PoE Associate Director, Dr. Kristi Straus on Carbon Offsetting and Travel in The Seattle Times.
Bill McKibben Discusses Falter: May 2 7:30pm Kane 120
McKibben’s earlier work offered prescient warnings about climate change. But in his newest book he suggests the danger is broader than that. Join us for a thought-provoking discussion about the future.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Thirty years ago Bill McKibben offered one of the earliest warnings about climate change. Now he broadens the warning: the entire human game, he suggests, has begun to play itself out.
Bill McKibben’s groundbreaking book The End of Nature — issued in dozens of languages and long regarded as a classic — was the first book to alert us to global warming. But the danger is broader than that: even as climate change shrinks the space where our civilization can exist, new technologies like artificial intelligence and robotics threaten to bleach away the variety of human experience.
Falter tells the story of these converging trends and of the ideological fervor that keeps us from bringing them under control. And then, drawing on McKibben’s experience in building 350.org, the first truly global citizens movement to combat climate change, it offers some possible ways out of the trap. We’re at a bleak moment in human history — and we’ll either confront that bleakness or watch the civilization our forebears built slip away.
Falter is a powerful and sobering call to arms, to save not only our planet but also our humanity.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Bill McKibben is a founder of the environmental organization 350.org and was among the first to have warned of the dangers of global warming. He is the author of the bestsellers The End of Nature, Eaarth, and Deep Economy. He is the Schumann Distinguished Scholar in Environmental Studies at Middlebury College and the winner of the Gandhi Prize, the Thomas Merton Prize, and the Right Livelihood Prize. He lives in Vermont.
This event is presented in partnership with the University of Washington Program on the Environment, and is supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, author series sponsor Gary Kunis, and media sponsor The Seattle Times, and presented in partnership with Elliott Bay Book Company. Books will be available for purchase at the event.
PoE Lecturer Tim Billo Makes News in Work with Sword Fern Die-Off
Tim Billo, instructor of our Natural History of the Puget Sound Region course, practices what he preaches. He uses his research into the natural history of our local sword ferns as a way of introducing undergraduates to research, demonstrating to them that they can make important contributions to natural history, as well as to helping to solve pressing ecological issues. Indeed, as the article suggests, this research would not be possible without the collaborative efforts of many concerned citizens, including our students who have played crucial roles over the past four years.
PoE Spring Fling: April 4, 4-6pm
The annual PoE Spring Fling is scheduled for Thursday, April 4, from 4-6pm. Students are invited to join PoE faculty for food, fun and community building. Pizza and salad will be provided and there will be plenty of opportunities to get to hang out with friends and meet new people! Please join in the fun! Send your questions to the PoE Advisor, Ana Wieman at enviradv@uw.edu
Spring 2019 Capstone Symposium: May 29
The Program on the Environment will host the Spring 2019 Capstone Symposium on Wednesday, May 29, in the Fishery Science Building. All are welcome to attend and support students as they present on the culmination of their hard work over three quarters.
The Capstone Course Series is a highlight for many students, and serves to catapult some into their first jobs or event their dream careers. Through internships, research, and social media training, students come out of the experience well equipped to communicate about the problem they sought to solve, and to tie their academic learning with specific research questions.
This event is open to the public, and we encourage students interested in learning about the Capstone, as well as members of the community, to join us. There will be beverages and snacks served. For those who can’t attend in person, please follow the event on Twitter #POEcap.
