Fall lecture series explores environmental issues, open to public

Graphic of Earth over moss

Portland State’s School of Earth, Environment and Society is kicking off a lecture series this fall that explores some of today’s most worrying environmental threats, from earthquakes to droughts, and approaches to reducing risks.

The series, “Innovative Approaches to Addressing Societal Risks from Compound Environmental Threats,” begins Oct. 10.

The events are free and open to the public. All talks will be on Thursdays from 4-4:50 p.m. in Cramer Hall 53, followed by a social hour. Enter on the north side of the building and follow signs.

The newly formed school launches this fall and joins together Anthropology, Complex Systems, Environmental Science and Management, Geography and Geology.

Here is the full lineup of speakers:

Thursday, Oct. 10
Seismic Culture: Rationalizing Geosociality for Earthquake Risk Reduction in Mexico and Beyond
Elizabeth Reddy, assistant professor of engineering, design and society at Colorado School of Mines

Thursday, Oct. 17
Trees as a Tool for Climate and Community Resilience in Portland
Micah Meskel, assistant director of urban conservation at Bird Alliance of Oregon

Thursday, Oct. 24
Climate Extremes, Health Risks and Adaptation in East Africa
Deepti Singh, assistant professor in the School of the Environment at Washington State University Vancouver

Thursday, Oct. 31
Preparing Oregon's Fuel Infrastructure for the Next Big Earthquake
Mike Kortenof, manager at the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

Thursday, Nov. 7
Book Talk | Sustainability for the Forgotten
Gary Machlis, professor of environmental sustainability at Clemson University

Thursday, Nov. 14
Adventures in Science and Bureaucracy: Realpolitik for Disaster Risk Reduction
Jonna Papaefthimiou, Oregon State resilience officer

Thursday, Nov. 21
Oregon's Drought History and Current Operational Drought Monitoring
Larry O'Neil, Oregon State climatologist

Thursday, Nov. 28 (Thanksgiving) - No lecture

Thursday, Dec. 5
Carbon Storage in Soil: The Potential of Regenerative Agriculture
Mike Geubert, owner of Terra Farma