Eco-Topics at the Addlestone - College of Charleston Libraries
From Academia to Activism
SPONSORED BY THE ADDLESTONE LIBRARY, College of Charleston, 205 Calhoun Street
“The earth is a communion of subjects, not a collection of objects.”
— Dr. Thomas Berry, Eco-Theologian
Please Note: SOME OF THE LOCATIONS HAVE BEEN CHANGED.
In response to our current ecological challenges, these events are designed as a series of teach-ins for the public as well as to supplement classroom courses. All events include ample opportunity for audience Q /A and discussion. Convenient public parking is available at the college garage at 81 St. Philip Street (next to the Bell Building) and at the Francis Marion Garage on King Street.
FEB. 1, Thursday, 3:30-5:00 p.m. – Location changed to Maybank Hall, Room 100
Documentary Film: “KILOWATT OURS” (2004)
Presenter: TIM WILLARD, Executive Board Member, Sustainable Campus Initiative (SCI); Environmental Studies (Graduate Student). Did you know that American schools spend more on energy bills than they do on computers and text books combined? Did you know that the average home in the Southeast uses 30% more electricity per month than the national average? Please see the film, and then join Tim Willard afterwards as he shares creative ideas about how each of us can reduce our usage of non-renewable energy resources.
FEB. 8, Thursday, 6:15-8:15 p.m. – Location changed to Admissions Auditorium, Robert Scott Small Bldg. (Old Library)
Also – The time is now 15 minutes later – no longer at 6:00 p.m.
Panel Discussion with Q & A: “ALTERNATIVE ENERGY IN SOUTH CAROLINA”
Moderator: F. SCOT FITZGERALD, Geology Department (Senior Student).
Panelists: ARY FUN, Southeast Biodiesel, will discuss the innovative use of recycled vegetable oil and other alternatives to conventional automotive fuel use; JONATHAN BROWN, Clean Cities International, will inform us about his organization’s work in Charleston to create a government-industry partnership designed to reduce consumer petroleum consumption; BRENDT RUEGER, New Generation Craftsmen, will talk about the trend in green building; and LIZ KRESS, Santee Cooper, will present information about new developments in Green Power by utility companies in South Carolina.
FEB. 13, Tuesday, 4:00-6:00 p.m. – Location changed to Admissions Auditorium, Robert Scott Small Bldg. (Old Library)
Documentary Film: “WHO KILLED THE ELECTRIC CAR?” (2006)
Presenter: PROF. SETH PRITCHARD, Biology Dept., will lead a discussion and answer questions after the film. This entertaining documentary provides a post-mortem exploration of GM’s electric car, the EV1. Massive numbers of this model were intentionally destroyed even as it was gaining in popularity. Director Chris Paine playfully searches for the various “culprits” involved in its demise as though this were a murder mystery with a host of suspects. His goal in making the film is to spread awareness to consumers about alternative modes of transportation.
FEB. 20, Tuesday, 6:00-8:00 p.m. – Currently scheduled for Addlestone Library, Room 227, but pay attention to library website.
Documentary Film: “SAVING SANDY ISLAND” (2006)
Presenters: TRENHOLM WALKER, lawyer, and DANA BEACH, Director of the Coastal Conservation League. The CCL and the Sandy Island Community Action Club collaborated over the course of 3 years to turn away development from the island and to provide permanent protection. Trenholm Walker provided legal representation for the residents pro bono during that period and served as the liaison between the community and the Coastal Conservation League. Q & A to follow.
FEB. 22, Thursday, 6:00-8:00 p.m. – currently scheduled for Addlestone Library, Room 227, but pay attention to library website.
Presentation with Q & A: “JOHNS ISLAND: THEN AND NOW”
Presenter: BILL SAUNDERS, Director and CEO of the Committee on Better Racial Assurance (COBRA).
What was the African American culture of Johns Island like fifty or more years ago, and how was it impacted by the development of Kiawah Island? More importantly, what kind of impact will currently planned urban development have on Johns Island? Bill Saunders will talk about the history and culture of this rural sea island – the second largest island on the East Coast – and the potentially devastating consequences that urban development will have on long-standing communities and Gullah culture.
FEB. 27, Tuesday, 6:00-8:00 p.m. – currently scheduled for Addlestone Library, Room 227, but pay attention to library website
PowerPoint Presentation with Q & A: “PARADISE LOST? The Story of Longleaf Pine”
Presenter: DR. JEAN EVERETT, Botanist, Dept of Biology
Longleaf pine ecosystems once covered 90 million acres of the Southeastern Coastal Plain with magnificent forests and astonishing biodiversity. The story of longleaf – exploited by old growth timbering and turpentining, industrial forests and urban development – is the history of the economy and culture of our region. Today, the longleaf ecosystem is 97% gone, and with it many rare plants and animals. Come and learn what you can do to help preserve and restore the Francis Marion and other bejeweled Southeastern forests.
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MAR. 15, Thursday, 3:15-5:00 p.m. – location will probably change
Doc. Film: “BANKING ON DISASTER: The Grave Consequences of Building a Road through the Heart of Amazonia (1987)
Presenter: DR. MARCELA RABI, Hispanic Studies, will highlight the Amazon Rainforest as a case study analysis of the ways in which human activities cause environmental degradation, focusing on the micro- and macro-politics of development. She will show the connection between local sustainability, governmental policies, foreign interests and other stakeholders in the spectrum of rainforest deforestation.
MAR. 22, Thursday, 6:00-8:00 p.m. – pay attention to library website
Presentation with Q & A: “AN ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE ON THE GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS”
Presenter: PROF. JOHN RASHFORD, Anthropologist, Ethnobotanist, Department of Sociology/Anthropology. Prof. Rashford takes a look at the root of the world environmental crisis as it relates to culture-based human reproduction success and our need for an ever-increasing mode of intensive adaptation. He discusses humanity’s species-specific capacity for innovation, but contends that ecological crises can be resolved only with a deep comprehension of the paradigm from which these problems developed.
MAR. 24, Saturday, 1:00-3:00 p.m. – Participants will meet at Cistern in front of Randolph Hall
Workshop: “ON THE WAY HOME: Ecosteries and Natural Systems Thinking Process”
Presenter: DAN SHELTON, Graduate Student in Integrated Ecology and Applied Eco-psychology, Institute of Global Education. How can we best learn about humanity’s connection with the rest of nature? Thinking, when trained in abstract ways, can easily become alienated from nature’s rhythms. Such thinking, when applied to nature management policies, can create disruptive ecological effects. Spend some time with Dan Shelton in this relaxing outdoor workshop where he will teach participants ways to reconnect with our natural sensory perceptions.
APR. 5, Thursday, 6:00-8:00 p.m. – location will probably change
Documentary Film: “THIRST” (2004)
Co-Presenters: PROF. TIM CALLAHAN, Geology and Environmental Geosciences, and a Representative from Water Missions International. Every individual’s life and health is dependent upon having an adequate supply of clean water. Yet 2.6 billion people lack access to this basic resource, according to a 2006 U.N. report. While water shortage is reaching an epidemic global crisis, multi-national corporations are increasingly treating water as a commodity to be bought and sold. Is water a basic human right? Following the film, Prof. Tim Callahan will discuss the international politics and policies of water resources. The WMI representative will talk about the work of this Charleston-based organization in providing water treatment technology for developing regions around the world.