30 Great Public-Friendly University Lecture Series on Environmental Issues
The Best Lecture Series on Environmental Issues
A frequently overlooked value of your local college or university is the opportunity to take in a free lecture on a topic of interest to you. Participants in these types of series have access to the best of the best among public speakers, whether scholars, authors, experts, or politicians.
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This article highlights lecture series on the environment and related issues at colleges and universities in North America. To make our list, publicity for the lecture series had to emphasize that they were easily accessible to the local community. This may have included comments about free admission, all being welcome, late afternoon or evening hours, no registration required, accessible language, socially relevant topics, or a unified theme for the entire lecture series, making it easier for participants to find which schools are lecturing on their topic of interest.
30. Paul Smith's College, The College of the Adirondacks
Paul Smiths, NY
North Country Sustainability Speaker Series
Recent subjects: Solar design, small-scale hydro
Recent speakers: Jeff Brownson, Associate Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering, Penn State
Frequency: Several per year
29. Brown College, University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA
Visiting Environmental Writers and Scholars Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Farm markets, hunting as conservation, young environmentalists
Recent speakers: Forrest Pritchard, author and farmer; Jackson Landers, author and hunting guide; Emily Hunter, environmental author and daughter of Greenpeace founder, Robert Hunter
Frequency: Several per year
28. University of Toronto, School of the Environment
Toronto, Ontario
Environment Seminar Series
Recent subjects: Climate change, environmental movement, pollution
Recent speakers: Kerry Bowman, Bioethicist, Joint Centre for Bioethics, University of Toronto; Matthew Hoffmann, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Toronto Scarborough and Co-Director of the Environmental Governance Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs; Dan Dolderman, Lecturer, Environmental Psychologist, Department of Psychology, University of Toronto
Frequency: Several per semester
27. University of Connecticut, Thomas J. Dodd Research Center
Storrs, CT
Edwin Way Teale Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Food systems, oceans
Recent speakers: Harold Mooney, Professor of Biology, Emeritus, and Senior Fellow, â¨Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University; Steven D. Gaines, Dean, Bren School of Environmental Science & Managementâ¨University of California - Santa Barbara
Frequency: Several per year
26. University of Waterloo, Faculty of Environment
Waterloo, Ontario
Environment Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Global dimming, climate change
Recent Speakers: Vanessa Schweizer, Centre for Knowledge Integration; Chris Fletcher, Department of Geography and Environmental Management
Frequency: Once per semester
25. Western Washington University, Huxley College of the Environment
Bellingham, WA
Huxley College Speaker Series
Recent subjects: Water pollution, water conservation
Recent Speakers: Vicki Robin, bestselling author; Gregory Fisk, Geographer, Woods Hole Research Center
Frequency: Weekly
24. University of Nebraska - Lincoln, School of Natural Resources
Lincoln, NE
Winter Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Climate change - deforestation, desertification
Recent Speakers: Eileen Shea, Chief of the Climate Services Division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Adriana Moreira, Senior Environmental Specialist at the World Bank in Brasilia, Brazil; Melchiade Bukuru, Chief of UNCCD Liaison office, United Nations Headquarters, New York
Frequency: Several times per semester
23. Arizona State University, Global Institute of Sustainability
Tempe, AZ
Wrigley Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Organic farming, environmental justice, species multiplication
Recent speakers: Vandana Shiva, Founder, Slow Food International; Ray Mabus, Secretary of the U. S. Navy; Amory Lovins, Confounder and Chief Scientist, Rocky Mountain Institute
Frequency: Several times per semester
22. University of Montana, College of Forestry and Conservation
Missoula, MT
Wilderness Institute Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Wilderness borders, water, expeditions, indigenous populations
Recent speakers: Pat Williams, former Montana Congressman; Thomas Tidwell, Chief of the U. S. Forest Service
Frequency: Several times per spring semester
21. Menno Simons College
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Esau Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Sustainable agriculture, world hunger
Recent speakers: Haroon Akram-Lodhi, Chair and Professor of International Development Studies, Trent University; Nettie Wiebe, Professor of Church and Society, University of Saskatchewan
Frequency: Several times per year
20. University of Maryland, Council on the Environment
College Park, MD
Distinguished Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Food scarcity
Recent speakers: Lester Brown, President, Earth Policy Institute
Frequency: Annual
19. Colorado College, Environmental Program
Colorado Springs, CO
Linneman Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Water conservation, environmental economics
Recent speakers: Winona LaDuke, Dan Chiras, Andrew Fahlund
Frequency: Annual
18. University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School
Philadelphia, PA
Institute for Environmental Studies Seminar Series
Recent subjects: Sustainability in commercial packaging, federal government, and aviation
Recent speakers: Sara Manzano-Diaz, Regional Administrator, Mid-Atlantic Region, U.S. General Services Administration; Brad A. Molotsky, EVP and General Counsel LEED Green Associate, Brandywine Realty Trust; Tucker Twitmyer, Managing Director, EnerTech Capital
Frequency: Several per year
