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Global climate change need no longer be a cloudy issue for Miami University students, who now have the opportunity to learn all they need to know about the hot topic.
Focus the Nation-an all-day event hosted by Green Oxford, the Western College Program, the National Association for Environmental Professionals and the Institute of Environmental Science-kicked off Thursday evening with the ultimate goal of raising awareness of the planet's changing climate.
Kevin Leahy, the keynote speaker, started the event Thursday night at Pearson Hall addressing the topics of political, scientific and economical issues surrounding climate change. Leahy is managing director of climate policy and economics for Duke Energy.
"Who doesn't get touched by this?" Leahy asked. "You have an issue like (this), and of course everybody wants to get involved. And when everyone gets involved, it gets really complicated because everyone has an opinion."
Leahy said he has been working on carbon emissions since at least 2004. He acknowledged that since Duke is one of the largest users of coal in the nation and emits a large portion of the nation's carbon emissions, they want to be part of the solution to the problem they have created.
According to Leahy, Duke plans on supporting plans for climate change that would be economy-wide and supportive of new technology, amongst other stipulations. Additionally, Leahy said the company would support a cap and trade program, which would provide allowances for carbon emitters. Essentially, they would pay for the right to emit one ton of carbon, and then the fee would be put to further use fighting climate change.
Leahy said Duke has been aware of the global climate change issue for quite some time and does not believe it will go away by itself. He said a great deal of effort must be put into solving the issue in order to preserve modern society.
"The world we have today, that's developed over the past thousand years, was built on a climate that was fairly, somewhat stable," he said. "We've got our cities, our infrastructures, food supplies, our water supplies-everything else built around that climate. So you change that climate and all of a sudden some of that stuff just isn't going to work anymore. Then we're going to be in trouble."
The lecture was just the first of many for Focus the Nation, a nation-wide educational initiative that the events sponsors are trying to bring to Miami. Starting at 10 a.m. Friday, 10 25-minute lectures will be held all across campus until 4 p.m. Nine faculty members from seven different university departments will be speaking. Some of the represented disciplines include physics, history, architecture and engineering.
Miami sophomore Teresa Zaffiro said the diverse group of speakers indicates how universal the issue truly is. Zaffiro is also co-coordinator for the event and member of both Green Oxford and the Western College Program.
"It goes to show it's not just something environmentalists care about," Zaffiro said.
At 1 p.m. Friday, there will be an hour-long "Sustainability Fair" at the seal on Academic Quad. A number of tables will be set up by campus organizations to provide information about how individuals can become more involved in making Miami and all of Oxford "more sustainable and green."
Zaffiro said Focus the Nation was actually a nationwide event that took place Jan. 31 at more than 1,000 colleges and universities. It was decided to delay Miami's event so as not to rush the planning. She hopes the end result is an eye-opening experience.
"I hope students come and learn this isn't just a weather issue," she said. "They can do their part. They don't have to think it's hopeless; everyone can do something."
