UN climate change youth involvement: A call to action
Huffington Post – Dec. 4
It’s a quiet day in Doha — a contemporary, sandy, yet somewhat “glitzy” city on the Persian Gulf built from oil-derived wealth. Climate change negotiators are taking Sunday off following a long week of haggling behind closed doors, pressing their own national and regional interests, and stuck with seemingly intractable positions. As the negotiating delegates prepare for the all-important second week of the conference, a less visible team sits around a table in their Le Park Hotel quarters, reflecting on events of the past week and strategizing over their plans for the coming week. This is a team of students who have traveled here from the U.S. as representatives of the American Chemical Society (ACS). Their goal is to promote climate literacy among their peers back home, via social networking technologies, in an effort to promote action to save our planet … Today, Marla handed off the baton to a newly arrived group of ACS students — green-chemistry graduate student Parker McCrary (University of Alabama) and senior chemistry majors Nikki Deluca and John Siller (York College of Pennsylvania) … Student observer Parker stated, “The leaders of the world currently tasked with setting benchmarks for CO2 emissions will be long gone by the time these metrics are in place, leaving the youth of the world to deal with the consequences. Even now, the Arab youth are becoming empowered to act by organizing one of the first official rallies in recent Qatari history while American youth have remained relatively quiet.”
UA Honors students artwork displayed for Art Speaks today
Al.com – Dec. 3
The University of Alabama Honors College presents Art Speaks, a series of student art exhibitions, tonight in UA’s Nott Hall. The art series features artwork from a few Honors students and this week the featured artists are Colby Leopard, Talia Scarpelli, Michael Bolus and Kristen Tcherneshoff. Every exhibition is different and showcases various types of art from sculptures to organic clothing. Kirkland Back, the Honors College’s director of Arts Awareness, tells us what can be expected at today’s exhibition. “We will be showing both photography and sketches that display the vast talent of student artists on campus at UA,” said Back. “Images of Cuba, the University, self-portraits and sketches of fantastical creatures are to be shown.”
University of Alabama social worker interns to help prisoners prepare for their release
Al.com – Dec. 3
A pilot project in which University of Alabama social worker interns will visit Alabama prisons to help inmates get ready for their release is among the programs the North Alabama Reentry Council will discuss at a Tuesday meeting, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance. The meeting, which begins at 2 p.m. at the YWCA of Central Alabama, 309 23rd St. North, is open to the public. The council is meeting to discuss programs that have grown from its work to reduce criminal recidivism through better support and services to ex-offenders who are leaving prison and re-entering society, according to Vance’s statement … Among those programs are one that begins Jan. 13 that will provide social worker interns from the University of Alabama to help inmates preparing to leave Alabama prisons, according to Vance’s statement.
Calderone delivers state of the University address
Crimson White – Dec. 4
Student Government Association President Matt Calderone gave his state of the University address Monday night, highlighting the projects and initiatives SGA has done thus far this year. “We have made progress,” Calderone said. “We’ve come a long way. SGA in the past has been through its up and its down. There have been times when we’ve been trusted and some times when students have questioned this SGA.” Calderone said through sign-in sheets and ACT Card swipes at various events, in addition to Twitter and Facebook interaction with students, SGA has reached 16,544 students directly. “[The students] have come to our events; we’ve talked to them in our office,” Calderone said. “These are students who have heard about our need- based scholarships. These are students who come into our office on Veterans Day concerned about getting around Tuscaloosa when public transit is not in operation. Students are now confident in their SGA and know they can go to their SGA and get help and assistance. We’ve had over 100 ideas to actions funneling through our office. We have made progress.” Calderone also mentioned SGA’s commitment to service through the Sunday service initiative in the office of the vice president of external affairs, which he helped create last year before being elected SGA president, in addition to making safety a priority for SGA. “In the office of external affairs, we’ve continued our initiative of service through the Sunday service program,” Calderone said. “We’ve also made safety a top priority on campus and beyond. We’ve been concerned mostly with safety on the Strip, focusing on the connectivity from downtown and the Strip.”
Campus NAACP holds Toy Ball for underprivileged
Crimson White – Dec. 4
A handful of UA student groups held a benefit ball for children who go without toys during the holiday season. The University’s chapter of the NAACP, the Beta Eta chapter of Omega Psi Phi and the Kappa Alpha chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha hosted the 12th annual Toy Ball on Dec. 2. In addition to collecting toys, the $10 entrance fee went toward the purchase of more toys for the Tuscaloosa One Foundation.
Student planning trip along the Drake Passage to Antarctica
Central Michigan Life – Dec. 3
Abigail Hollingsworth said she will inevitably spend at least five days this January throwing up. It’s called the Drake Passage. It’s a stretch of water from South America at Cape Horn, Chile, and the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica. The 500-mile long passage is the shortest crossing to Antarctica. Other shipping routes are narrow, and often blocked off by large masses of ice, literally leaving ships ice-bound. Therefore, Drake is the only reliable route to Antarctica … Hollingsworth is partaking in the trip as a research assistant for Biology Professor Andrew Mahon, who has been to Antarctica twice before — once in 1994, and another time in 2006…The research group, which will be sampling DNA from several different invertebrate species to learn about their genetics and ancestral history, will be comprised of Hollingsworth and Mahon, along with Hazel Park senior Carlos Coronado, faculty from the University of Alabama and Auburn University, and a group of international researchers.
