[act-ma] Energy (and Other) Events Monthly - June 2022

[gmoke]

**Index**

**Conferences**

Numbers and Nature: Mitchell J. Feigenbaum Symposium
Thursday, June 2 - June 3

MA Solidarity Economy / Worker Co-op Festival & Gathering
Saturday & Sunday, June 4-5

The Pulitzer Center's 2022 Annual Conference  
Interconnected:  Reporting the Climate Crisis
June 9 - 10

Eurekafest!
Wednesday, June 15

**Lecture Series**

Weaning Buildings Off Fossil Gas & Market (Redesign) Pathways to a Decarbonized Grid 
Friday, June 10

Portable Heat Pumps - Low Cost Supplemental Heating and Cooling
Wednesday, June 22

**Events**

Webinar: Get All the 𝚍̶𝚒̶𝚛̶𝚝̶ SOIL on Soil Conservation in Urban Agriculture
Wednesday, June 1

Boston MA Budget Hearings on American Rescue Plan Act Funds
Wednesday, June 1

Countdown: An Evening with Alan Weisman
Wednesday, June 1

Wanjira Mathai on Sustainable Development and the Power of Women 
Tuesday, June 7

Commonwealth Kitchen Food Show
Thursday, June 9

Right to a Healthy Environment: Symposium 
June 9, 2022 

Ukraine and beyond: Lessons in refugee education
A Brookings-Yidan Prize event on key issues in refugee education
Tuesday, June 21

Climate Change, Our Youths, and Mental Health
Monday, June 27

Education meets the metaverse: The promise and the worry
A Brookings-Yidan Prize event on the future of education in the 21st century
Tuesday, June 28

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These kinds of events below are happening all over the world every day and most of them, now, are webcast and archived, sometimes even with accurate transcripts. Would be good to have a place that helped people access them. 

This is a more global version of the local listings I did for about a decade (what I did and why I did it at http://hubeventsnotes.blogspot.com/2013/11/what-i-do-and-why-i-do-it.html) until September 2020 and earlier for a few years in the 1990s (https://theworld.com/~gmoke/AList.index.html).  

A more comprehensive global listing service could be developed if there were enough people interested in doing it, if it hasn’t already been done.  

If anyone knows of such a global listing of open energy, climate, and other events is available, please put me in contact.

Thanks for reading,
Solar IS Civil Defense,
George Mokray
gmoke at world.std.com

http://hubeventsnotes.blogspot.com - notes on lectures and books
http://solarray.blogspot.com - renewable energy and efficiency - zero net energy links list
http://cityag.blogspot.com - city agriculture links list
http://geometrylinks.blogspot.com - geometry links list
http://hubevents.blogspot.com - Energy (and Other) Events
http://www.dailykos.com/user/gmoke/history - articles, ideas, and screeds

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**Conferences**

Numbers and Nature: Mitchell J. Feigenbaum Symposium
Thursday, June 2 - June 3
9:00am to 5:30pm
MIT, Building 6, Room 120, 182 MEMORIAL DR (REAR), Cambridge, MA 02139
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/numbers-and-nature-mitchell-j-feigenbaum-symposium-registration-333126399027

