BOONE—High Country Sustainability is the theme of the 2016 University Libraries Summer Author Series to be held at Appalachian State University. The series is sponsored by the Richard T. Barker Friends of the Library.
Janet Larsen, co-author of 2015's "The Great Transition: Shifting from Fossil Fuels to Solar and Wind Energy," kicks off the series with a talk Thursday, June 30, at 3:30 p.m. in Parkway Ballroom of the Plemmons Student Union.
Other speakers in the series are Jay Leutze at 3:30 p.m. July 14, also in the student union's Parkway Ballroom, and Chris Arvidson, Julie Townsend and Scot Pope at 3:30 p.m. Aug. 4 in Room 114 Belk Library and Information Commons.
Janet Larsen
Larsen is an environmental analyst working to connect the dots between climate, energy, water, agriculture and security. She led the research efforts of the Earth Policy Institute (EPI) from its inception in 2001 until 2015. Prior to the creation of Earth Policy Institute, Larsen worked at the Worldwatch Institute. Her research has covered a range of topics, from bike sharing and bottled water to food security, forest cover and crop yields.
In addition to "The Great Transition," Larsen also co-authored "The Earth Policy Reader." She managed the research for all of EPI's books, including the "Plan B" series and "Full Planet, Empty Plates." She holds a degree in earth systems from Stanford University.
Jay Leutze
Leutze was born in Virginia and now lives in the Southern Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. Trained as an attorney, he has become a leading voice for state and federal conservation funding for investment in public lands. He is a trustee for Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy, one of the nation's most established land trusts.
He is the author of 2012's "Stand Up that Mountain: The Battle to Save One Small Community in the Wilderness Along the Appalachian Trail," winner of the Reed Environmental Writing Award. Leutze's book tells the true story of a North Carolina outdoorsman who teams up with his Appalachian "mountain people" neighbors to save treasured land from being destroyed.
Chris Arvidson, Julie Townsend and Scot Pope
These three writers edited the 2015 anthology "Reflections on the New River: New Essays, Poems and Personal Stories." Arvidson is a writer who has worked in land and water conservation. She lives in West Jefferson. Pope is a photographer, musician and writer who lives in Creston. Townsend has taught writing for 23 years at UNC-Charlotte and Appalachian State University. She lives in Fleetwood.
For more information about the series, contact Lynn Patterson at 828-262-2087.
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