Media Advisory: Former President of Ireland Mary Robinson to Speak at WFU
Who and What: Mary Robinson, President of the Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice will speak at Wake Forest as part of the University’s Voices of Our Time speaker series.
Robinson served as President of Ireland from 1990-1997 and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights from 1997-2002. She is the recipient of numerous honors and awards including the Presidential Medal of Freedom from the President of the United States Barack Obama.
Her memoir, “Everybody Matters,” was published in September 2012.
Why: Robinson’s address is being presented in conjunction with a two-day interdisciplinary symposium, “The Human Face of Environmental Inequality,” jointly sponsored by the Wake Forest University Humanities Institute, the University’s Center for Energy, Environment and Sustainability, and the Human Rights and Global Justice research group, an affiliate of the Humanities Institute.
“This conference will examine some of the many ways that human rights and environmental protection intersect, from efforts to find climate justice, to protection for indigenous communities, to the effects of environmental harm here in North Carolina,” said John Knox, Wake Forest law professor and United Nations independent expert on human rights and the environment.
Additional Speakers: Andrew C. Revkin, writer, senior fellow for environmental understanding and applied environmental studies at Pace University and author of The New York Times Dot Earth blog, will deliver the closing keynote address, “#IamChicoMendes – How the Global Communication Revolution Can Protect Resources and Rights.”
A list of round table participants and a complete symposium schedule are available online.
When and Where:
The Human Face of Environmental Inequality, March 26-27, Benson University Center
Mary Robinson: Thursday, March 26, Wait Chapel, 6 p.m.
Andrew Revkin: March 27, Benson University Center, Room 401 at 2:45 p.m.
All events are free and open to the public. Pre-registration is encouraged.
About “Voices of Our Time:” Established in 2006 by Wake Forest University President Nathan O. Hatch, Voices of Our Time brings to campus the world’s thought leaders—including scholars, scientists, writers, business and public policy leaders, activists and religious leaders—for discussions on the important national and international issues of our time.
About Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University combines the best traditions of a small liberal arts college with the resources of a large research university. Founded in 1834, the school is located in Winston-Salem, N.C. The University’s graduate school of arts and sciences, divinity school, and nationally ranked schools of law, medicine and business enrich our intellectual environment. Learn more about Wake Forest University at www.wfu.edu.
