Spring 2019 Global Issues Colloquium

Spring 2019 Global Issues Colloquium

Thursday, January 31, 7 pm
MG2001
Global Women’s health panel

The panel discussion on Global Women’s Health will address, through a rich varied global perspective, an overview of the areas of women and family health care and needs throughout different parts of the world. Panel participants will offer perspectives and expertise based on their lifelong activism and medical careers addressing the urgent needs of global family health, such as  in the areas of polio eradication, clean water and hygiene, maternal health care and genetically transmitted disease.  Audience questions and comments are invited following panel discussion.

Panel participants:

  • Farah Algalith
  • Ray Klinginsmith
  • Steve Hadwiger
  • Kit Hadwiger
  • Amanda Medlock-Klyukovski

Ray Klinginsmith of Rotary has led world-wide campaigns to eliminate polio, to provide clean water, hygiene, education, etc, and many similar humanitarian projects around the world, in particular for children, women and young girls. Fara Alghalith who teaches Arabic is also a gynecologist who formerly practiced in Jordan, her native country and has a strong background in women’s health and maternity. Dr. Amanda Medlock-Klyukovski is a Communications faculty member who has made a careful study of genetically transmitted disease in women, particularly cancer. Drs. Kit Hadwiger and Steve Hadwiger, Nursing emeriti professors, will address, particularly their knowledge and experience of the Philippines in the area of medicalization and women’s pregnancy, maternity and birthing. Each panelist will speak for about 15 minutes on the specific topic they wish regarding Global Women’s Health followed by audience questions

Thursday, February 21, 7 pm
MG2001
Taner Edis, Professor of Physics, Truman State University
A revolt against expertise: pseudoscience, global right-wing populism, and post-truth politics

This is a golden age for conspiracy theories, science denial, and deep suspicion of claims to expertise. Very often, the political context for this revolt against expertise is provided by increasingly powerful right-wing populist movements. Simple reaffirmations of elite forms of expertise, however, overlook how modern liberal politics too often demands public passivity toward sources of information—submission to technocracy rather than democratic participation. Furthermore, some favored forms of elite knowledge claims, such as popular schools of economics, are self-serving or have questionable legitimacy by academic standards. Our “post-truth” moment is in part due to elite incompetence, rather than just being an irruption of irrationality.

Thursday, March 7, 7:30 pm
Una mujer fantástica
(HALO movie & discussion; Center for Diversity & Inclusion)

Thursday, March 28, 7 pm
VH 1010
Global Issues will join the MAE Film Series where we will  view the film “I Learn America.” This film tells the story of five teenagers from immigrant families and their journey of adapting to changing language and family dynamics while creating a future of their own in a new land. Following the screening of the film, there will be a discussion with a panel consisting of KHS students that come from immigrant families. This free event will be held in VH 1010 with refreshments provided.

Thursday, April 18, 7 pm
MG2001
Dr. David Padgett
co-sponsored PSAC and ENVS
Global Urban Climate Vulnerability

Dr. David A. Padgett, Associate Professor of Geography and Director of the Geographic Information Sciences Laboratory, Tennessee State University, Nashville, TN

As of approximately 2015, the majority of the world’s human population lives in urban areas. However, the most environmentally vulnerable parts of the world’s cities are growing the fastest, exposing millions of people to water-borne diseases, extreme weather hazards, and other threats related to climate change. There are opportunities for students and researchers to engage in creative thinking on strategies to mitigate potential negative impacts upon vulnerable populations. For more info: http://www.urbangreenlab.org/professor-david-a-padgett