FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information contact
Irene J. Klaver, (940)-565-2266
klaver@unt.edu
WATER CONFERENCE MAKES A SPLASH AT UNIVERSITY
WaterWays 2007 Brings the Community Together on Water Issues
Denton, Texas--March 2007-- With possible water shortages looming overhead, the Philosophy of Water Department at UNT is doing their part to combat these issues with an educational, three-day conference.
WaterWays 2007 will be held March 13-15 on the UNT campus and will feature keynote speaker Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., President of the Waterkeeper Alliance. The conference is free and open to the public.
WaterWays will shed light on the unfortunate outlook on river basins, specifically the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) basin located in both India and Bangladesh. This region holds nearly one-tenth of the world’s population and supports one of the largest supplies of water to the rest of the world.
The conference will also feature presentations on the future of our own water shed supply and what we can do to reduce consumption.
This “confluence of Art, Science, Policy and Philosophy” strives to bring together various groups of individuals in order to discuss critical water basin issues that span the globe. "Instead of the master planning approach, water managers need to get input from the population and have a priority approach,” said Dr. Irene J. Klaver, director of WaterWays and the Philosophy of Water Project. The ultimate goal of the conference is to simply “raise awareness of water basin issues.”
The WaterWays Conference is a part of the Water Project, sponsored by the Philosophy of Water Department at UNT and the Dixon Foundation of Dallas. It works to develop new ways to understand the connection between humans and nature.
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Biographical Information
As President of the Waterkeeper Alliance and Chief Prosecuting Attorney for the Hudson Riverkeeper, Robert F. Kennedy is a strong advocate for the integrity of the Hudson River ecosystem in New York. He was even named one of the “Heroes for the Planet” by Time Magazine for leading Riverkeeper in the fight to restore the Hudson River. Kennedy’s activism spans all the way from Canada to South America where he has aided in forming treaties which protect their traditional homelands. He is a renowned author, a radio personality, a professor and an attorney. He is also a licensed master Falconer and enjoys the thrill of white water paddling whenever possible.
Dr. John A. McLachlan is the director of the RiverSphere Project and the Center for Bioenvironmental Research, both backed by Tulane and Xavier Universities in New Orleans. One of Center’s major focuses is the Katrina Environmental Research and Restoration Network. McLachlan is a graduate of both John’s Hopkins and George Washington Universities. He spent many years with the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences where he was named Scientific Director in 1989. McLachlan has been at the forefront of many new scientific discoveries and studies, for which he has been awarded many prestigious awards.
Schedule of Events
TUESDAY
3:30-3:40 ENV 130: Opening Remarks and Panel Discussion-Irene J. Klaver, Director of UNT Philosophy of Water Project and WaterWays
3:40-4:35: North Texas Drought and Water Conservation-Rodney Love, Tierra Designs, Denton, Texas
4:35-5:30: The advantages of Harvesting: Richard Heinichen, Richard's Rainwarer, Dripping Springs, Texas
7:00 ART 221: Artist Lecture on Installation of Rainmaker's Workshop- Daniel Bozkov, Yale School of Art, Columbia University, and Rhode Island School of Design
9:30 ENV 130: Film Series: WATER by: Deepa Mehta
WEDNESDAY
9:00 ENV 120: Water Concerns in the South: A Broad Survey of the Concerns of Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh- Ramaswamy R. Iyer, Former Secretary of Water, New Dehlu, India
Noon ENV 320A: Luncheon
Alliance and Hudson 1:00 ENV 130: Panel Discussion: River Cultures- Ecological Futures- Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., WaterkeeperRiverkeeper and John A. McLachlan, Tulane and Xavier Universities
3:00 ENV Atrium: Reception with Trio Montuno Performance- Trio Montuno
3:00 ENV 3rd Floor: Photography Exhibit- Dornith Doherty, UNT
5:00 Art Gallery: Daniel Bozhkov: Recent Works and Underground Waterworks Rainmaker's Workshop- Daniel Bozhkov
8:00 Lyceum: Distinguished Speaker's Series- Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
THURSDAY
9:30-10:50 ENV 130: Mississippi and Living With Great Rivers: Floods, the Birth of Civilizations and Contemporary Disasters- Richard Sparks, National Great Rivers Research and Education Center
Noon: Luncheon