AGENDA- THURSDAY, JUNE 2, 2022
8:00 Registration
9:00 Welcome
Daniel Rothman — Professor of Geophysics and Co-Director of the Lorenz Center, MIT-EAPS 
Predrag Cvitanović — Professor and Glen P. Robinson Chair in Nonlinear Sciences, Georgia Tech
9:10 - MORNING LECTURE SESSION 1
Overcoming the Random Closed Packed Barrier: Crystallization in Granular Media 
Harry Swinney — Professor Emeritus, UT Austin
How to Compute the Universe 
Stephen Wolfram — Founder and CEO, Wolfram Research
Folds, Cuts and Isometries: Art and Science 
L. Mahadevan — Professor of Physics, de Valpine Professor of Applied Mathematics, and Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard
10:40 Coffee Break
11:00 - MORNING LECTURE SESSION 2
Turbulence, From Newton’s Quadratic Law of Drag to Mitch Feigenbaum and Recent Times 
Yves Pomeau — Emeritus Research Director, French National Centre for Scientific Research
Fluids Experiment 
Bjorn Hof — Professor of Physics, IST Austria
Life and Death of Turbulence 
Nigel Goldenfeld — Swanlund Chair and Center for Advanced Study Professor of Physics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
12:30 Lunch | Ida Green Lounge, Green Building, Room 54-923
2:00 AFTERNOON LECTURE SESSION
Geometry, Topology, and Electrophysiology: How Excitable Tissues Sense their Shapes
Adam Cohen — Professor of Chemistry, Chemical Biology, and Physics, Harvard
Cognitive Neuroscience
Josh Tennenbaum — Professor of Computational Cognitive Science, MIT-BCS
Optics, Vision, and Evolution, after Mitchell Feigenbaum, 1944-2019
Jean-Pierre Eckmann — Professeur Honoraire, University of Geneva
Collective Dynamics with Complex Connectivity
Boris Schraiman— Professor of Physics, UC Santa Barbara
4:00 Coffee Break
4:30 KEYNOTE LECTURE
Mirrors and Mirages
Sir Michael Berry — Melville Wills Professor of Physics (Emeritus), University of Bristol
5:30 Reception | Hockfield Court, outside Stata Center east entrance

AGENDA- FRIDAY, JUNE 3, 2022
8:30 Registration
9:00 MORNING LECTURE SESSION 1
Overview; Feigenbaum’s Role in Chaos 
Albert Libchaber — Detlev W. Bronk Professor of Physics, Rockefeller University
Broken Symmetries in Living Systems 
Nikta Fakhri — Thomas D. and Virginia W. Cabot Career Development Professor, MIT-Physics
Hydrodynamics and Microbes 
Alex Petroff — Professor of Physics, Clark University
10:40 Coffee Break
11:00 MORNING LECTURE SESSION 2
Singularity in a Teacup — When Nature Gives Infinity
Dwight Barkey — Professor of Mathematics, University of Warwick
TBA 
Michael Brenner — Michael F. Cronin Professor of Applied Mathematics and Applied Physics, Harvard
TBA 
John Bush — Professor of Applied Mathematics and Fluid Dynamics, MIT-Math
12:30 Lunch | Ida Green Lounge, Green Building, Room 54-923
2:00 AFTERNOON LECTURE SESSION 1
Encoding Patterns in Single-Cell Locomotion: Oscillations, Synchronization, and Excitability
Kirsty Wan — ERC Starting Grantee, Senior Lecturer, University of Exeter
The Mysteries of Gaps and Pile-Ups at Planetary Resonances
Renu Malhotra — Louise Foucar Marshall Science Research Professor and Regents Professor of Planetary Sciences, University of Arizona
TBA
Sara Seager — Class of 1941 Professor of Planetary Science, Professor of Physics, and Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics, MIT-EAPS, Physics and AeroAstro
3:30 Coffee Break
4:00 AFTERNOON LECTURE SESSION 2
TBA
5:30 Adjourn

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MA Solidarity Economy / Worker Co-op Festival & Gathering
Saturday & Sunday, June 4-5
10:00am-4:00pm
RAIN DATE: June 11-12, 2022
Global Village Farm, Grafton, MA 
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ma-solidarity-economy-festival-gathering-registration-327544072137

Another World Is Here! Let’s Build It Together 
Join us for a weekend of festivities, networking, learning, visioning, strategizing and movement building. 

The Massachusetts Solidarity Economy Network (MASEN) is organizing a two-day gathering on June 4-5, 2022 to celebrate, learn, strategize and build together at Global Village in Grafton, MA. Camping will be available for overnighters - a great opportunity to build relationships and have fun together around a bonfire, swimming, and maybe some music (bring an instrument). Here’s a link to a rideshare board. We will be providing Spanish interpretation and childcare.

