From the oceans of Acadia National Park to the Himalayas of India, Unity College will bring audiences on compelling global environmental journeys with its Fishbowl series this Spring.

Fishbowl is a stimulating colloquium series that is open to the public where Unity College faculty and invited outside speakers discuss ideas on pedagogy and present their scholarly work at America’s Environmental College.

“This educational forum highlights sustainability scholarship and innovation, and offers the public a glimpse of research findings from our faculty and invited guests,” said Unity College President Dr. Melik Peter Khoury. “The presentations show the relevance of sustainability science from a very local to a much more global scale.”

“The Fishbowl Series celebrates our successes in the classroom, particularly in those areas that highlight the transdisciplinary focus of the Unity College curriculum,” said Assistant Professor of Cell Biology Dr. Ellen Batchelder, who co-coordinated the series with School of Environmental Citizenship Dean Dr. Erika Latty. “We have another packed semester of interesting seminars from our faculty and external guests. We had so many interesting titles that we had to blow up the schedule a little to fit them all in.”

The series began with a seminar from Thinlas Chorol, one of the most well-known female mountain guides in the Himalayas and founder of the Ladakhi Women’s Welfare Network in India, talking about the fight for social justice for women in the Himalayas. This seminar is supported by Unity College’s Diversity Initiative.

A full summary of the season schedule, for use in your events listings and calendar sections:

Tuesday, Feb. 7: “Fighting for Social Justice for Women in the Himalayas of India.” Thinlas Chorol, a social entrepreneur, founder and president of Ladakhi Women’s Welfare Network, and female Himalayan Mountain Guide, will offer her perspectives from 11 a.m. to noon Tuesday, Feb. 7 in  Higgins Wing Room 212 of the Student Activities Center. Sponsored by the Unity College Diversity Initiative.

Tuesday, Feb. 14: “Habitat Management in China.” Dr. Dajun Wang, researcher at Peking University, will speak about his work on endangered species populations and habitat management in China, with a focus on giant pandas. His talk starts at 6 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 14 in the Unity College Center for the Performing Arts. Sponsored by the Unity College Diversity Initiative.

Thursday, Feb. 23: “Hills to Sea Trail.” Unity College alum and local business owner Ryan Howes ’07 will speak about the Hills to Sea Trail as a local resource as a pathway for partnership and community engagement. Howes ran the 47-mile trail in one day last fall. The talk is noon to 12:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 23, in Higgins Wing Room 212 of the Student Activities Center. Invited by Professor Tom Mullin with support from the Unity College Development Office.

Tuesday, Feb. 28: “Tides and Sea Level Rise.” Jonathan White, author of “Tides: The Science and Spirit of the Ocean,” will speak about what tides can teach us of sea level rise with a talk at 11 a,m. in Parsons Wing Room 204 of the Student Activities Center, and a talk and book signing at the Unity College Center for the Performing Arts that starts at 6 p.m., both Tuesday, Feb. 28 Jonathan White is supported by Academic Enhancement Funding.

Thursday, March 9: “Phenotypic Plasticity Across Environments and Generations: A New Perspective for Evolution.” Unity College Visiting Assistant Professor of Ecology Dr. Heather Arnett will speak about her research noon to 12:30 p.m. Thursday, March 9 in Higgins Wing Room 212 of the Student Activities Center. Sponsored by the Fishbowl Seminar Series.

Thursday, April 13: “Trophic Structure of Food Webs.” Unity College Assistant Professor of Wildlife Biology Dr. John “Jack” Hopkins will speak about the trophic structure of food webs, the realized niches of populations, and the diets of individuals from rats to grizzlies, noon to 12:30 p.m. Thursday, April 13 in Higgins Wing Room 212 of the Student Activities Center. Sponsored by the Fishbowl Seminar Series.

Tuesday, April 18: “Community Approaches to an Inclusive Mathematics Education.” Unity College Associate Professor of Mathematics Dr. Carrie Diaz Eaton will deliver information she synthesized during her sabbatical, 11 a.m. to noon Tuesday, April 18 in Parsons Wing Room 204 of the Student Activities Center. Sponsored by  the Fishbowl Seminar Series.

Tuesday, April 25: “Mud, Magnets, Acids, and Burning: Reconstructing Paleoenvironments and the Search for Rapid Climate Change Events, Acadia National Park.” Unity College Professor of Geoscience Dr. Kevin Spigel will speak about his sabbatical work, 11 a.m. to noon Tuesday, April 25 in Parsons Wing Room 204 of the Student Activities Center. Sponsored by the Fishbowl Seminar Series.

All members of the Unity College commuity, and the general public, are welcome. A light lunch is provided for daytime seminars. Rooms and dates are subject to change.

Thursday, February 09, 2017