Multicultural Center presents 'Earth: Saviors and Sustainers'
The Bates College Office of Multicultural Affairs presents a one-day environmental symposium titled Earth: Saviors and Sustainers on Saturday, Nov. 4, in Chase Hall Lounge, 56 Campus Ave., Bates College. The public is invited to attend free of charge. For more information, call the Multicultural Center at Bates at 207-786-8376.
Saturday, Nov. 4
9 a.m.
Breakfast in the Special Seminar Room, Chase Hall
10 a.m.
Session 1: Environmental Research: Facts to Inspire Action
Introduction of Panelists — Aditi Vaidya ’00, moderator/presenter
Aditi Vaidya ’00, moderator and presenter, program director, Sustainable Technologies Program, Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition. A graduate of the Bates College environmental studies program, Vaidya is a scientist, an advocate for environmental and economic justice, a trainer and a community organizer. She received a master’s in public health in environmental and occupational health at the Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, and has worked with environmental justice organizations across the country. She serves on the boards of the Asian Pacific Environmental Network and South Asian American Voting Youth, and has served as co-chair of the Saguaro panel of The Funding Exchange. She has worked with the Jenifer Altman Foundation and the environmental health and justice program of the Mitchell Kapor Foundation.
Zoe Chafe, staff researcher, Worldwatch Institute
The Worldwatch Institute is an independent, interdisciplinary research organization in Washington, D.C. Chafe’s research involves natural disasters and conflict, sustainable development, air travel and invasive species. Prior to joining Worldwatch in 2003, Chafe served as Washington coordinator for the Center on Ecotourism and Sustainable Development. She researched tourism in South Africa and Madagascar and worked as a research assistant for the U.S. Forest Service and the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory. Chafe also interned with the Center for Science and Environment in New Delhi. She is an active member of SustainUS, the U.S. Youth Network for Sustainable Development and a former steering committee member with the organization. Chafe has a B.A. in human biology from Stanford University.
11:15 a.m.
Question-and-answer session
Noon
Lunch
1:30 p.m.
Session 2: The Eco-Politics of Genetically Engineered Crops
Intorduction of Panelists — Aditi Vaidya ’00, moderator
Carmelo Ruiz-Marrero, director, Puerto Rico Project on Biosafety and environmental journalist
Ruiz-Marrero is the founder and director of the Puerto Rico Project on Biosafety. His articles have appeared in Alternet, Corporate Watch, One World, IPS News, E Magazine, Grist, IRC Americas Program, the New York Daily News, Yes! Magazine, La Jornada (Mexico) and in many other Spanish-language media. He is the author of Transgenic Ballad: Biotechnology, Globalization and the Clash of Paradigms. Ruiz-Marrero is a fellow of the Oakland Institute and a senior fellow of the Environmental Leadership Program. He frequently writes and lectures on the social and environmental impacts of genetic engineering and industrial agriculture and on strategies for social justice and environmental sustainability.
Reem Rahim, co-founder and vice president of marketing,
Numi Organic Tea
Reem Rahim is the co-founder of Numi Organic Tea, a green business that produces full-leaf premium organic teas and fresh herbs. The company is a featured member of Co-op America because of guiding principles, policies, and practices that improve the quality of life for its customers, employees, communities and the environment. Numi recently received a Waste Reduction Award from a program established to recognize companies that employ sustainable business practices and develop creative and aggressive initiatives to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills. Numi uses 100 percent post-consumer waste for its tea boxes saving more than 2,750 trees and reducing landfills by more than 175,000 pounds per year. Numi utilizes bamboo not only for its beauty but because it is one of the world’s most renewable natural resources.
2:45 p.m.
Question-and-answer session
3:15 p.m.
Internship and job opportunities
4 p.m.
Closing remarks
5:45 p.m.
Dinner in Special Seminar Room
7:30 p.m.
Film: The Leech & the Earthwork, UK/USA, 2003, 68 minutes
Director: Max Pugh and Mark Silver
Produced by Debra Harry
This film, a passionate critique of a future threatened by genetic engineering, presents alternatives to a globalized monoculture. Stunning visuals and music from around the world inspire the viewer to ask serious questions about the collective illusion called “progress.”
