http://www.unm.edu/~wac/2012WtW.html
1)
What do notions of “ecology,” “literacy,” and “social justice” share in common? Does one inform the other? Why should we talk about the environment alongside issues in linguistic diversity and news media?
2)
What is the relationship between “psychology” and “ecology”? How does your environment affect not only your physical health but your mental health as well? What important changes would you like to make to your immediate surroundings to contribute to your own psychological wellbeing as well as that of your community?
3)
What do the terms “linguistic diversity” and “cultural diversity” mean to you? What value judgments do these terms hold? What consequences do the pose for an institution like UNM when it accepts these as core values of its mission?
4) In what form are issues related to “ecology,” “literacy” and “social justice” represented in the news? In what way does the news ignore these issues? What would you like to see the news take on in greater depth or detail?
5) What responsibility to do we have as individuals to promote our own values when it comes to
“literacy,” “ecology,” and/or “social justice”? What’s at stake for us and our communities if we neglect to act? What complications arise when we try to act on behalf of a “community”?
6) What is Community? How do our perceptions of what constitutes a community differ between cultural lines?
7) Expressing one's voice comes in many forms. What are some ways cultures express themselves extralinguistically (without words)?
8) Identify and describe 2-3 communities that you belong to. How are they different? How are they similar? What communicative skills do you employ to navigate these different communities?
9) With the ever-increasing convergence of a global community, diverse cultures are interacting more often than ever before. Identify some of the characteristics of these interactions from a historical perspective and discuss some differences in the progression of intercultural activity over the last twenty years.
10) Culture has had an increasing effect on computer-mediated communication. How has culture impacted the Internet? How has the Internet impacted culture? How has it impacted the particular communities to which you belong?
11) This interdisciplinary symposium is structured around the theme of
"ecotones"—physical spaces where ecological environments meet. What other metaphors can we use to describe the meeting of environments, academic fields, communities, and nations?
12) How does the metaphor of the "ecotone" help us explore interdisciplinary scholarship and the relationships between different departments on campus?
13) How does the metaphor of the "ecotone" help us envision the relationship between the campus and its surrounding community?
14) How do discussions of the DREAM Act illuminate, complicate, or intersect with discussions about the ethnic studies ban in Tucson?
15) What are the roles of public speaking forums, such as this one, and public writing forums, such as community journalism, in social change?