: Moving Forward with Grassroots Strategies to Mitigate Global Climate Change
Presenter: Winona LaDuke (Anishinaabe)
LaDuke, an internationally acclaimed author, orator and activist protecting the lands and life ways of Native communities, will discuss strategies on how everyday citizens can enact change that benefits the planet and its climate.
For more information on the World Issues Forum speaker series presented by Western’s Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies, call Shirley Osterhaus at (360) 650-2309 or visit the World Issues Forum Website at http://www.wwu.edu/fairhaven/news/worldissuesforum/index.shtml.
WWU's Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies, established in 1967, is nationally recognized for innovation in teaching and learning, intensive advising, student-designed majors, narrative assessment, experiential and independent learning and a commitment to social justice.