17. Stony Brook University, Department of Ecology and Evolution
Stony Brook, NY
The Living World Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Ocean ecology, shale gas
Recent speakers: David Jablonski, Professor of Geophysical Sciences, University of Chicago; Jeffrey Levinton, Distinguished Professor, Stony Brook University
Frequency: Several per year
16. Dalhousie University, College of Sustainability
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Environment, Sustainability and Society Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Consumerism, indigenous populations, hazardous substances
Recent speakers: Bruce Lanphear, Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University; Brad Werner, Scientist, Climate, Atmospheric Sciences and Physical Oceanography Division, University of California, San Diego
Frequency: Weekly
15. Whitman College, Environmental Studies Program
Walla Walla, WA
Perspectives on Sustainability Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Sustainable landscaping, conservation
Recent speakers: Faculty
Frequency: Several per year
14. UCLA, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability
Los Angeles, CA
Oppenheim Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Climate change, urban water
Recent speakers: Lisa Jackson, Vice President, Environmental Initiatives, Apple; Allan Jones, Chief Development Officer, Energy and Climate Change, City of Sydney
Frequency: Three times per year
13. Harvard University, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study
Cambridge, MA
Water Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Various topics related to water
Recent speakers: Daniel P. Schrag, Sturgis Hooper Professor of Geology, Harvard University
Frequency: Annual
12. University of Vermont, Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources
Burlington, VT
Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Paths to leadership in Vermont conservation, sustainable transportation, climate change
Recent speakers: Tracey Tsugawa, Civil Rights Investigator, Vermont Human Rights Commission; Michael C. Snyder, Commissioner of Forests, Parks and Recreation, Vermont Agency of Natural Resources; Chapin Spencer, Director of Public Works, City of Burlington
Frequency: Weekly
11. Duke University, Nicholas School of the Environment
Durham, NC
Ferguson Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Tiger ecology, global warming, energy efficiency
Recent speakers: Ullas Karath, conservation scientist, Wildlife Conservation Society; Al Gore, former Vice-President of the U. S.
Frequency: Annual
10. University of Texas at Austin, President's Sustainability Steering Committee
Austin, TX
Sustainability Lecture
Recent subjects: Economic viability of sustainability
Recent speakers: Bill McKibben, David Spence
Frequency: Annual
9. Princeton University, Princeton Environmental Institute
Princeton, NJ
Taplin Environmental Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Environmental ethics, federal land use
Recent speakers: Jane Lubchenco, Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator; Ralph Cicerone, President, National Academy of Sciences
Frequency: Annual
8. Green Mountain College
Poultney, VT
Sustainability Speaker Series
Recent subjects: Permaculture, urban ecology, animal testing
Recent speakers: Andrew Gunther, Program Director, Animal Welfare Approved; Janisse Ray, writer, naturalist, and activist
Frequency: Several per semester
7. Oregon State University
Corvallis, OR
Starker Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Diverse topics in forestry management
Recent speakers: Tom Spies, Research Forester, USDA Forest Service; John Gordon, Pinchot Professor Emeritus and Former Dean, Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies; Paige Fischer, Research Social Scientist, Western Wildland Environmental Threat Assessment Center and PNW Research Station, USDA Forest Service, Prineville, OR
Frequency: Several times per year
6. University of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, OH
Climate Commitment 101 Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Carbon footprint, water sustainability, urban ecology
Recent speakers: Adrian Parr, Associate Professor & UNESCO Co-Chair of Water Access & Sustainability; Jennifer Eismeier,â¨Executive Director,â¨Mill Creek Watershed Council of Communities
Frequency: Several times per semester
5. University of Wisconsin - Madison, Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies
Madison, WI
Jordahl Lectures
Recent subjects: Environmental history, ethics, national parks
Recent speakers: William Cronon, University of Wisconsin - Madison; Terry Tempest Williams, University of Utah
Frequency: Annual
4. Yale University, Center for Industrial Ecology
New Haven, CT
Industrial Environmental Management Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Various topics on business and the environment
Recent speakers: Includes leaders in the environmental industry
Frequency: At least four per year
3. University of Michigan, Earth and Environmental Sciences
Ann Arbor, MI
Smith Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Geology, volcanoes, carbon dioxide and ozone
Recent speakers: Whitey Hagadorn, Denver Museum of Nature and Science; Gordon Brown, Stanford University
Frequency: Weekly
2. University of Alberta, Department of Renewable Resources
Edmonton, Alberta
Renewable Resources Seminar Series
Recent subjects: Oil sands, wildfires, wetlands
Recent speakers: Lee Foote, Director and Professor, Devonian Botanic Gardens, University of Alberta; Jon Fennell, Principal Hydrogeologist and V.P. Geosciences and Water Security, Integrated Sustainability Consultants Ltd., Calgary, AB
Frequency: Weekly
1. Ashland University, Environmental Science Program
Ashland, OH
Environmental Lecture Series
Recent subjects: Urban ecology, chemical pollution, Latin American environmentalism
Recent speakers: Kendra McSweeney, Associate Professor of Geography, Ohio State University; Geoffrey Dabelko, Professor and Director, Ohio University Voinovich School Environmental Studies program
Frequency: Several times per year
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