Fall 2018
The Fall 2018 series will be held in Siemens Hall 108. Lectures are from 5:30-7 pm on Thursdays.
September 6, Robert Gottlieb—From resistance to transformation: 50 years of environmental & social justice action research
Robert Gottlieb is the founder and former director of the Urban & Environmental Policy Institute and an emeritus professor at Occidental College. He is the author of thirteen books, including Global Cities: Urban Environments in Los Angeles, Hong Kong, and China (with Simon Ng), and Forcing the Spring, Environmentalism Unbound, and Food Justice (with Anupama Joshi). He is the editor of two series at the MIT Press: “Urban and Industrial Environments” and “Food, Health, and Environment.”
In 2012, Gottlieb received the Carey McWilliams Lifetime Achievement Award from the California Studies Association. A longtime environmental and social justice activist, he has researched and participated in social movements for more than 50 years. Download the event poster
September 20, Sharon Levy—Arcata marsh: roots and branches
Science writer Sharon Levy is the author of The Marsh Builders: the Fight for Clean Water, Wetlands, and Wildlife. In this new book from Oxford University Press, Levy delves into the global roots of the citizen uprising that built Arcata’s marsh, as well as its lessons for modern activists and regulators.
Levy's work appears in magazines including Nature, Undark, and BioScience. She is also the author of Once and Future Giants: What Ice Age Extinctions Tell Us About the Fate of Earth’s Largest Animals.
October 4, Benjamin Maurer—A rising tide lifts all bytes: marine energy R&D at the Pacific Marine Energy Center
Humanity has been harnessing tidal power for more than 1,000 years, and producing electricity from tides for more than 100 years. Tidal electricity generation is greenhouse gas-free, eminently predictable, sub-sea surface, and often co-located with demand; yet tidal power has seen slower adoption and deployment than other renewables such as wind or solar power. In this talk, Dr. Benjamin Maurer will share what the Pacific Marine Energy Center is doing to address the remaining key challenges in tidal power and how that R&D plays into the changing market landscape for marine energy. From autonomous subsea robotics to underwater data centers, he'll cover the promise and potential pitfalls of this renewable energy resource.
Maurer is the Associate Director of the Pacific Marine Energy Center, a multi-university consortium dedicated to the responsible advancement of ocean energy technologies, and a researcher at the University of Washington's Applied Physics Laboratory. He works closely with undergraduate and graduate students, startups, large corporations, regulators, government clients, and other stakeholders to address key challenges in harvesting power from the waves, tides, currents, and offshore winds. Maurer's prior work includes positions supporting a $100M/yr US Department of Energy portfolio of ocean technology technology awards; conducting fluid dynamics experiments at the University of Cambridge GK Batchelor Laboratory; and piloting ROVs for the National Marine Fisheries Service. He holds a PhD in Oceanography from Scripps Institution of Oceanography, an MS in Engineering Sciences from UC, San Diego, and undergraduate degrees in Biology and Philosophy also from UCSD. He is an avid surfer, swimmer, and research diver.
October 11, Zero Emission Vehicles Panel Discussion—Achieving 5 million zero-emission vehicles in California by 2030: the local perspective
October 18, Lonny Grafman—Local water innovation through community/university partnerships
This talk will share inspiring solutions for water collection, storage, treatment, and conservation that have been created by community engagement. Since 2004, Cal Poly Humboldt students have partnered in these innovative projects across India, the United States, and Latin America.
Lonny Grafman is an engineering instructor at Humboldt; the founder of the Practivistas summer abroad, full immersion, resilient community technology program; the project manager of the epi-apocalyptic city art project Swale; the Chief Product Officer of Nexi; and the President of the Appropedia Foundation, sharing knowledge to build rich, sustainable lives.
Grafman has facilitated engagements and developed university courses around the world. He has worked and led teams on hundreds of domestic and international projects across a broad spectrum of sustainable design and entrepreneurship—from solar energy to improved cookstoves, micro-hydro power to rainwater catchment, and from earthen construction to plastic bottle schoolrooms. Throughout all these technology implementations, he has found the most vital component to be community. His first book shares stories and strategies for communities coming together To Catch the Rain.
October 25, Tasha McKee—Water scarcity: culture change and learning from nature in the Mattole headwaters
Tasha McKee is a fourth-generation Mattole Valley resident. She served on the Sanctuary Forest Board of Directors from 1997-2002, serving as board president in 2002. Since 2003, she has been the Sanctuary Forest's Water Program Director. She has pioneered collaborative approaches to address water scarcity in the Mattole headwaters and played a key role in the development of the Mattole Flow Program—including practical solutions development, funding and implementation, community and landowner outreach, monitoring and research, and education on the low flow issue.
November 1, Catherine Sandoval—The Native American reservation electricity access gap: a case study of the Yurok Tribe's energy access leadership and next steps for energy justice and climate change