Wallace's Farmer, IA
10-03-07
Expert To Speak At ISU On Climate Change
Compiled By Staff
With the end of cheap oil and signs of climate change appearing globally,
Americans are sleepwalking into a future of hardship and turbulence. Such is the
provocative scenario described by author and social critic James Howard
Kunstler, who will speak at Iowa State University on Wednesday, October 10.
Kunstler will present, "The Long Emergency: The Coming Global Oil Crisis and
Climate Change" at 7 p.m. in the Sun Room of the ISU Memorial Union.
Kunstler is best known for "The Geography of Nowhere", a history of suburbia
and the high costs and inefficiencies associated with an automobile-centric
culture. Now his eye is on the energy crisis, his latest book, "The Long
Emergency: Surviving the End of the Oil Age, Climate Change and Other
Converging Catastrophes of the 21st Century", explores the sweeping economic,
political and social changes that will result from the end of access to cheap fossil
fuels and the impact this will have on the way that Americans live, work, farm and
build.
Event is free and open to the public
The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture and the Center for Energy and
Environmental Education at the University of Northern Iowa are bringing Kunstler
to Iowa for a two-day visit. He will speak at Cedar Falls and Ames, and meet with
students on both campuses.
"Kunstler, like George Orwell, understands that being honest about the past and
present is the only way to prepare ourselves for an uncertain future," writes David
Ehrenfeld, professor of biology at Rutgers University, in "American Scientist".
"What sets "The Long Emergency" apart from numerous other books on this
theme is its comprehensive sweep—its powerful integration of science,
technology, economics, finance, international politics and social change—along
with a fascinating attempt to peer into a chaotic future."
A seasoned journalist, Kunstler writes for the Atlantic Monthly, Slate.com, Rolling
Stone and the New York Times Sunday Magazine and op-ed page. He has
lectured extensively about urban design, energy issues and new economies for a
variety of national organizations and numerous colleges and universities.
Co-sponsors of Kunstler's appearance include the ISU Departments of English
and Creative Writing, Landscape Architecture, and Community and
Regional Planning; the Institute for Design Research and Outreach; ISU
Bioethics Program; ISU College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Miller Lecture
Fund, and the ISU Lectures Program funded by GSB. The lecture is free
and open to the public.