Saturday, June 4th - Festival & Solidarity Economy/Worker Co-op Teach-in
Enjoy and celebrate the solidarity economy (SE) in Massachusetts:
Co-op vendors: As a major backbone of the SE, we’ll be spotlighting co-op businesses - come meet them and shop their wares.
Learn about solidarity economy organizations and initiatives. 
Come to a participatory Solidarity Economy 101 teach-in. What’s the relationship between co-ops and the solidarity economy? 
Open space: brief workshops and discussions that anyone can offer, so come with your ideas. 
Come and enjoy cultural offerings and hands-on activities, including farm work. 
Are you a member of a worker co-op? If YES, we want to support you with funds to be here! Please use this url: https://bit.ly/3y2An9q to sign up for a worker co-op stipend for Saturday June 4.
Organized in partnership with the Coalition for Worker Ownership and Power (COWOP).

Sunday, June 5th - State of the Solidarity Economy Movement & Collective Strategy
Help us build and strengthen the solidarity economy movement in Massachusetts. All are welcome, whether you are new to this movement or an old hand.
Build relationships, network and do some speed dating.
Participate in collective visioning, strategizing, setting priorities.
Learn and exchange on a range of topics such as childcare, culture and SE, co-op policy, local SE case studies

The venue: Global Village
This event is held at Global Village, an international initiative building centers for education, training and movement building. Global Village is part of creating a new sustainable economy and cooperative living spaces with low-income immigrant communities of color and other colonized and marginalized people.

————  

The Pulitzer Center's 2022 Annual Conference  
Interconnected:  Reporting the Climate Crisis
June 9 - 10
RSVP at https://www.tfaforms.com/4981120
More information at https://pulitzercenter.org/events/pulitzer-center-2022-annual-conference

We are pleased to invite you to join us for the Pulitzer Center's annual conference, taking place onJune 9 & 10, 2022, with virtual programming in five languages for a global audience.

Interconnected: Reporting the Climate Crisis will feature unique and engaging discussions centered on the Pulitzer Center’s mission of quality journalism and education, bringing together journalists, editors, educators, students, and experts from around the world at the forefront of climate change and environmental reporting. 

Across two days of plenary sessions, panel discussions, Q&As, and informal networking, attendees will examine emerging trends in journalism through the lens of Pulitzer Center investigations; explore new and innovative tools for conducting cross-newsroom and cross-border investigations; and discover career opportunities made possible through Pulitzer Center climate reporting grants and fellowships.

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Eurekafest!
Wednesday, June 15
10:00am to 12:00pm
MIT, Stata Center, Stata Center32 Vassar Street, Cambridge, MA
More information at https://lemelson.mit.edu/inventeams#current-inventeams

Join us for the 16th annual EurekaFest celebration to honor young inventors! This year's showcase will be held on Wednesday  June 15, 2022 from 10-12 in Stata

EurekaFest is an event that empowers student inventors, honors role models, and encourages creativity and problem solving. Programming includes an introduction to the 2022 Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams — teams of high school students from across the country who received an InvenTeam grant to build a working prototype to solve a real-world problem in their community or beyond. 

———— 

**Lecture Series**

Weaning Buildings Off Fossil Gas & Market (Redesign) Pathways to a Decarbonized Grid 
Friday, June 10
9:00 am-12:30 pm
Convener/Moderator: 
Dr. Jonathan Raab, Raab Associates, Ltd. 
Host: Foley Hoag
To attend in-person* or to livestream:
*All visitors to Foley Hoag must be fully vaccinated and boosted.
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/weaning-buildings-off-fossil-gas-market-pathways-to-a-decarbonized-grid-tickets-314024093517
Cost:  $0 - $100

Weaning New England’s Buildings Off Fossil Gas
Judith Judson, VP & Head of US Strategy, National Grid
William Akley, President & COO of Gas, Eversource Energy
Rebecca Tepper, Chief Energy & Environment, MA Attorney General’s Office
Amy Boyd, Director of Policy, Acadia Center

Decarbonizing buildings will likely be New England’s greatest carbon emissions reduction challenge in the coming decades - particularly in our existing building stock heated by natural (aka fossil) gas. Options for decarbonizing these buildings include deep weatherization, electrification, decarbonizing the gas itself by using renewable natural gas and hydrogen, and/or geothermal energy. Various important developments are currently underway in the region. These include consideration of a Clean Heat Standard in Vermont, suspension of subsidies for new natural gas hook-ups in Connecticut, and the establishment of a Clean Heat Commission in Massachusetts.