**Abstracts and additional information about each project can be found in here: Word/PDF.
Spring 2019 Symposium Schedule
Wednesday May 29
4:30PM – Opening remarks/housekeeping
Session A – Poster I: Agriculture & Food systems, Green Business & Sustainability, Natural Science & Conservation Policy & Regulation
4:40PM – 5:35PM
Maddy Carr – Greening Business: Systematic Ordering Strategies for Sustainable Purchasing
Isabella Castro – Enforcing Environmental Laws through Collaboration
Olivia Clark – Urban Forestry and Equity in the Puget Sound Region
Brenda Cueva – City Fruit Trees: Combating Food Insecurity
Brandy Do – Alaska Native Villages’ Solid Waste Burden and Its Ties to Environmental Injustice
Jon Akira Doyle – Lawn Care 101: Grassroots Mobilization and Political Polarization
Byambasuren Enkhee – Obstacles to Practicing Regenerative Agriculture
John Ericksen – The Keys to Improving Sustainable Choice’s Surveys
Erin Filley – Farmland Preservation in the U.S.: Public Perceptions and Communication Strategy
Jia Hui Huang – Find Out the Pacific Ocean Perch Species Early Growth Rate by Morphometric Analysis and Calculation
Sally Kamae – The Soundscape of Military Aircraft on the Olympic Peninsula
Eunice Lee – Sustainable Oil Production: Can It Be Done?
Winslow S. Lewis – Clearing the Air: Indoor Air Quality in Alaska Native Villages
Elijah Maesner – How Are College Athletics Saving the Environment?
Anna McKee – Raptor Rehabilitation Demographics: Human Impacts in Western Washington
Russell Monroe – Applying Environmental Discourse to Disaster Mitigation Strategies
Anneliese Smyth – Improving Sustainability Efforts in Universities across the United States: Developing Better Procurement Practices
Meghan Strom – How does Technology Impact our Connection with Nature?
Ariana Winkler – Barking Up the Wrong Trail: How Trail Users and their Dogs Impact Wildlife
Meghan Wirth – The Toxics Release Inventory: Mining in Region 10
Session B – Lightning Talks: Capstone, Here & Away
5:45PM – Introduction
Jane Green – Barriers to Composting Correctly: A Case Study of Seattle Schools
Alec Egurrola – Is Discovery Park Actually Public?
Kathleen Peterson – Promoting Alternative Transportation and Environmental Awareness to Encourage Sustainable Commuting Habits
Sam Kleinfinger – Ocean Acidification and Native Tribes: Sharing Stories from the Olympic Coast
Delgerzaya Delgerjargal – How to Protect Blue Whales from Ship Strikes
Rachel Fricke – A Bobber’s Perspective on Angler-Driven Vectors of Invasive Species Transmission
Tiara Adler – Coastal Resilience: Shoreline Management and Sea Level Rise in Andalucía and the Puget Sound
Nick Hanson – Water in Wolaita: GIS Evaluated as a Tool for Informed Decision Making in Sodo, Ethiopia
Jacob Huskey – Birds. Bags. Bioinspiration: What We Do with What We Know About Nature
Emily Menz – A New Approach for Valuing Biodiversity: Lessons from the Peruvian Amazon
Session C – Poster II: Education & Outreach
7:10PM – 8:00PM
Lauren Campbell – From Stock Health to Public Health – Revitalizing West Coast Groundfish with a Health-Focused Marketing Campaign
Gabriella Chilczuk – Three Strategies Towards Diversifying Climate Engagement
Victoria Choi – Are We Taking Full Advantage of our Sustainable Campus?
Saulyman Corr – Service-Learning and Teachers Goals, Can We Meet the Needs?
Eden Cypher – Collaboration is Key: Steps for Increasing Diversity within the Environmental Movement
David Dryburgh – Benefits of Spatial Data: Discovery Park and Accessible GIS Information
Erika Gersten – Putting the “Fiddle” In “Fiddleheads:” Music Education in an Outdoor Preschool
Truc Ho – Trash Free Water: How Community can be Involved in Policy Management and Scientific Research?
Rori Kirkpatrick – How to Teach and Engage the Local Community via Social Media- Supporting Local Agriculture
Pooja Kumar – Environmental Outreach and Community Engagement: What Does it Take to Spur Climate Action in King County?
