Another Event - Social Media for Planning Conference

Registration Deadline: Friday, April 15

Register here: www.cpe.vt.edu/socialplan/registration.html

Sponsored by the Virginia Tech Urban Affairs and Planning Program

and Virginia Tech Office of Economic Development

Friday, April 22, 2011

8:00am - 5:00pm

Cost: $90 

5.5 AICP CM credits pending 

Fee includes a mid-morning coffee break, box lunch, and afternoon break.

Location:
Held simultaneously in two locations, Falls Church and Blacksburg, Virginia
Register Online!

About this Conference

Social media tools, communications, databases and other technologies are increasingly being used by planners today in their day-to-day work. How do we choose among these tools? What barriers are there to their effective use? How do we use the information that's provided in the planning process? In what ways do these tools help – or hinder us – in making our communities great places to live, work and play?

Join us for this one-day conversation that will explore these questions and more!

Sessions feature a range of findings, case studies and best practices for how planners today are using technology for data collection, analysis, project management, and presentation in support of the planning process. The day's program concludes with a facilitated discussion that synthesizes key 'lessons learned' across all sessions and that will be shared with attendees following the conference. View the detailed program schedule.

For more information, please visit: www.cpe.vt.edu/socialplan/index.html

Continuing and Professional Education - 702 University City Blvd. - Blacksburg, VA 24060

This Week (and Next Week) Only!

Here's a quick look at some (with so many interesting speakers, amazing festivals, and engaging discussions going on during the next few days this certainly is far from an exhaustive list) of the great events happening in and around Blacksburg during the next 10 days. Given the diversity, there should be something for everyone. Please share with your students, colleagues, and advisors. Don't forget to take a study break yourself and check out some (probably not all - attending all possible events may indicate a serious case of springtime induced procrastination, please see your GEDI staff with questions) of the week's offerings.

Arab Fest
Monday, 11 April 11:00am - 5:00pm
Squires Commonwealth Ballroom
The second-annual Arab Fest is a celebration of Arab cultures. It is a free event open to the public offering a variety of cultural and educational activities: contemporary and traditional music, dance, food, henna drawing, calligraphy and more.

We will have the Hill and Veil belly dance troupe, Anne Elise Thomas will perform music on traditional instruments and at 4:00PM singer GoRemy will perform.

Sponsored by the Reema Samaha Arabic Language and Cultural Initiative which honors the life and memory of Reema J. Samaha who died in the shootings on April 16, 2007. With support from the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures and the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences.

For more information, please read this recent article from the Collegiate Times.

originally published 02.02.2011
visit www.phdcomics.com for more comics
about "Life (or the lack thereof) in Academia"

The Power of Procrastination

Wednesday 13 April @ 7:30pm

GLC Auditorium

The Graduate Student Assembly (GSA) invites you to "The Power of Procrastination," presented by Jorge Cham, creator of the popular comic strip "Piled Higher and Deeper" ("PhD Comics"). Refreshments and book signing will immediately follow the lecture. This event is FREE and open to the public - please invite your friends and colleagues! More information about Jorge and PhD Comics can be found at www.phdcomics.com. Please direct any questions to Amanda Rumore, GSA V.P of Programs (arumore@vt.edu).

Earth Week 2011

18 - 22 April

All Over Campus and Throughout Town

Earth Week Website: ew2011.com

Want more information about Earth Week 2011? Contact: rialto13@vt.edu

Find us on Facebook Virginia Tech Earth Week

Environmental Coalition Website: www.theecvt.wordpress.com

Here's a quick rundown of some of the things on the Earth Week agenda:

Sustainable Food Monday - 18 April

On Campus Farmer’s Market

11:00am - 3:00pm 

Sponsored by CSECP and Office of Energy and Sustainability

Stop by the GLC Plaza (fountain outside Squires) for an on campus showcase of baked goods, produce, crafts and more provided by a selection of your very own Blacksburg Farmers Market Vendors!

Lunch with Mark Winne

1:30pm - Farms & Fields in Owens Dining Hall

Join author Mark Winne for delicious food and informal conversation.

An Evening with Mark Winne

7:30 pm

Squires Colonial

Distinguished author of Closing the Food Gap and Food Rebels, Guerrilla Gardeners and Smart Cookin’ Mamas will speak at Tech about Food Politics, Community Involvement and his own experiences working towards a healthier food system.

