NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Jan Fiderio at 603.283.2107

April 1, 2009 for Immediate Release

Climate Change and Human Change, Making the Connection

A community discussion and personal look at the emotional impact of an evolving world

When: Tuesday, April 14, 2009 at 7 p.m.
Where: Antioch University New England, Community Room, 40 Avon Street, Keene, NH

Keene, NH - Antioch University New England will host a community discussion titled Climate Change and Human Change, Making the Connection, for the tenth annual John Knight Colloquium on April 14 at 7:00 in the evening. Four panelists who are passionate about psychology, spirituality, and the world we live in, will explore the personal side of climate change and how what we think and feel impacts us and our ability to live fully in these times.

Panelists include Diane Kurinsky, professor and associate director of clinical training for the AUNE Department of Applied Psychology; Fred Taylor, adjunct faculty member for the AUNE Department of Environmental Studies; Paul Cameron, executive director of Brattleboro Climate Protection; and AUNE environmental studies master's candidate Jessica Zane.

By reflecting on their own experiences and inviting others to share their perspectives the panelists hope to spark some dynamic dialogue about where we are now and how we can move forward. "Climate change is one of the most incomprehensible problems humans have ever had to face," suggests AUNE's Taylor. "Because it is so vast, multi-faceted, and rife with uncertainty we need to embrace both spiritual traditions and psychological understanding in order to fully meet the future."

AUNE's Kurinsky notes that many people are frightened and angry about the difficulties we will be facing in coming years. "It's important," she says "to have a sense of what to do and what not to do with that fear and anger."

The speakers will bring a variety of backgrounds and experience to the discussion including Cameron's work with Vermont's Brattleboro Climate Protection organization and Zane's experiences interviewing individuals for her short film Beyond Denial: The Emotional Landscape of Climate Change.

The John Knight Colloquium is an annual, free event. Antioch University New England warmly invites the community to attend.

About the John Knight Colloquium

The John Knight Colloquium is sponsored by the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program of the Department of Applied Psychology, and is in memory of John Knight, a beloved person, gifted teacher, and valued colleague. During his six years of teaching at Antioch New England Graduate School, John Knight demonstrated an unwavering commitment to community mental health and devoted much time to the community as a mediator, coalition builder and pastoral counselor. In the autumn of 1999, two years after his death from cancer, the Counseling Psychology Program of the Department of Applied Psychology established an annual colloquium in his memory.

The mission of this colloquium is to provide a forum to discuss issues of importance to the community that might not be aired in other formats. The colloquiums bring public attention to issues of emotional, social, and political importance which are complex, sometimes controversial, and which people might need an opportunity to grapple with in an accepting and problem-solving format. In the last seven years, the colloquium has presented panels on living with loss; the experiences of gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender youth in the Keene community; preventing violence against children; autism spectrum disorders; living with Alzheimer's; building socially just communities; and aging well.

About Antioch University New England This is Antioch University New England's forty-fifth year as an institution of higher education. Based in Keene, New Hampshire, AUNE offers rigorous, practice-oriented, values-based master's, doctoral, and certificate programs to more than one thousand students. Degrees in education, leadership and management, environmental studies, and psychology reflect a dedication to activism, social justice, community service, and sustainability. Antioch University New England is the oldest and largest of Antioch University's graduate campuses.

About Antioch University Antioch University is a five-campus university located in four states. Each campus has its own distinct academic programs, community life, and regional or national identity. Antioch University is founded on principles of rigorous liberal arts education, innovative experiential learning and socially engaged citizenship. The multiple campuses of the University nurture in their students the knowledge, skills and habits of reflection to excel as lifelong learners, democratic leaders and global citizens who live lives of meaning and purpose. For more information visit: www.antioch.edu.

For more information about Antioch University New England visit our web site at: www.antiochne.edu.

Last Updated: 3/4/10