Discovery Park research centers plan lineup of Earth Day activities
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Center for Environment, Energy Center and Purdue Climate Change Research Center in Discovery Park are joining units across the Purdue University campus for several public events next week to celebrate Earth Day 2012.
The Earth Day Symposium, "Linking Biodiversity and Sustainability Across National and Managed Landscapes: Can Agriculture and Natural Communities be Complementary?" is scheduled for 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. April 23 in the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship, Room 121.
The Discovery Lecture Series, Conservation and Sustainability in a Human-Dominated World, by John Robinson, executive vice president of the Wildlife Conservation Society, is at 7 p.m. April 23 in Stewart Center, Room 214 ABCD.
An Earth Day Lecture, The Ecology of War: How Peak Oil and Global Climate Change will Shape the Conflicts of the 21st Century, will be delivered by Purdue botany and plant pathology professor Steve Hallett at 7 p.m. April 24 in Krannert Auditorium.
Hallett is co-author of the 2011 book, "Life Without Oil: Why We Must Shift to a New Energy Future," which argues that energy is the driver of our society's success and that the loss of abundant supplies of oil will significantly impact all facets of society.
Stephen Depoe, a communications professor and department head at the University of Cincinnati, will give the lecture, Environmental Communication in 2012: Challenges and Choices, from noon to 2 p.m. April 25 in Beering Hall, Room 2275. His talk is in collaboration with the Purdue College of Liberal Arts.
A free viewing of the award-winning documentary "The Big Fix," which chronicles what led to BP's Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf Coast in 2010, is at 4 p.m. Sunday (April 22) in the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship, Room 121.
"The goal of these Earth Day events across the Purdue campus is to promote interactions with prominent scientists, faculty and students to build a stronger Purdue environmental research community across colleges and departments," said Jon Harbor, interim director of Purdue's Global Sustainability Initiative.
The daylong symposium, Linking Biodiversity and Sustainability Across Natural and Managed Landscapes, will bring together leaders in the field from around the country and Purdue to promote research leading to strategies for conserving biological diversity and productivity, said Pankaj Sharma, managing director for the Energy Center and Center for the Environment.
The lineup of symposium speakers includes Claire Kremen, an associate professor of environmental science, policy and management at the University of California, Berkeley; Doug Landis, a professor of entomology at Michigan State University; and Diana Wall, a professor of biology and director of the School of Global Environmental Sustainability at Colorado State University. Speakers from Purdue are Jeff Holland and Christian Krupke, both associate professors of entomology; and Ben Gramig, an assistant professor of agricultural economics.
"Events are held worldwide each year on Earth Day to increase awareness and appreciation of Earth's natural environment and Purdue has organized a series of weeklong events to coincide with this year's Earth Day," Sharma said.
To register for the April 23 symposium, go online to https://purdue.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_3Vh5fwiQiGUiJta.
Additional sponsors for Purdue Earth Day 2012 events are College of Liberal Arts Environment Synergy Cluster, Department of Biological Sciences, Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Discovery Lecture Series, Lafayette Area Peace Coalition, Lilly Endowment, Purdue Energy Club, Purdue Interdisciplinary Center for Ecological Sustainability, Purdue Office of Sustainability, Purdue Sierra Club and the Unitarian U. Peace and Justice Committee.
Earth Day was first observed in San Francisco and other cities on March 21, 1970, the first day of spring. U.S Sen. Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin led a separate Earth Day effort as an environmental teach-in on April 22, 1970. While this Earth Day focused on the United States, Denis Hayes, the original national coordinator for the event in 1970, took Earth Day globally in 1990 and organized events in 141 nations.
Providing food, water, energy and other human needs to the world's entire population without harming the environment is a formidable task. Through Purdue's Global Sustainability Initiative the Center for the Environment, Purdue Climate Change Research Center, Energy Center, Water Community and the Center for Global Food Security are connecting existing expertise at Purdue with a pressing global issue and form the core of the initiative.
Discovery Park, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this month, is the heart of large-scale interdisciplinary research and innovation at Purdue, building on the university's strengths in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
Writer: Phillip Fiorini, 765-496-3133, pfiorini@purdue.edu
Sources: Jon Harbor, 765-494-5146, jharbor@purdue.edu
Pankaj Sharma, 765-496-7452, sharma@purdue.edu