State University of New York at Cortland
Tier2-8: Themed Semester or Year

During the 2008-2009 academic year, SUNY Cortland hosted a yearlong series of lectures and cultural events focused on the theme of global climate change and environmental sustainability. The series, called “Earthly Matters,” featured nine lectures and performances by leading environmental scholars, writers and activists who explored the impact of global climate change, the nation’s dependency on fossil fuels, the health effects of environmental pollution and the politicization of science. The speakers at the events included (1) Bill McKibben, a scholar-in-residence at Middlebury College in Vermont and author of The End of Nature; (2) Alfred Crosby, a historian and professor emeritus at the University of Texas at Austin; (3) Chris Shaw, a singer and songwriter; (4) Paul Roberts, an environmental journalist; (5) Michael Klare, director of the Five College Program in Peace and World Security at Hampshire College in Western Massachusetts; (6) Angus Wright, a professor emeritus of environmental studies at California State University; (7) Diana Muir, author of Reflections in Bullough’s Pond: Economy and Ecosystem in New England; (8) Sandra Steingraber, author of Living Downstream: An Ecologist Looks at Cancer and the Environment; and (9) William Reese, a population ecologist at the University of British Columbia. “Earthly Matters” was the College’s third year long series of lectures and cultural events organized around a single theme and was sponsored by the Cultural and Intellectual Climate Committee, the Office of the President, and the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. All events were free and open to the public.