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January 24, 2008

UW, 1,500 colleges and groups across nation to brainstorm climate change solutions next week

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“Universities have a huge role to play in raising public awareness about climate change,” says LuAnne Thompson, University of Washington associate professor of oceanography and lead organizer of the UW events being conducted as part of Focus the Nation, a national teach-in on global warming solutions for America. “Colleges not only have the credibility to discuss the complex set of issues linked to global warming, they also provide direct access to young people poised to inherit a radically changing environment. We created this problem, it’s theirs to fix.”



  • Focus the Nation events in Washington will involve 60 institutions. They are among more than 1,550 — mainly colleges and universities — participating across the nation as of mid-January. Washington events include day-long programs and at least two community-campus events, one a town hall meeting on the UW campus Jan. 31, for which more than 450 persons have already signed up, and a tri-city community forum Jan. 30 in Olympia.
  • Focus the Nation, a non-profit based in Portland, Ore., says on its Web site, “In the next few years, we as a nation will make, or fail to make, critical decisions regarding global warming pollution and clean technology investments. These decisions will have far-reaching and irreversible impacts on the lives of today’s students and the lives of their children. At this moment in time, we owe our young people at least a day of focused discussion about global warming solutions for America.”
  • National perspective: http://www.focusthenation.org/; Alex Tinker, media and public relations, Portland, (503) 768-7994, alex@focusthenation.org.
  • UW events Thursday, Jan. 31, see: http://depts.washington.edu/uwfocus. Spokesperson: LuAnne Thompson, (206) 543-9965, luanne@u.washington.edu.  
  • Evergreen State College events Wednesday, Jan. 30, include an evening community forum with Centralia College, South Puget Sound Community College and St. Martin’s University, see: http://focusthenation.evergreen.edu/. Spokesman: Jason Wettstein, media and community relations manager, (360) 867-5213 office, (360) 451-3167 cell, wettstej@evergreen.edu.
  • Eastside Preparatory School, Kirkland, will have a week-long contest for students to find alternative means of transportation to school, lunch-time discussions and a teach-in with upper school classes Thursday, Jan. 31. Students will present work they’ve done in the areas of transportation, energy, agriculture and future solutions to their fellow students and parents that evening at the Kirkland Performance Center, followed by a panel discussion. Spokesman: Wendy Lawrence, head of middle school, (425) 822-5668. wlawrence@eastsideprep.org.
  • See http://www.focusthenation.org/actionmap/?type=state&stateprov=wa for a list of Washington state participants.
  • Overview of Washington state Focus the Nation events ask: Minna Brown, among the national organizers in Portland, (503) 768-7996, minna@focusthenation.org.  
  • UW events Jan. 31, which are all free and open to the public, culminate in a town hall meeting where elected officials and the audience will talk about solutions to climate change. Among those agreeing to participate are King County Executive Ron Sims, Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, State Rep. Fred Jarrett and State Sen. Phil Rockefeller. The event is7 to 9 p.m., in Kane Hall 130. To ensure seating, please register at https://go.washington.edu/uwaa/events/2008focusnation_townmeet/details.tcl.
  • The town hall meeting at the UW will be streamed over the Web at http://depts.washington.edu/uwfocus.
  • UW events during the day Jan. 31 at the HUB begin at 10 a.m. with a talk on “Global Warming: Facts, Fiction and Solutions,” from Thomas Ackerman, director of the Joint Institute for the Study of Atmosphere and the Oceans based at the UW. At 11 a.m. will be David Domke, professor of communication, talking about “Why Values are the Glue of Social Movements.” In the afternoon participants can choose from a number of panels on topics such as “Can Capitalism Save Us?” and “The Politics and Ethics of Finding Solutions.”
  • See pdf of UW schedule at http://depts.washington.edu/uwfocus/FtN_AgendaFinal.pdf.

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