Program News and Events:

11-24-09

Office closed this week

The Environmental Studies Program office will be closed for the remainder of this week, due to Thanksgiving holiday break. Happy holidays. The office will resume normal operations on Monday, November 30.

Winter Potluck and Honors Presentations

Thursday, December 3, 5:00 - 7:00
256 Snow Hall (Environmental Studies conference room)
Environmental Studies majors, faculty and friends are welcome to come and bring food and drink to share with others to celebrate the end of the fall semester. Students will present updates on their research projects, and we will recognize the Fall 2009 graduates in Environmental Studies. RSVP not required, but highly encouraged. To RSVP, please email envstudies@ku.edu. Also, if you are a student who wishes to present at this event, please contact us!

Yale Sustainability Fellowships

Yale University’s Office of Sustainability is pleased to announce the availability of a Sustainability Fellow position for the Spring of 2010. The Sustainability Fellow position is designed to provide hands-on experience for a recent college graduate with an interest in campus sustainability. The selected candidate will be offered a unique opportunity to work in an innovative, internationally recognized campus sustainability program with hands on, project based tasks. This position will be based in the Office of Sustainability and will support the initiatives of various campus departments working on collaborative projects.

Qualifications: Candidates must demonstrate solid research skills, a strong grasp of sustainability terms and concepts, the ability to work independently, exceptional organizational skills, and the ability to communicate his/her own ideas and proven leadership experience. This position is paid and will provide the ambitious candidate with the opportunity to develop skills which will enable him/her to be an effective sustainability leader.

Date of Fellowship: February 15 – June 18, 2010 Hours per/wk: 40 hrs.

Please send resume and letter of interest to Nancy DiLella nancy.dilella@yale.edu no later than December 18, 2009. More details online at: http://www.yale.edu/sustainability/documents/YaleSustainabilityFellow2010.pdf.

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11-10-09

Free screening of "Food, Inc."

November 18th, 7:00 p.m. Woodruff Auditorium, KS Union. Environs, CCO EARTH, and SUA are showing the acclaimed 2009 documentary ‘Food, Inc'. This event is open to students and the Lawrence community. Local popcorn will be provided by KU Dining Services. Raffle prizes will be provided from The Merc, Louisburg Cider Mill, Greenability Magazine, and Blooming Lotus. Admission is Free.

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11-05-09

A Taste of India: two upcoming events related to environmental study abroad

We are hosting two events related to environmental issues in India, and an upcoming study abroad program this summer:

The first will be a lecture given by Dr. Siddappa Setty, Fulbright Scholar, titled “Biodiversity, Conservation and Livelihood.” The talk will take place on Monday, Nov. 9th at 3:00, at the Commons in Spooner Hall.

The second will take place on Wednesday, Nov. 11th at 5:15. Dr. Setty will give another talk titled “Conservation policies and their impact : livelihood of Soliga tribals in Karnataka, India,” discussing issues in the region of India where the Environmental Studies 2009 Summer Study Abroad program will take place. Geeta Tiwari, director of the summer program, will be providing home-cooked Indian food for attendees to sample. Those interested in the summer study abroad trip are encouraged to come learn about trip details and ask questions. If you are planning to come to this event, please let us know (via email or phone) whether you plan to attend, so that enough food may be prepared.

Lecture: "Organic Micropollutants in the Environment: How Pure Is Pure?

Friday, November 13, 2009
3:30 – 4:30 p.m.
Spahr Auditorium – Eaton Hall
(Refreshments will be served starting at 3:15 p.m.)
Special Guest Lecture by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Wolfgang Kühn - Managing Director, Water Technology Center, Engler-Bunte Institute, University of Karlsruhe, Germany.

Dr. Wolfgang Kühn is internationally known for his work on micropollutants in the environment, including pharmaceuticals, endocrine system disruptors, personal care products, pesticides, disinfection byproducts, as well as their metabolites and degradation products. His interests include the analysis, occurrence, fate, and effects of such compounds, as well as policies to manage their potential impacts on human health and the environment.

Sponsored by the KU Dept. of Civil, Environmental & Architectural Engineering in Cooperation with Black & Veatch

Environmental Studies students and professors get to the bottom of Potter Lake

Check out this video featuring the efforts of Environmental Studies professors and students to clean up the beloved KU pond, at the Lawrence Journal-World website :

Professors Mark Jakubauskas and Jerry deNoyelles, and student Ryan Callihan were filmed while out working on Potter Lake on Thursday. Full story here.

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11-02-09

Environmental Studies students in the news

Read about the efforts by students and faculty to preserve Douglas County's prairies in today's Kansan. Also, you can catch up with the students in EVRN 460: Field Ecology here.

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10-30-09

Ecojustice Group event in front of Strong Hall

The Ecojustice student group, in conjunction with the Wetlands Preservation Organization and students from Haskell University, will be gathering in front of Strong Hall on November 2nd, between 2 - 4, to raise awareness about the Haskell-Baker wetlands. More information about the Ecojustice groups and this event can be found at http://ecmku.org/ecojustice.

