UMass Amherst is getting a School of Earth and Sustainability and it will launch Wednesday, April 19.
The keynote speaker at Wednesday’s event, which will take place from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., will be Yale law and psychology professor Dan Kahan. Other speakers are expected to include Secretary of Massachusetts Energy and Environmental Affairs Matt Beaton, UMass Amherst Provost Katherine S. Newman and Dean Steven Goodwin of the College of Natural Sciences.
The event will also include “lightning talks” by graduate students on sustainability issues, and a light lunch will be served. It will be in the Atrium of Design Building, 551 N. Pleasant St., Amherst.
Founding School of Earth and Sustainability director, professor Curt Griffin, says it is the only school of its kind in New England, and it creates a rich environment for students and faculty to “make a big difference in the world” with the largest and most diverse set of environmental sustainability programs. He adds, “At UMass, we have enormous capacity to become a national leader for research and the destination of choice for students interested in applied environmental disciplines such as climate sciences, food systems, biodiversity and conservation, clean energy, the built environment and social and environmental justice, just to name a few.”
Over the past year, the school has worked to forge stronger connections between campus scholars and establish new programs that train students to be highly effective leaders, equipped to innovate, advance and inspire sustainable solutions that address the most critical issues of our time. Griffin says that the school holds the potential for future cutting-edge interdisciplinary and collaborative research with a focus on the natural and built environments.
Its official website is expected to launch this week, as well.
