Douglas Tallamy, "Nature's Best Hope"
October 7, 2021, 6 p.m., 4th Floor Program Room
Doug Tallamy is the T. A. Baker Professor of Agriculture in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware. He is the author of Bringing Nature Home (2007), The Living Landscape (2014; co-authored with Rick Darke), and the New York Times best seller, Nature's Best Hope (2020). Among his awards are the Garden Club of America Margaret Douglas Medal for Conservation, the 2018 Morrison Communication Award, and the 2019 Cynthia Westcott Scientific Writing Award. During his talk, Tallamy will discuss simple steps that each of us can—and must take to reverse declining biodiversity, why we must change our adversarial relationship with nature to a collaborative one, and why we, ourselves, are nature’s best hope.
Voice of Witness: An Evening with Carolyn Forché
October 28, 2021, 7 p.m., 4th Floor Program Room
Renowned as a “poet of witness,” Carolyn Forché is the author of five books of poetry, including Gathering The Tribes (Yale University Press, 1976), The Country Between Us (Harper and Row, 1982), The Angel of History (HarperCollins, 1994), Blue Hour (HarperCollins, 2003), and In the Lateness of the World (Penguin Press, 2020), which was a finalist for the 2021 Pulitzer Prize in poetry. She is also the author of the 2019 memoir What You Have Heard Is True (Penguin Random House), a devastating, lyrical, and visionary book about a young woman’s brave choice to engage with horror in order to help others (2019 National Book Award finalist). Forché is Lannan Visiting Professor of Poetry and Professor of English at Georgetown University. She will read selections from her poetry and memoir.
Claudio Saunt, "Unworthy Republic: A History of Indian Removal, Mass Deportation, and American Exceptionalism"
March 24, 2022, 7 p.m., 4th Floor Program Room
Claudio Saunt is Richard B. Russell Professor of American History and Co-Director of the Center for Virtual History at the University of Georgia. He is the author of West of the Revolution: An Uncommon History of 1776 (WW Norton, 2014), Black, White, and Indian: Race and the Unmaking of an American Family (Oxford UP, 2005), and A New Order of Things: Property, Power, and the Transformation of the Creek Indians (Cambridge UP, 1999). His most recent book, Unworthy Republic: The Dispossession of Native Americans and the Road to Indian Territory (Norton, 2020) was awarded the Bancroft Prize, the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award, and was a finalist for the National Book Award. The book was recognized by the Washington Post and Publishers Weekly as one of the ten best books of 2020, the New York Times as a Critics’ Top Book, and the Boston Globe as one of the best books of the year. Saunt has developed several online projects, including the Invasion of America and, with Elizabeth Fenn, Pox Americana.
Stephanie Savell, "The American Failure to See War for What It Is: The Past, Present and Future of the US Post-9/11 Wars"
April 11, 2022, 6 p.m., 4th Floor Program Room
Stephanie Savell is an anthropologist of militarism, security, civic engagement, and political culture, and has studied these topics in the United States and in Brazil. She co-directs Brown University's Costs of War Project and conducts research and outreach on the U.S. war on terrorism and its costs for Americans and others around the world. Another major line of research is on policing and activism in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where she has conducted extensive field research. Savell writes for academic and public audiences; she has published in PoLAR: Political and Legal Anthropology Review, Focaal: Journal of Global and Historical Anthropology, the Smithsonian magazine, US News and World Report, Axios, and The Nation, among others, and is co-author of The Civic Imagination: Making a Difference in American Political Life (Routledge, 2014).
2020-2021
Policing and Racial Justice in Baltimore: A conversation with Ray Kelly
September 22, 2020 at 12:15 p.m.
Ray Kelly is the Lead Community Liaison for the Consent Decree Monitoring Team and the Director of the Citizens Policing Project. He was previously the Chief Executive Officer for the No Boundaries Coalition and the 2018 Pax Christi International Peace Award Recipient.
Watch the recording of "Policing and Racial Justice in Baltimore".
Where People Power Meets Peacebuilding: A talk by Maria Stephan
October 8, 2020 at 12:15 p.m.
Maria Stephan is the co-author of Why Civil Resistance Works and is an internationally recognized expert on nonviolent action.
Watch the recording of "Where People Power Meets Peacebuilding".
Litigating Genocide at the International Court of Justice: A conversation with Arsalan Suleman
November 10, 2020 at 12:15 p.m.
Arsalan Suleman is a counsel in Foley Hoag’s International Litigation & Arbitration Practice. He is the former Acting Special Envoy to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
Watch the recoding of "Litigating Genocide at the International Court of Justice".
From 1619 to COVID-19: A Racial Journey of the Road and Traveler (A Talk by Dr. Collins Airhihenbuwa)
February 16, 2021 at 12:15 p.m.
