Evergreen students plan forum to 'Bring Global Issues Home'

The Olympia Social Forum organized by students in the academic program ‘Global Citizenship’ at The Evergreen State College plan to help foster discussions about the future of the South Sound region and its relation to the broader United States and world.

The forum is Saturday, May 20 from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at The Olympia Center, 222 N. Columbia St. It is free and open to the public.

The program will include informative panels and workshops covering a range of topics. Sessions are planned related to Fair Trade, Education and Global Issues, Activism and Citizen Skills, Health and Welfare, Sustainability, War and Peace and several others. Attendees also will have the opportunity to learn more about local organizations.

Keynote speakers include Jim Diers, former director of the City of Seattle’s Department of Neighborhoods and Gilson Schwartz, the director of the City of Knowledge at the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil.

The Olympia Social Forum is modeled on the World Social Forum that has been convened annually since 2001. For more information, go to www.olysocialforum.org.