Published:
By Leslie Virostek
The words climate change can evoke a sense of paralysis: How can anything be done about such a big, complicated problem? To do its part, Central will host its annual Global Environmental Sustainability Symposium on Monday, April 3, in Alumni Hall at the Student Center.
Free and open to the public, the Global Environmental Sustainability Symposium is aimed at both education and action. Among other things, attendees can expect to gain information — and perhaps inspiration — to join the electric vehicle movement; become more knowledgeable about how individuals and municipalities can do better at recycling and waste reduction; and explore climate change through academic frameworks and personal perspectives.
The day-long, 16th annual symposium is sponsored by the CCSU Global Environmental Sustainability Action Coalition (GESAC), a grassroots group comprising members of the university’s extended community of current and former faculty, students, and administrators. This year’s theme is “Climate Change Impacts on Self, Society, Economy, & Environment.”
The symposium continues to be relevant, according to Dr. Charles E. Button, GESAC founder and board chair.
“As a society, we are not embracing the severity of the climate crisis,” he says.
Each year, the event brings together people from all walks of life, business, and academia, and Button notes that each presentation involves audience interaction, creating exciting learning opportunities for all. Central History professor Leah Glaser, a GESAC board member, agrees that cross-pollination is the key.
She says, “GESAC symposiums are unique because of the interdisciplinary nature — academically and professionally — that can only occur at a public university campus like Central.”
This year’s symposium opens withs an electric vehicle display. Attendees will have the opportunity to test drive an electric car, learn about various models, and ask questions of EV owners and enthusiasts. This will be followed by a panel discussion on the topic of EVs. Barry Kresch, president of the EV Club of Connecticut, will be among the panelists.
Student voices are the heart of the next session. Four students will make presentations on the topic of “Reflect & Preserve: What Climate Change Means to Me.” This was the prompt for a contest sponsored by GESAC and Central’s Center for Community Engagement and Social Research (CCESR). Students who submitted written and multimedia entries to the contest had an opportunity to win scholarship prizes of up to $2,500. Moderator Christian Reyes, CCESR program assistant, says the students’ presentations are compelling because they take “a large issue and give it a more personal perspective.”
Giving the broadest-possible perspective is the objective of a session titled “Climate Change in the Anthropocene,” which will be presented by Gary Gomby, an adjunct professor in the Central Geological Sciences Department. The Anthropocene has been proposed as a new geologic epoch in which humans have become a global geophysical force. Gomby says he will explore “planetary change in a comprehensive fashion.” He notes that the human-created climate crisis is “tied to the rest of the things we are doing to the planet,” from what we grow and eat to our economic and socioeconomic systems.
The state of recycling and waste disposal in Connecticut is the topic of a presentation by Katherine Bruns, the recycling coordinator for West Hartford. More than 300,000 tons of trash is currently being trucked outside the state, and this trash crisis is one of the things she will discuss.
Later in the afternoon, attendees will have the opportunity to browse poster presentations featuring research topics of undergraduates, graduate students, and a few faculty members. The researchers will be on hand to answer questions about their work in areas such as ecological science and environmental justice.
The event closes with a Sustainability Social Mixer and Sustainability Exhibitor Fair, with music provided by the jazz group Brown Paper Sax. With dozens of invited exhibitors, including CT Rides, the Connecticut Sierra Club, and the Solar Energy Association of Connecticut, the session is an opportunity for networking and information sharing among sustainability enthusiasts from non-governmental organizations, businesses, and governmental agencies.
One of many campus events related to the celebration of Earth Day 2023, the symposium will run from 9:15 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.