South Dakota School of Mines rejects discrimination claim by Christian evangelist who sued
The Republic (Columbus, Ind.) – Dec. 3
The South Dakota School of Mines and Technology and a Christian evangelist who wants more freedom to speak on campus are poised for a court battle. The outcome could affect other college campuses in the state. Mark Gavin, 39, of Black Hawk, is suing the school, saying it has infringed on his right to free speech by not allowing him to preach in high-traffic open areas around campus. He is seeking the right to do that, along with court-related fees, in the federal lawsuit filed on his behalf by the Tennessee nonprofit Center for Religious Expression … University of Alabama law professor Paul Horwitz, an expert on free speech, said schools may be able to limit full access to campus, but they need to do so equally. “The answer seems to be yes, although it can’t just be done arbitrarily: the school at least would have to have a clear policy that doesn’t discriminate on the basis of the speaker’s viewpoint,” Horwitz said. “In fact, a number of universities in the past few years have established specified ‘free speech zones’ on campus, while keeping others clear of speech.”
The Daily Republic (South Dakota) – Dec. 3
Remnants of the Storm: Resourceful, artistic, optimistic collaboration
Daily Mountain Eagle – Dec. 4
Around Alabama, a year and a half after the April 2011 storms, new stories delightfully and effortlessly unfold from surprising, unexpected sources. Dr. Sue M. Parker, a University of Alabama professor in the Department of Clothing, Textiles, and Interior Design for more than forty years, owned and operated Parker’s Fabrics on 15th Street in Tuscaloosa. After twenty years in business, she closed the shop and stored the new, unsold fabrics nearby in two tractor trailers. Planning to donate the fabrics, Sue’s search for a suitable organization was interrupted on April 27, 2011, when the F4 tornado swept through Tuscaloosa on a 5.9-mile path of carnage, ultimately stealing lives, homes and businesses…The tornado picked up one of the trailers containing Sue’s fabrics and dumped it a block away, in front of McDonald’s. The fabrics scattered and found new homes in the storm’s leftovers — wrapped around battered vehicles, encased in layers of filthy mud, ripped, torn and tangled in shards of broken glass. When Sue made it to the area, sickened by the shroud of devastation, the remainders of a pecan tree on her property immediately seized her attention. Remnants of a once-teal fabric gracefully draped the surviving limbs and opened a window of hope. Certain her fabrics had a purpose and should not become part of the tons of storm garbage, Sue began the daunting task of recovering them. University of Alabama students, including many from all over the world, and other Tuscaloosa residents showed up right away with an energetic thirst to help. They rescued Sue’s fabrics, storing the dirty wet globs in black trash bags. The Alabama Network of Family Resource Centers gratefully accepted the fabrics and placed them in the skilled, ingenious hands of Black Belt Designs — a trio including Lillie Mack, Jo Hare and Marilyn Gordon.
GUEST COLUMNIST: The pursuit of happiness must have some boundaries
Tuscaloosa News – Dec. 4
A new friend reminded me a few emails ago that for every new book he reads, he tries to read three old ones. There is wisdom in that suggestion, and I always try to mind my wise friends. I have been so busy writing books these past few years that I forgot to set some time aside to read what the masters of the past have written. With this in mind, and with a gentle suggestion from my friend, Jim Simon, a retired Microsoft executive, I ordered C. S. Lewis’s “God in the Dock,” remembering how much I had enjoyed some of the great English Christian philosopher’s books in the past, such as his “Surprised by Joy.” The short essays in “God in the Dock,” are entertaining, thought provoking, and I read some and browsed others as Lewis wended his way through issues of God. I reached the last essay in Lewis’s book and, as usual, was captured by the title, “We Have No ‘Right to Happiness.’ ” What’s this? It is in our Declaration of Independence! And, of course, Lewis recognized this. Those words “are especially cherished by all civilized men, but especially by Americans.” (Larry Clayton is a professor of history at the University of Alabama.
Tailgaters take tradition to Alabama thriller
Crimson White – Dec. 4
Here at The University of Alabama, tradition is used synonymously with our football team. Many Alabama football fans keep traditions of their own by traveling with the team wherever they play. The SEC championship in Atlanta, Ga., this weekend was no exception. Billy and Tina Kitchens, season ticket holders since 1987 and natives of McDonough, Ga., have always chosen to tailgate in their RV. Billy Kitchens is the cousin of starting quarterback for The University of Alabama’s 1995-1997 team Freddie Kitchens. Their lhasa alpso, Nick (after Nick Saban), has come to every game with them for the past two years. “I don’t think there’s that big of a difference between home games and bowl games like today,” Tina Kitchens said. “During a bowl game there’s a little bit more hype, but I think it’s always a good time any time you go.” The Kitchens prefer the RV treatment at their home turf in Tuscaloosa, where they usually park at Bryce by the softball fields, but they were satisfied with their placement during the SEC championship in Atlanta, Ga….Although the majority of home games are spent with a regular friend group of two or three RVs, the Kitchens enjoy the new friends they make at bowl games.