In this Roundtable, we focus on what may prove to be the most promising development for building decarbonization in the region--Massachusetts DPU’s 20-80 Docket [Role of Gas Local Distribution Companies as the Commonwealth Achieves its Target 2050 Climate Goals]. Specifically, we examine the Massachusetts’ gas distribution companies recently filed strategic gas decarbonization plans and proposed common regulatory reform framework. These filings are, in large part, based on the recently released Technical Analysis of Decarbonization Pathways conducted by E3 on behalf of the gas distribution companies. Leaders from National Grid and Eversource will present their strategic decarbonization plans, as well as the key findings from the E3 study and their joint regulatory reform framework. This will be followed by critiques of these proposals and the underlying study from leading voices on behalf of consumer and environmental advocates.

Market (Redesign) Pathways to a Decarbonized New England Grid
Katie Dykes, Commissioner, Connecticut DEEP
Gordon van Welie, President & CEO, ISO New England
Todd Schatzki, Principal, Analysis Group
Peter Fuller, Principal, Autumn Lane Consulting

As a result of the New England states participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), carbon-emitting generation in New England pays a price for carbon it emits. But that price is too small - in and of itself - to shepherd in the amount of new carbon-free electricity resources that New England needs to decarbonize its electricity grid. Hence, many New England states have been issuing their own solicitations to procure clean energy resources (e.g, from offshore wind and hydro from Quebec). Meanwhile, ISO New England, the New England states, and diverse regional stakeholders have been exploring various ways to redesign our wholesale markets to better align with our decarbonization aspirations. These ideas include the incorporation of a more impactful carbon price in wholesale energy markets and the introduction of a new forward clean energy market (FCEM). 

At this Roundtable, we will examine the strengths and weaknesses of these various options, as well as stakeholder preferences regarding these choices. We begin with the findings of a recent ISO-New England sponsored comparative study conducted by Analysis Group. The study, which includes significant input from the New England States and NEPOOL stakeholders, compares the status quo with various approaches, including carbon pricing, FCEM, and a hybrid design combining carbon pricing and FCEM. We will then hear our panelists’ reactions to the study, and a spirited discussion about what New England should do.

Materials from our March 25th Roundtable
Materials from our 3/25 Roundtable, Federal Support for Clean Energy & Equitably Decarbonizing the Northeast, including speaker and convener biographies; a list of registrants; RTO Insider's 3.29.22 Edition (with coverage on page 23); and a link to the on-demand video are available on our website. Please note that there were no speaker slides to post for this Roundtable. The video can be viewed for free by employees of our Sponsor organizations. For non-Sponsors it costs $100 to view at the General rate and $50 at the Discounted rate. 

2022 Roundtable Sponsorship Drive
We are currently accepting new NE Roundtable Sponsors for 2022. If you would like to learn more about the benefits of Roundtable Sponsorship, please email Susan at susan at raabassociates.org.

Remaining 2022 NE Roundtable Dates
September 30 • December 9 
(Topics, Speakers, & Registration TBD)

Raab Associates, Ltd / www.raabassociates.org

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Portable Heat Pumps - Low Cost Supplemental Heating and Cooling
Wednesday, June 22
3:00 PM – 4:30 PM EDT
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/portable-heat-pumps-low-cost-supplemental-heating-and-cooling-tickets-335311213867

Portable heat pumps are a way to lower utility bills by efficiently warming or cooling a single room - a great solution for renters.

Portable heat pumps can heat or cool your home just like a regular heat pump, but with the additional advantage of being transportable. They come in window mounted options or roller options which are easier to move from room to room. They are a great solution for supplemental heat to reduce your reliance on gas or electric baseboard heating, and since they are portable, they are a great solution for renters. 

These units are often used to heat or cool highly used spaces like kitchens or living rooms or to cool a bedroom for sleeping, and a single unit can heat and cool a small apartment. They offer the efficiency of a heat pump without the cost of whole house or ductless heat pumps. 
Join the Electrify Coalition as we investigate portable and window heat pumps just in time for summer in the northern hemisphere. We will answer questions like:
How much do portable and window heat pumps costs?
What are some of the top brands?
How do you install and use them?
Do they really work?
What are things to consider when purchasing one?
What are their advantages over ductless and whole house heat pumps?
Where do I buy them?