Lorraine Lee – Evaluating Single-Time Environmental Outreach Program and Their Effects in Stem Education
Arendje Louter – Signs of the Times: How Technology Can Improve Environmental Awareness
Jessica Murphy – Climate Communications: How Can We Reach Goals More Effectively?
Gina Pak – Utilizing Technology for Interpretive Material in Urban Parks: Opportunities and Barriers
Ankush Puri – Protect Your Pipes: Flush Only Toilet Paper
Angelina Quilici – Knowledge Surrounding Salmon in the Lake Washington Watershed
Jenny Renee – What Considerations Are Essential in Developing an Effective Educational Program for Small, Isolated, Indigenous Communities in Alaska?
Madeline Schroeder – What Does It Take To Recycle A Box?
Elizabeth Watt – Watch Your Step: How Human Behavior Contributes To Loss of Forest Habitat
May Xie – Improving Volunteer Retention Rates
Yichen Yao – Healing Through Learning: The Effect of Gardening Courses
8:00pm – Event concludes. Students host an after-symposium celebration on the Fisheries Building lawn.
The Program on the Environment welcomes our new director, Dr. Gary Handwerk!
The UW College of the Environment is pleased to announce that Gary Handwerk has been named director of the Program on the Environment (PoE), effective March 16, 2019.
Gary is a scholar and teacher of the environmental humanities, working in the branch of literary and cultural studies known as “ecocriticism,” which aims to understand the effects of representations of nature. He has extensive experience in departmental administration, serving as chair of both Comparative Literature, and of English, over the last two decades. Gary’s ability to bring faculty from diverse programs and disciplines together is evident in his leadership role in creating the environmental humanities (EnviroHum) group at the UW, his participation as a founding faculty member in the newly created academic unit Comparative History of Ideas (CHiD), his leadership of the Study Abroad program in Paris, and his long involvement with the Program on the Environment including serving on the newly reconstituted Faculty Advisory Board.
The College also wants to thank Kristi Straus for her exceptional service as acting director. “Kristi has been a passionate and tireless advocate for Program on the Environment.” Lisa Graumlich, dean and Mary Laird Wood Professor at the College of the Environment said. “I am particularly appreciative of her ability to skillfully and positively bring together exceptional faculty from across the college and the campus to serve on the PoE Faculty Advisory Board, and to guide the unit forward in discussions of how the goals and structure of the unit should support each other.”
Finally, thanks are also due to the advisory search committee for their energy, enthusiasm and thoughtfulness, including Chris Anderson (search committee chair and associate professor, School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences), Juliet Crider (associate professor, Department of Earth and Space Sciences), P. Sean McDonald (lecturer, Program on the Environment), and Richard Watts (associate professor and chair, Department of French & Italian Studies.)
“I want to take this opportunity to thank students, staff and faculty from the unit and more broadly throughout the college who participated in the search process.” Graumlich said. “In particular, I would like to publicly acknowledge the work of the Advisory Search Committee. This service to the college requires care, patience and commitment, and when well done—as is certainly the case here—results in the recruitment of an exceptional colleague into our midst.”
Please join us in welcoming Gary to the College!
Sustainability Studio Presentations March 14
Join Sustainability Studio students as they present on their long-term projects improving transportation sustainability on the UW campus and in the greater Seattle community. These projects are in collaboration with:
Commute Seattle
King County Metro
Transportation Choices Coalition
UW Transportation Services
Sustainability Studio is a project-based course where teams of 3-5 students collaborate to gather and analyze data to help clients make sustainability decisions around the University of Washington and greater Seattle area. Projects are based on client need and have previously included communication, assessment, reporting and development of recommendations.
The focus for the Winter 2019 quarter is Sustainable Transportation working with the UW Transportation Commute Options team to analyze the efficiency, safety, and utility of transportation networks and policies on campus. By studying sustainable transportation, students have the opportunity to make an actionable impact on the way individuals move around our built environments while considering the impacts of climate mitigation, energy efficiency, and human safety.