Topics from today’s headlines – including hemp, coal, race, climate change and technology – link to the past and will be featured in an Oct. 8-10 environmental history symposium offered by the University of Louisville and The Filson Historical Society.
Most sessions of the conference, “New Paths in the Environmental History of North America and the Ohio Valley,” will be at the University Club. UofL’s Center for Arts and Culture Partnerships organized the symposium with The Filson to coincide with the city’s YES (Year of Environment and Sustainability) Fest. Other UofL sponsors are the College of Arts and Sciences, McConnell Center, Liberal Studies Project, and the history, biology and urban and public affairs departments.
The conference will open with a 5:30 reception and 6:30 p.m. lecture Oct. 8 in The Library at Oxmoor Farm, 720 Oxmoor Ave., and run 8:30 a.m.-4:15 p.m. Oct. 9 and 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Oct. 10 at the University Club.
Keynote speakers will talk about the history of Ohio River flooding and the 1969 Cuyahoga River oil-slick fire.
Scholars from Germany and Canada will join speakers from California, Ohio and the South in discussing environmental issues related to agriculture, cities, parks, coal, race and technology. Kentucky topics will include Mammoth Cave, coal mining, hemp culture, Louisville parks and Louisville environmental decision-making; several speakers will discuss Cincinnati’s early days and Ohio farming issues. For a list of all conference topics, check http://filsonhistorical.org/events.
The $10 registration for the general public includes all conference sessions, opening reception and continental breakfasts; box lunches can be reserved for an additional $10 each day. Sessions are free for all area university students and UofL employees who register. Registration is encouraged by Oct. 5; to register, go to http://filsonhistorical.org/events or call 502-635-5083.
For more information, contact Peter Morrin, director of UofL’s Center for Arts and Culture Partnerships, at 502-852-2361 or Jamie Evans, marketing and public relations coordinator of The Filson Historical Society, at 502-635-5083, or visit http://louisville.edu/arts-culture/events-workshops.
