events – Page 6

a perfect day for 2019 pumpkin fest

On Saturday, October 5, hundreds of Wes and Middletown community members spent their day soaking up the sun at Long Lane Farm’s 2019 Pumpkin Fest. Cosponsored by the COE, the Green Fund, and Wesleyan Bon Appetit, the student-run event featured live local bands, local vendors, farm tours, crafts, free veggie burgers and cider thanks to Bon Appetit, baked goods for sale benefitting New Horizons Domestic Violence Shelter, a pie-eating contest with prizes courtesy of WesPress, and lots of Wes student groups, including the Sustainability Office, CAG, WesDivest, Bread Salvage, Resource Center Spirituality and Sustainability Interns, WildWes, Natural History Museum, Sunrise, Outing Club, Wesleyan Refugee Project, Uslac, Veg Out, Real Food Challenge, NEAT & WesNEAT. A special thanks to Wesleyan RJ Julia, NoRA Cupcakes, Auntie Arwen’s Spices, and Adelbrook Bark-ery for joining us for the day⁠—and to an amazing lineup of talented performers for sharing their songs: Lopii, Iris Olympia, Barry Chernoff, Emcee Elvee, Rebecca Roff, and Skye Hawthorne! Click here to view 500+ photos!

wes community takes part in global climate strike

by stousi

Wesleyan students organized various events for a day of climate action on September 20, 2019, as part of the week-long Global Climate Strike.

Events kicked off with a Climate Rally outside of Usdan, featuring speeches by students, staff, and other members of Wesleyan’s community. Students from Wesleyan’s Climate Action Group and other environmental groups spoke about the ongoing sustainability and activism efforts around campus and the next steps in the movement. Staff members and Middletown residents, including Professor Anthony Hatch, Chair of the Science in Society Program and COE faculty member; Ben Florsheim ’14, Middletown’s Democratic mayoral nominee; and Nur Fitzpatrick, Middletown resident and activist, also spoke about the importance of the Climate Strike and environmental activism at a local level. The rally was followed by a march around campus. Click here for more photos from the Climate Rally and March.

At 4:30 pm, Professor of Physics Brian Stewart presented his annual Climate Rant on the subject of Tipping Points. He contextualized the talk within the day’s events on campus and the climate action movement on a global and historical scale. Professor Stewart also posted a comprehensive introduction to the Climate Strike events on the Middletown Eye, a community news blog. His post details the science behind climate change as well as both governmental and public responses to the topic.

Later that afternoon, staff and students met at the front steps of Olin Library for a candlelight vigil, which ended on the corner of Church and High streets.

spitzer ’68 shares lessons from the osprey gardens

by stousi

On Thursday, September 12, Dr. Paul Spitzer ‘68 gave a talk titled “Lessons From the Osprey Gardens” to mark the first day of his monthlong stay at Wesleyan. Dr. Spitzer is a visiting guest who will be giving several talks over the course of his stay and leading field trips for Mike Singer’s BIOL220/ Conservation Biology class. His next seminar—Biological Secrets & Ecological Significance of the Common Loon—will take place on Thursday, October 3 at noon here at Wesleyan.

fall into fall with pumpkin fest 2019

by Laurie Kenney

farmers market fridays with long lane farm

by Laurie Kenney

Just coming up on the solstice, the official start of the season, and summer is already well underway at Wesleyan’s Long Lane Farm. After a busy springtime of sowing seeds and preparing plots, the first vegetables of the season are finally ready to harvest. And the first full harvest of the season means it’s time for of one of my favorite tasks at Long Lane—bringing our delicious produce down to the North End Farmer’s Market!

jonas promotes one health approach to microbial threats

by stousi

On April 29, the College of the Environment welcomed Olga Jonas, a senior fellow at the Harvard Global Health Institute, for a presentation on “Pandemics, AMR and Other Microbial Threats: One Health Approaches to Mitigate the Risks in Developing Countries.” Prior to her current position, Jonas worked at the World Bank, where she coordinated the operational response to avian and pandemic flu threats and, with the UN and others, was responsible for monitoring the global response since 2006.

stewart explores tipping points in annual earth week rant

by stousi

Earth Week Rant poster On April 18, 2019, Brian Stewart, professor of physics, environmental studies, and integrative sciences, hosted his 12th Annual Earth Week Rant on the subject of “Tipping Points: Physical, Ecological, Social, and Personal.” His yearly talks inform the greater Wesleyan community on the evolution of climate change and challenge them to actively work to counter its effects.