Panelist
Sean Armstrong is a leading Electrification expert in North America and has co-authored five user-friendly guides to building electrification, both new construction and retrofits. His firm, Redwood Energy, has led the nation in residential ZNE design since 2011 with more than 5,000 100% solar powered homes. 

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**Events**

Webinar: Get All the 𝚍̶𝚒̶𝚛̶𝚝̶ SOIL on Soil Conservation in Urban Agriculture
Wednesday, June 1
12pm
Contact Abigail at abigail.appleman at usda.gov  
Registrations after 11:00am (Eastern) on June 1 will not receive the link to the live webinar but will receive a link to the recording afterward.  

Is it just dirt, or is your soil alive?  Join our virtual event, hosted by USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service in Pennsylvania, to hear from:
Resource Soil Scientist Dr. Kefeni Kejela - Urban Soils
and State Soil Scientist Yuri Plowden - Soil Your Undies!

We'll talk about urban soils and their properties, soil quality and management, life within the soil, and an invitation to Soil Your Undies*.  There will also be time for questions and answers.

Enter your information to register for this USDA-NRCS webinar.  This event will be held virtually using MS Teams at noon on June 1, 2022.  You will receive a reminder with a link to join the day before.  

Questions?  Contact Abigail at abigail.appleman at usda.gov  

*literally

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Boston MA Budget Hearings on 
Wednesday, June 1, at 2 PM - Housing
Friday, June 3, at 10 AM - Climate, Mobility, and Digital Equity
Friday, June 3, at 2 PM - Public Health
More information at https://bostoncan.org/ and
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1n7b8Ur3XLU9QY0zdbJI3tp5ij185C8bElvKOblVYBtE/edit#

Did you know the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) allocated nearly $560 million to the City of Boston with $350 million of those funds earmarked for new, transformative investments?! The City Council is holding hearings this week to discuss the allocation of these funds and we need YOUR voice there:
 
There are many ways to testify at a hearing: register ahead of time for live virtual testimony, send a pre-recorded testimony, send an email, or attend the meeting in person at the Iannella Chamber on the 5th floor of City Hall! See more details on our talking points at our Budget Hearing Info sheet. We need YOUR voice advocating for:
Crane Ledge Woods
BERDO staffing & software resources
BPS retrofits
Housing retrofitting & anti-displacement
Tree canopy

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Countdown: An Evening with Alan Weisman
Wednesday, June 1
7 PM – 8:15 PM 
RSVP at https://www.facebook.com/events/2537801879683909/

Join us for a live virtual interview with bestselling author, Alan Weisman, in conversation about his multiple-award-winning book Countdown: Our Last, Best Hope for a Future on Earth? The conversation will be moderated by Population Balance Executive Director Nandita Bajaj.

ABOUT THE BOOK
Weisman traveled to more than 20 countries to ask what experts agreed were probably the most important questions on Earth — and also the hardest: How many humans can the planet hold without capsizing? How robust must the Earth’s ecosystem be to assure our continued existence? Can we know which other species are essential to our survival? And, how might we actually arrive at a stable, optimum population, and design an economy to allow genuine prosperity without endless growth?

Weisman visits an extraordinary range of the world’s cultures, religions, nationalities, tribes, and political systems to learn what in their beliefs, histories, liturgies, or current circumstances might suggest that sometimes it’s in their own best interest to limit their growth. The result is a landmark work of reporting: devastating, urgent, and, ultimately, deeply hopeful.

By vividly detailing the burgeoning effects of our cumulative presence, Countdown reveals what may be the fastest, most acceptable, practical, and affordable way of returning our planet and our presence on it to balance. Weisman again shows that he is one of the most provocative journalists at work today, with a book whose message is so compelling that it will change how we see our lives and our destiny.