Transportation Tuesday - 19 April

Cognitive Climate Change: The Psychology of  Sustainability

3:00pm - 4:00pm

Planetary disruption and destruction are identified and analyzed as problems of technology, industry, or culture. At the root of the problem, however, are patterns of disruption in the human mind and body. An emerging body of evidence points to the fact that connection to nature is an essential form of nutrition. In the same way that we rely upon good quality food to be healthy, humans must connect to our “second mother”- Nature – if we wish to heal both self and world. 

Michael Blackwell is a teacher, musician, mentor, farmer, writer, culture designer, animal tracker, bon vivant, racoonteur. and mid-level academeaucrat. Using information, story, song, reasoned dialogue, and blatant emotional appeal, he will present the case and a method by which we may come to know the world, and be known by it, in a way that can significantly contribute to its healing. Contact him at 540-922-2175 or natlearn@gmail.com if you are interested in arranging a talk for your campus or class.

Mike McCoy from Appalachian Voices

5:00pm

Squires 300

Do you want to effect change in Southwestern Virginia? Mike McCoy from Appalachian Voices will speak about how everyone can create change in this area. We will discuss the dangers of mountain top removal and how, through lobbying, we can bring cleaner energy sources into our homes.

Education & Awareness Wednesday - 20 April

“Sustainable Solutions” w/Rob Jacks of Shaklee

3:30pm – 4:30pm

Squires 300

From chocolate to cleaning products, discover ways to live more sustainably while using everyday products like chocolate and cleaners. A chocolate taste testing will follow the presentation.

The Electricity Fairy

5:30pm - 7:00pm

Squires Brush Mountain A

The Electricity Fairy is a documentary that examines America’s national addiction to fossil fuels through the lens of electricity. Filmmaker Tom Hansell follows the story of a proposed coal-fired power plant in southwest Virginia, connecting the local controversy to the national debate over energy policy. Wise County activist Kathy Selvage, featured prominently in the film, will be on-hand to discuss the film and answer questions after the screening.

Think Global - Act Local Thursday - 21 April

New Forest Earth Presentation  

12:00pm – 1:15pm

Brush Mountain A

Interested in sustainable forestry, starting up a non-profit, or working with indigenous cultures? Hear all about New Forest Earth and what they do to help motivate sustainable communities and empower them to preserve and restore their forests. For more information, check out www.newforestearth.org 

Tree Planting

1:30pm – 3:30pm

Between Slusher and D2  

Make the campus beautiful and help plant 25 native hardwood trees and begin the reforestation near the Slusher Wing area. Stop by anytime and lend a hand! Fill out the Tree Planting Volunteer Sign Up to help out.

Earth Day Meal sponsored by Dining Services

6:00pm

D2  

Celebrate Earth Week at D2 with a special locally sourced meal. “Vote with our fork” this Earth Week and show Dining Services that you support their efforts to incorporate more local, sustainable, and organic foods into our Dining Halls.

Earth Day Friday - 22 April

Earth Day Festival

10:00am - 5:00pm

College Avenue and the Squires Plaza area

Celebrate the planet with the Environmental Coalition and the Town of Blacksburg’s Earth Day Festival. Enjoy our organization and merchant fair, silent auction, local food venders, and entertainment!

Interested in showcasing your business, organization, research project, etc.? Sign up to have a booth at the festival by completing this survey by April 14. 

Gandhi, King, VT

FROM GANDHI, TO DR. KING, TO VIRGINIA TECH:

The Global Legacy of Martin Luther King in the 21st Century

Tuesday, 5 April 2011, 7:00om - 8:30pm

Commonwealth Ballroom in Squires

The ASPECT/PGG Speaker Series is proud to present the Ut Prosim Month Keynote Speaker Dr. Clayborne Carson, internationally renowned scholar and founding director of the MLK Research and Education Institute at Stanford University. Dr. Carson will give a powerful talk tracing the legacy of Gandhi and MLK through the twentieth century and up to the tragedy at Virginia Tech in 2007. This presentation has been collaboratively envisioned by graduate students in conversation with Dr. Carson as a unique opportunity to place the history of Virginia Tech within the context of over a century of critical thought on violence and its alternatives in the modern world.

Please direct questions or requests for promotional materials to Jordan Hill at jordanrh@vt.edu with your contact information.

Spoken Word with Omekongo

Wednesday, 30 March 2011 @ 7:00pm

Squires Commonwealth Ballroom.

Admission is free and all are welcome!

Although @ 7:00pm you'll be workshopping PDePs, please pass along to your

colleagues and friends who are not enrolled in GEDI this semester.

