See the Rutgers Calendar for all University events
Upcoming seminars.
Friday, March 31, 2023; 12:10-1:30pm EST (US and Canada)
Location: Zoom - see flyer for QR code
Dr. Alex Barron "Is Carbon Neutrality Leading Us Off Track? Lessons from Higher Education”
Fifteen years ago, 336 higher education institutions signed a Presidents’ Climate Commitment, pledging to “achieve carbon neutrality as soon as possible.” But is net carbon neutrality, and an approach to it developed at the turn of the century, really the most productive focus for institutional climate action? To understand how such commitments are working in practice, we studied American higher education institutions that have already announced achieving carbon neutrality. The results raise tough questions about whether current approaches are really accomplishing the original goals of the commitment.
Wednesday, Apr 26, 2023; 12:10-1:30pm EST (US and Canada)
Location: Blake Hall Rm 131
Dr. Daniel Van Abs and Dr. Karen O'Neill "Equity Issues in Water Expenditures in the Delaware"
A Rutgers team led by Human Ecology faculty members Dan Van Abs and Karen O’Neill has been identifying government expenditures to protect and improve water quality in the Delaware River Basin for the period 2014 to 2020. Through this project for the William Penn Foundation, the team is using the data and expert stakeholder interviews to assess how and the extent to which these federal, state, county and municipal expenditures reflect local priorities, address environmental issues, and reflect concerns about equity in government funding programs. While billions of dollars have been expended for a variety of purposes, each program tends to view equity differently and based on the unique program purposes. The speakers will present the results of the project and some thoughts on how individual programs can result in inequitable results when viewed in aggregate.
Past Events
Wednesday, Feb 8, 2023; 12:10-1:30pm EST (US and Canada)
Location: Blake Hall Rm 131
Dr. Todd E. Vachon "Sustainability, Jobs, and Justice: Confronting the Dual Crisis of Ecology and Inequality”
The concept of a “just transition” attempts to confront the dual crises of ecology and inequality by reducing fossil fuel dependence while simultaneously creating good job opportunities for displaced and historically marginalized workers. But the concept is not universally supported and often draws sharp backlash from some workers and unions. Based on data from participant observation with three labor and climate organizations and 40 in-depth interviews with union leaders, I identify the major political-economic, institutional, and cultural factors which contribute to either support for or opposition to climate protection measures by some workers. These insights are used to identify some of the key ingredients that are needed to build a broad base of support for a just transition to a more sustainable and equitable world.
October 5th, 12:30-1:30 pm, Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Location: Blake 131
Colin Jerolmack, PhD, New York University
"Down to Hell: Fracking, Freedom, and Community in an American Town”
October 19th 12-1:30, Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Emily Huddart Kennedy, University of British Columbia, via zoom, presenting on her new book :
"Ecotypes: Five Ways of Caring about the Environment.”
Imagining Environmental Governance in the Anthropocene:
Creating Governance that’s Participatory, Boundary Spanning, and Knowledge-Based September 8th and 9th, 2022 Cook Student Center
As global environmental problems like climate change and biodiversity loss become more pressing, global environmental governance to collectively address these issues becomes a significant part of the solution. Please join us September 8th and 9th at the Cook student center for a workshop that seeks to understand key questions in environmental governance and how Rutgers faculty, across disciplines and schools, may help answer them. Funded by Rutgers Global and the Institute for Earth Ocean and Atsmospheric Sciences and co-sponsored by the Rutgers Climate Institute and Department of Human Ecology, the first day of this workshop, will host three keynote talks by internationally recognized leaders in environmental governance on topics such as how environmental governance systems 1) manage uncertainties and unknowables 2) work to facilitate stakeholder participation from diverse interests and 3) address flows across ecosystem and geopolitical boundaries. On the second day – Rutgers faculty and students will have the opportunity to brainstorm and identify ways in which Rutgers may build educational, research and service capacity in this field. Full agenda below.
Rutgers faculty, staff, and students may register for the workshop here. Contact Rachael Shwom, shwomrac@sebs.rutgers.edu with any questions.
Workshop Agenda