Nicholas Talks -- Fall 2009
an online collection of lectures about environmental issues and solutions
brought to you by Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment
and Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions.
November 13 - "Reconstructing Halocene Fire History in the Southern Appalachians"
A talk by Professor of Ecology and Founding Dean of the Nicholas School, Dr. Norm Christensen. Christensen's research examines influence and disturbance on natural ecosystems as well as strategies for ecosystem management. Christensen is a revered professor and the recipient of numerous awards and honors for his teaching and scholarship. He was elected a Fellow to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences in 1993.
Presented by the University Program in Ecology Seminar Series
November 6 - "How Will American Politics Affect International Climate Negotiations?"
Hear Dana R. Fisher, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, Columbia University talk about how current U.S. climate politics affect the international climate negotiations. Fisher is director of Environmental Stewardship Project at the Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy at Columbia University (ISERP) and she coordinates the Working Group on Activism and Politics there.
Presented by Environmental Institution Seminar Series, Nicholas School of the Environment
November 4 - "Unlocking and Implementing Science-Based Marine Policy with 'Rules of Thumb'"
A talk by Margaret Caldwell, Senior Lecturer in Law, Stanford Law School. In addition to her role as lecturer, Caldwell directs the Environmental and Natural Resources Law and Policy Program at the law school. She also has an appointment with the Woods Institute for the Environment where she serves as executive director of the Center for Ocean Solutions. The center is a collaboration between Stanford, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.
Presented by Duke Marine Lab Integrated Marine Conservation Program
September 18 - "The Sea Also Rises"
In this lecture, Dr. Orrin Pilkey, James B. Duke Professor Emeritus of Geology, speaks about predictions and threats for global sea-level rise.
Pilkey is an internationally cited expert on the geology of barrier islands and beaches. He has written dozens of books and peer-reviewed papers. Published in August, his new book The Rising Sea (Island Press), coauthored with Western Carolina Professor and former student, Rob Young, warns that rising sea levels brought about by global warming are not merely a possibility for the future, but is actually happening now. Pilkey founded the Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines at Duke in 1985. In 2008, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from N.C. Coastal Federation.
Presented by the Division of Earth & Ocean Sciences, Nicolas School of the Environment
August 26 - "The Conservation Biology of Hector's Dolphins: the Real Cost of Fish and Chips"
Dr. Steve Dawson, associate professor and marine mammal researcher at University of Otago, New Zealand talks about his research on Hector's Dolphins.
Presented by Duke Marine Lab Integrated Marine Conservation Program