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Wanjira Mathai on Sustainable Development and the Power of Women 
Tuesday, June 7
11:30am EST
RSVP at https://commonwealthclub.secure.force.com/ticket/?_ga=2.159403646.2102446830.1653886399-149928173.1643172478#/instances/a0F3j00001VZZycEAH

Africa is responsible for less than 4 percent of the planet’s greenhouse gas emissions. Yet its people are already suffering some of the world’s most devastating climate impacts. And as the Global North looks to reduce its addiction to fossil fuels, the minerals required to do so increasingly depend on exploiting natural resources in the Global South, exacerbating a cycle of extraction, environmental devastation, dislocation, and political and social instability. How can these ongoing injustices be stopped and rectified? 

Wanjira Mathai is the vice president and regional director for Africa at the World Resources Institute, and the daughter of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Wangari Maathai, who empowered more than 4,000 women’s groups to protect and restore their local forests, even in the face of death threats. Wanjira herself has tackled such global issues as landscape restoration, youth leadership and sustainable development. She has focused on the power of emotional intelligence and has repeatedly been named one of the 100 Most Influential African Women.

Join Climate One for an in-depth conversation with Wanjira Mathai.

NOTES
This is a free, online-only program; please pre-register to receive a link to the live-stream event. 

This program is free for everyone, thanks to our generous supporters. We welcome donations made during registration to support the production of our online programming.

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Commonwealth Kitchen Food Show
Thursday, June 9
85 Northern Avenue – across from the ICA, next to District Hall, Boston, MA
11am-4pm: Private Industry Show
4pm-7pm: Show opens to the public!
RSVP at https://commonwealthkitchen.org/foodshow/
Cost:  $15

For one day only, we’ll be serving up culinary magic alongside over 90 of Boston’s most talented, creative and diverse food entrepreneurs and culinary trendsetters. 

We're bringing together  CWK members, grads, and alums, including food trucks, caterers, bakers. brewers, sauce makers, and packaged goods companies all under a giant tent in Boston's Seaport District! 85 Northern Ave!

The event will take place outside, under a big tent. Rain or Shine

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Right to a Healthy Environment: Symposium 
June 9, 2022 (Virtual Program)
1:00 - 4:30 PM
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/right-to-a-healthy-environment-in-us-law-tickets-325027956367

The Right to a Healthy Environment in US Law: Justice for Communities Today and Tomorrow is a symposium and CLE course (approval pending in NY and CA) that focuses on the newly-endorsed right to a healthy environment and draws connections between this right and efforts to promote environmental justice in the United States. 

The event will consist of a keynote speech on environmental racism, a panel on environmental justice, and a panel on youth engagement and intergenerational obligations. 

The event is hosted by the Program on Human Rights and the Global Economy at the Northeastern University School of Law on behalf of the Bringing Human Rights Home Lawyers’ Network. All are welcome! 

Opening Remarks. Martha Davis, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Northeastern University School of Law 
Keynote Speaker. Dominique Day, United Nations Working Group on People of African Descent/ Daylight Law 
Session I - Implementing Environmental Justice. Moderator: Rachel Gore Freed, Vice President and Chief Organizer, Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. Panelists: 
Ka’sha Bernard, Center for International Environmental Law 
Ann Marie Chischilly, VP, Native American Initiatives at Northern Arizona University 
Katrina Kuh, Haub Distinguished Professor of Law, Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University 
Sharon Lavigne, Founder, RISE St. James/2021 Goldman Environmental Prize Recipient
Session II - Future Generations. Moderator: Erin Daly, Professor of Law, Dignity Rights Project, Delaware Law School at Widener University. Panelists:
Julia Olson, Executive Director and Chief Legal Counsel, Our Children’s Trust 
Ramin Pejan, Senior Attorney, Earthjustice 
Samia Shell, Ron Brown Scholar, St. John’s University School of Law 
Jonathan Todres, Professor of Law, Georgia State University College of Law 

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Ukraine and beyond: Lessons in refugee education
A Brookings-Yidan Prize event on key issues in refugee education
Tuesday, June 21
9:30 AM EDT - 10:30 AM EDT
Online Only
RSVP at https://connect.brookings.edu/register-to-watch-ukraine-refugee-education

Join the conversation on Twitter using #BrookingsYidanPrize
Since February 2022, the war on Ukraine has disrupted the education of millions—as more than half of Ukrainian children have left their homes, and over 1,800 education institutions have been damaged. The next months will determine how many of these children are able to access education in their host communities across Europe. Globally, nearly half of all refugee children are out of school. Millions of Syrian, Afghan, Rohingya and other refugee children are unable to access education. In this—and all crises—host communities must be prepared, national policies responsive, and funding available.