Virginia Tech STAND Chapter (an organization dedicated to awareness and advocacy concerning genocide and genocidal violence in conflicts around the world), the African Students Association (ASA), and the Department of History will be hosting Omekongo, a well-known Congolese motivational speaker and performer. He will be performing an original piece of spoken-word poetry (also known as slam poetry), as well as facilitating a Q&A to follow on the subjects of Congo, Sudan, genocide, sexual violence, and economic exploitation. He's an incredibly powerful speaker and performer, and has been hosted by prominent institutions in the United States and worldwide such as Harvard, MIT, CNN, and a number of others.

GEW 2011, Oh What a Week!

For a downloadable copy of the GEW flyer, click here.

Looking for something fun and intellectually stimulating to help enliven your week? Well, your in luck! Although it is already midweek, it is also Graduate Education Week 2011, which means (although it's probably redundant) there's plenty of exciting events to enjoy! Hooray for GEW 2011! Below are distillations for some of the highlights yet-to-come.

Be sure to take a look at the VT Graduate Education Week website for more information about (and photos from) GEW 2011. You can also savor this year's celebration of you with a commemorative, collectable, and easily downloadable copy of the colorful and informative GEW flyer (see above).

Introducing the pièce de résistance of GEW (or at least of Thursday). Please come check it out, with your patronage, we might be able to make this a more regular feature. Grab an americano from Greenberry's (or elsewhere around town), nibble on a baked good, and soak up the academic ambiance and agri-culture.

The On-Campus Farmers Market at Virginia Tech:

Blacksburg Farmers Market Vendors Visit Campus

Stop by for an on-campus showcase of baked goods, produce, crafts, and more. Learn about the delicious local foods the market has to offer the campus and the community!

THURSDAY March 24, 2011

11:00am-3:00pm

GLC PLAZA

In celebration of Graduate Education Week, Virginia Tech's Graduate School and the Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships are sponsoring an on-campus farmers market featuring vendors from the Blacksburg Farmers Market. In addition, Fred Kirschenmann, distinguished fellow for the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University will visit the market from 2:00pm until 3:00pm to meet and greet students.

Presented by:

Center for Student Engagement & Community Partnerships

Division of Student Affairs

Friends of the Farmers Market

Graduate School at Virginia Tech

Sustainable Food Corps

An Evening with Farmer Philosopher Fred Kirschenmann

Thursday, March 24, 2011 @ 7:00pm

Fralin Auditorium

If you don't have a chance to chat with Fred at the on-campus farmers market, be sure to spend the evening listening to stories from his career and discussing the importance of maintaining soil health, developing small- and medium-sized farms, and incorporating biodynamic techniques into farms. Take a look at the event flyer and review the previous GEDI blog post here.

Bill Bradley

“Leadership in a Changing World” - Cutchins Distinguished Lecture

Thursday, March 24 @ 7:30 pm

Burruss Auditorium

Ok, technically not a part of GEW 2011, but how often does VT host a former U.S. senator, presidential candidate, Basketball Hall of Famer, Olympic gold medalist, Rhodes Scholar, and bestselling author? Well, to be frank...not very often. If you're not already planning to attend the Fred Kirschenmann event, head over to Burruss for an evening with Bill. More information found here.

Big Cook Out

Friday, March 25, 2011 @ 4:30pm until 6:30pm

Graduate School Lawn & GLC Multipurpose Room

Graduate students and their families are invited to enjoy FREE food, music, and games. Come hungry and bring a blanket for lawn lounging!

And finally, courtesy of a former (and now successfully employed) GEDI, a brief comic interlude during an otherwise hectic Graduate Education Week. If nothing else, this helps remind us how great it is to be a grad student.

Hello, Newman

ah, the beauty of RSS feeds (be sure to check out the righthand column for more great syndicated content)...

courtesy of Notes From Newman: HNFE Research & Resources (Rebecca Kate Miller you are awesome! Please keep disseminating great information! Check out more of her frequent, timely, and often humorous dispatches here.)

"More Big News: Study Cafe NOW OPEN!

Yes, that's right--the Newman Library Study Cafe is NOW OPEN!  The first floor door is open, as well, which means that you can enter the library directly on the first floor, and head right on over to Greenberry's, the cafe vendor.  View a drink menu here!

In addition to coffee and other beverages, the study cafe has hot and cold sandwiches, pastries, salads, and other food.  Greenberry's takes all kinds of payment except meal plans; cash, credit card, check, and Hokie dollars are all accepted. 

I, in fact, am drinking a Greenberry's beverage right now, as I write this post.  I swung by the study cafe on my way to Wallace Office Hours (where I'll be until 3:30 today) and picked up a tall (which is the smallest size drink) light roast.  Delicious, and kept me nice and warm on the rainy walk over here.

Be sure to stop by Newman Library today and check out the new cafe!"