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10-27-09

Hall Center for Humanities series: Byron Caminero-Santangelo

Byron Caminero-Santangelo, Environmental Studies governance faculty, will be presenting a talk at the Hall Center for Humanities on Tuesday, Nov. 3rd from 12:00 - 1:30. The title of the talk is "Different Shades of Green: African Literatures and Environmentalisms." The talk is open to all faculty, RSVP required.

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10-26-09

Boone and Crockette Club: Call for Applications

The Boone and Crockette Club is seeking research partners to work on wildlife diseases affecting big game species. Of particular interest are diseases that pose challenges to the management of big game populations and / or that have potential health concerns for the hunting community. Chronic wasting disease and bovine brucellosis are examples of such diseases. Normally grants provided by the Conservation Research Grants Program are in the $10,000 - $15,000 range. Recipients of grants in 2010 may be eligible for an additional year of funding if need exists and if the progress report, due October 1, 2010, shows satisfactory progress.

This call is specifically targeted towards faculty and graduate students studying big wildlife disease issues. More information, applications, and instructions are available online at http://www.boone-crockett.org, in the "Education" and "Conservation Grants" section. Deadline for applications is January 15, 2010.

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10-23-09

Workshop on Corporate Environmental Management: Corporate Environmental Sustainability Around the Globe

October 30, The Commons, Spooner Hall
This is an all day event featuring presentations by visiting faculty regarding corporate sustainability and environmental practices. For a full listing of speakers and bios, click here. Research papers are available for perusal at the KU Center for International Business Education and Research website.Sponsored by: KU CIBER; KU Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies; KU Institute for Policy and Social Research; KU Center for Sustainability; Michigan Ross School of Business Center for International Business Education; Ebb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise at the University of Michigan; and the Environmental Studies Program.

Campus Sustainability Day

Today at the Commons area in Spooner Hall, between 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. there will be roundtables, presentations and other events hosted by Environs and the Center for Sustainability on campus. Organic and local refreshments provided by KU Dining will be served at 3:00 p.m. For more information, visit the Center for Sustainability website.

10-22-09

Green Corps on-campus interviews tomorrow

Green Corps will be hosting its first series of campus interviews at KU tomorrow, Friday, October 23, at the Career Center in the Burge Union, from 8:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Prospective interviewees are asked to bring their resumes. If you would like to schedule an interview during this time, please contact Jaafar at 802-318-5127.Information about Green Corps positions is available online at greencorps.org.

Environmental Studies student and faculty receive sustainability recognition

The Center for Sustainability recently presented Margaret Tran, senior in Environmental Studies, with a Student Award for Sustainability for her many volunteer efforts across campus. Tran is a coordinator for EARTH, a group that oversees the KU Student Rain Garden outside Ambler Fitness Center. Simran Sethi, Environmental Studies courtesy faculty in journalism, also received an award for her sustainability efforts in the classroom and community.

For more information about the awards and the Center for Sustainability, visit their website.

LeaderShape application call

The Student Involvement and Leadership Center is seeking energetic, passionate and dedicated students to apply for the 13th annual LeaderShape Institute taking place January 7-12, 2010. LeaderShape is a highly interactive and energizing six-day, five night leadership enhancement program that provides students experience with practicing ethical decision making, dealing with chaos and change, clarifying personal values, celebrating and exploring the values of others, and working in teams. LeaderShape believes in living in possibility, making a commitment to a vision, developing relationships to bring the vision into reality and sustaining a high level of integrity. Learning takes place in the context of a supportive community that results in positive change. LeaderShape's Vision is "To improve society by inspiring, developing, and supporting more people committed to leading with integrity."

Online applications for the institute are available at: https://www-s1.leadershape.org/apprd/2159/ You will be asked to register as a new user and complete steps that will then lead to the application. More general information is available through the Student Involvement and Leadership Center website http://www.ku.edu/~silc/Leadershape/home.shtml

LeaderShape is open to all enrolled students...graduate and undergraduate, for those who are already involved in numerous campus activities, and for those who are still looking for their niche. The program is limited to 60 participants with a $50 registration fee due upon selection for the program (a small number of scholarships will be made available). Online applications will be accepted through Monday, November 9th. Selected participants will be notified by November 13th.

For more information, feel free to contact Matt Robinson or Colleen Drazen at 785-864-4861 or kulead@ku.edu.

GIS Day at KU

All are invited to the 8th Annual GIS Day @ KU Symposium on November 18th. GIS Day is free and open to the public. This symposium provides a unique opportunity for students, staff and faculty to mingle and exchange ideas with each other, and with attendees from government and business. GIS Day will include an exciting line-up of speakers, an Information and Job Fair, and a Student Presentation Competition with cash prizes(see attached flyer). For more details, and to register in advance, please visit www.gis.ku.edu/gisday/2009.

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10-06-09

Professors receive grant to research climate change and renewable energy

The National Science Foundation has awarded $20 million to research teams comprising professors across the KU campus. Several Environmental Studies professors are involved in the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). Professors awarded the grant include: Chris Brown (Director), Stacey White (Associate Director), Johannes Feddema, Dietrich Earnhart, Nathaniel Brunsell, David Mechem, Jane Gibson, Joane Nagel, Stephen Egbert and Eric Hanley. More information about the EPSCoR project at KU is available online at http://www.nsfepscor.ku.edu/.

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