MCLA Green Living Seminar Series Begins Jan. 24

01/18/2013

NORTH ADAMS, MASS. - "Place-based prosperity" will be the theme  of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts' (MCLA) spring semester Green Living Seminar Series. The series begins on Thursday, Jan. 24, at 5:30 p.m. with a presentation on "The Return of Placecraft," by Jennifer Krouse and Ian Rasmussen.                                                                                                            

The presentation will take place in room 218 of Murdock Hall on the MCLA campus. It is free and open to the public.

This presentation is the first offering in a 12-week series that will consider issues of sustainability and how they can promote the social, economic, and environmental well-being of the north Berkshire region.

"These presentations will inform both students and community members about creative ways that reducing our environmental impact can be linked with enhancing local financial resilience and the vitality of cities and towns in our region," said Elena Traister, MCLA professor of environmental science.

The seminars will take place Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. from Jan. 24 to April 25. Future Green Living presentations include:

Jan. 31, "Strong Towns," presented by Charles Marohn, Executive Director of Strong Towns                                                                                          

Feb. 7, "Short-Term Action, Long-term Change," presented by Andrew Howard of Team Better Block                                                                                                 

Feb. 14, "Green Certification: The Sacred and the Profane," presented by R. John Anderson, Principal at Anderson Kim Architecture & Urban Design, and Stephanie Boyd, Director of the Williams College Zilkha Center 

Feb. 21, "The Original Green," presented by Steve Mouzon, Principal of Mouzon Design             

Feb. 28, "The Agrarian City," presented by Andres Duany, Principal of Duany Plater Zyberk & Company and Jennifer Munoz, Director of the Growing Healthy Garden Program                                                                      

March 7, "The Environmental Argument for Smart Development," presented by Lee Sobel, Real Estate Development and Finance Analyst at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and Jon Ford, Principal of Morris Beacon Design

March 21, "Shared Space," presented by Norman Garrick, Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Connecticut

March 28, "Legalizing Main Street," presented by Caleb Racicot, Senior Principal at Tunnel-Spangler-Walsh & Associates                                                                                    

April 4 (Tentative), "Mobility's Contribution to Sustainability," presented by Richard Davey, Massachusetts Secretary of Transportation                                                                                                                   

April 11 (Tentative), "Revitalizing Downtown" presented by Russell Preston, Design Director at Principle Group and Judy Grinnell, President of Hoosic River Revival                                                                                                                          

April 25, Panel discussion: "Place-Based Prosperity and the Future of North Adams," including Padraic Steinschneider, President of Gotham Design & Community Development Ltd., Mayor Richard Alcombright, Representative Gailanne Cariddi, and Wendy McWeeny, Executive Director of the Partnership for North Adams

Every semester, MCLA's Green Living Seminar Series hosts lectures by local, regional, and national experts organized around a central theme related to the environment and sustainability. The 2013 series received assistance from Imagining North Adams and is a presentation of MCLA's Berkshire Environmental Resource Center and the MCLA Environmental Studies Department.

For more information, go to www.mcla.edu/greenliving or contact Traister, (413) 662-5303.