Dr. Collins Airhihenbuwa leads the Global Research Against Non-Communicable Disease (GRAND) Initiative at the School of Public Health at Georgia State University, where he also serves as Professor of Health Management & Policy. Dr. Airhihenbuwa is an expert in creating solutions to promote health equity in national and global health and has more than 30 years of experience advancing research on culture, identity and health to inform strategies for training young professionals to conduct health behavior and public health research and intervention. Prior to joining the school, he was dean of the College for Public Health and Social Justice at Saint Louis University in Missouri. He also has served as a visiting scholar to UN agencies such as the World Health Organization and major universities, including Purdue and Boston University, and has served on boards of Saint Louis City and Hospitals, the National Advisory committee of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Policy Scholars, the Global Philanthropy Alliance, and the board of Scientific Counselors for the CDC.
Watch the recording of "From 1619 to COVID-19"
Truth, Healing, and Change: The Story of the Maine Wabanaki Truth and Reconciliation Commission (A Talk by Esther Anne)
March 23, 2021 at 12:15 p.m.
Esther Anne serves as Policy Associate at the Cutler Institute, University of Southern Maine. She was part of the team that established and convened the Maine Wabanaki-State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the first truth commission in the United States to focus on Native child welfare. The commission was featured in the Emmy award-winning documentary, Dawnland.
2019-2020
The Border Crisis: A Panel Discussion
Thursday October 10, 2019
A panel of leading experts will address the moral, legal, and historical dimensions of the current immigration crisis at the U.S./Mexican border. Panelists include: Michelle Mendez, director of the Defending Vulnerable Populations section of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network; Dr. Dario Euraque, Professor of History and International Studies at Trinity College; and Maureen Sweeney, director of the Immigration Clinic at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law.
Co-sponsored by Latin American and Latino Studies
Combatants for Peace: Working Together for Peace in Israel/Palestine (A talk by Suliman Khatib and Tuly Flint)
Thursday, November 7, 2019
Combatants for Peace (CFP) is a movement made up of Palestinians and Israelis who have taken an active part in the cycle of violence in Israel/Palestine, and now collectively advocate for a just peace through nonviolent means. Their mission is “to build the social infrastructure necessary for ending the conflict and the occupation.” Through joint marches, alternative Memorial Day ceremonies, educational events, and joint efforts to address the problems facing local Palestinian communities as a result of occupation, they seek to demonstrate that there is another way
to be together, and that peace is possible. Suliman Khatib and Tuly Flint will share their personal stories as well as talk about the movement, its goals and activities, and the challenges they face.
Co-sponsored by Messina, the Department of Sociology, and Global Studies
Careers in Peace and Justice: A talk by David Smith
Thursday, January 30, 2020
David Smith, author of Peace Jobs: A Student’s Guide to Starting a Career Working for Peace, is a career coach, educational consultant, and trainer as well as the president of the Forage Center for Peace building and Humanitarian Education. He will speak about how to pursue a fulfilling career path promoting peace and justice.
Creating Capacity for Diverse Cultures to Connect: Understanding the Dynamics (A talk by Frank Eastham)
Monday, March 16, 2020
Frank Eastham is the current Chief Operating Officer at Bridgeway Community Church, a non-denominational and multicultural Christian church in Columbia, Maryland. He is the former Executive Director of School improvement in Howard County Public Schools and a member of the Human Rights Commission. He will speak about the importance of building connections among diverse cultures.
2018-2019
Howard Zehr, The Call to Service: A Restorative Vision to Sustain Us
October 11, 2018
Widely known as "the grandfather of restorative justice," Howard Zehr is a Distinguished Professor of Restorative Justice at Eastern Mennonite University's Center for Justice and Peacebuilding.
Co-sponsored by Campus Ministry, CCSJ, and Messina
William Julius Wilson, Race Relations in the Age of Trump
November 13, 2018
William Julius Wilson, renowned sociologist and the Lewis P. and Linda L. Geyser University Professor at Harvard University, addressed the structural roots of urban poverty and current race relations.
Co-sponsored by Messina, CCSJ, with financial support from the President's Office
A.E. Stallings, Bearing Witness to Europe's Refugee Crisis 
February 7, 2019
As an American poet and translator who lives in Greece, A. E. Stallings addressed Europe's refugee crisis and read from her work.
Co-sponsored with the Center for the Humanities, and the Departments of Classics, English, and Writing
Anthony Barsamian, Fighting for Peace and Justice: The Armenian Genocide Case Study
April 9, 2019
Anthony Barsamian, co-chair of the Armenian Assembly of America, addressed the Armenian genocide and the struggle for recognition and justice.