The initial education response by countries hosting Ukrainian refugee children has primarily been promising, leading refugee education advocates to question the double standard facing children from other countries. They also worry resources will be shifted away from other already underfunded humanitarian crises. Others have posited that the favorable response by European host communities presents an opportunity to improve refugee education policies globally and advance more innovative practices.

On June 21, the Center for Universal Education and the Yidan Prize Foundation will co-host a virtual event to explore critical issues in global education today. Join Maysa Jalbout, Erum Mariam, Viktoriia Gnap, Zarlasht Halaimzai, and David Edwards as they address key questions including: Are the European countries neighboring Ukraine prepared to deliver education to millions of refugee children? What are the roles of teachers and civil society in responding to the crisis? What could Europe learn from other countries hosting large numbers of refugees? How could education responses for Ukrainian, Rohingya, Afghan refugees and others help inform the development of more sustainable system-level solutions?

This webcast is the first in a Brookings-Yidan Prize event series on the future of education in the 21st century. Together, the two organizations are exploring emerging and timely topics in education likely to have deep implications for decades to come.

Viewers can submit questions via email to events at brookings.edu or via Twitter at #BrookingsYidanPrize.

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Climate Change, Our Youths, and Mental Health
Monday, June 27
9pm EST
RSVP at https://commonwealthclub.secure.force.com/ticket/?_ga=2.157697657.2102446830.1653886399-149928173.1643172478#/instances/a0F3j00001VXhqVEAT

If you are not a member yet, now is the time to join our community and receive the great benefits of membership. We are a group of people seeking truth, insight and wisdom about the issues we face as individuals and as a society. Please join! You can become a monthly sustaining member for just $10 a month.

Join us for an in-depth discussion focused on the latest Youth Climate Survey by Blue Shield on how climate change is affecting the mental health of our youth community. 

We'll be talking with David W. Bond, who is the director of behavioral health at Blue Shield of California—Promise Health Plan, where he leads initiatives to restore, sustain and enhance the behavioral health and well being of the state's Medi-Cal and Medicare beneficiaries; Kat Lee, a youth environmental activist and youth organizer for APEN (Asian Pacific Environmental Network)' and Maya Gomez, a Whitney High School sophomore and a student representative for the Mind Out Loud program.

Join us in-person for this timely talk!

NOTES
This program has 2 types of tickets available: In-person and online-only. For online viewing, pre-register to receive a link to the live-stream event.

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Education meets the metaverse: The promise and the worry
A Brookings-Yidan Prize event on the future of education in the 21st century
Tuesday, June 28
10:00 AM EDT - 11:00 AM EDT
RSVP at https://connect.brookings.edu/register-to-watch-education-metaverse

Join the conversation on Twitter using #BrookingsYidanPrize
When education trails technology, the technology rather than educators defines what counts as educational opportunity. This is largely what happened when “educational” apps designed for use on smartphones and tablets meant for adults were introduced to children.

Today, as the metaverse infrastructure is still under construction, researchers, educators, policymakers, and digital designers have a chance to lead the way rather than get caught in the undertow. To leverage the potential of the metaverse as a 3D, global, interconnected, immersive, and real-time online learning space, we need new ways to connect the physical world with augmented and virtual reality experiences.

On June 28, the Center for Universal Education and the Yidan Prize Foundation will co-host a virtual event to consider a path for bringing the best educational practices into the metaverse, stemming in part from a recent policy brief. A moderated discussion of expert panelists will seek to answer questions such as: How can those creating educational products for the metaverse work with educators and scientists to ensure that children experience real human social interaction as they navigate virtual spaces? How can we empower and support children as they safely explore these spaces? Is there a real eye to diversity in the representation and access to what is created?

This webcast is the second in a Brookings-Yidan Prize event series on the future of education in the 21st century. Together, the two organizations are exploring emerging and timely topics in education likely to have deep implications for decades to come.

Viewers can submit questions via email to events at brookings.edu or via Twitter at #BrookingsYidanPrize.