Environmental science lectures to explore the intersections of climate, food and people

Four noted environmental leaders will be speaking at the Evergreen State College in November and early December as part of a speaker series produced by the college’s Master of Environmental Studies program. The lectures are free and open to the Evergreen community and the public.;

The series was created by adjunct faculty member Dr. Peter Goldmark for his courses exploring land management, climate change, food and agricultural policy.

“Through the courts, through art, teaching and writing, these four Washingtonians are passionately engaged in different ways,” said Goldmark, who completed his second term as State Commissioner of Public Lands in January of 2017. “They are powerful advocates and their success offers us all lessons in how to create and inspire positive change.”

Jerry Franklin, a professor at the University of Washington, is a nationally renowned forest ecologist who has played an important role in protecting Washington’s old-growth forests and the endangered spotted owl.

“From my perspective, Jerry Franklin is one of the most influential forest ecologists of our time,” Thomas DeLuca, professor and director of the School of Environmental and Forest Sciences at the University of Washington told the UW News Office in April of last year.

Franklin’s presentation, “Ecological Forestry and Climate,” will be held on Nov. 1, 2017 at 6:00 p.m. in Sem II E1105.

Attorney Bill Marler represents victims of food-borne illness and is an outspoken food safety advocate. In 2010, Marler was awarded the NSF Food Safety Leadership Award for Education and in 2008 earned the Outstanding Lawyer Award by the King County Bar Association. He has also received the Public Justice Award from the Washing State Trial Lawyers Association.

Marler’s presentation, “Food Safety: How to Make Our Food Safer,” will be held on Nov. 6, 2017 at 6:00 p.m. in Sem II E1105.

Emily Washines of the Yakama Nation is a non-profit leader and filmmaker who works to promote and restore wetlands and first foods.  She earned a Master of Public Administration from Evergreen in 2010. “I am committed to advancing higher education, especially with diverse and tribal communities,” Washines told The Yakima Herald in an interview earlier this month.

Washines’ Presentation, "Watershed and First Foods Restoration," will be held on Nov. 6, 2017 at 8 p.m. in Sem II E1105.

David Montgomery, a professor at the University of Washington, studies how geology affects ecosystems and human societies.  His new book is “Growing a Revolution: Bringing our Soil Back to Life.” 

In 2008, Dr. Montgomery was awarded the MacArthur grant for his work studying the geophysical forces that determine landscape evolution and how human usage of soils and rivers has shaped civilizations past and present.

His presentation, “Growing a Revolution,” will be held on Dec 4, 2017 at 6 p.m. in Sem II E1105.

The Master of Environmental Studies (MES) degree at the Evergreen State College is a two- or three-year evening program incorporating natural sciences, social sciences, public policy, and environmental humanities.