The UK Appalachian Center and the Appalachian Studies Program will host scholars, artists and NGO representatives from mountain regions all over the world on Oct. 25-27
This coming October 25th through 27th, the University of Kentucky’s Appalachian Center and Appalachian Studies Program is set to kick-off their ambitious Global Mountain Regions Conference. The three day event is a transnational exploration and conversation of the shared economic, social, and historical challenges that mountain regions face within both national and global contexts.
Conference organizer and Director of the Appalachian Center and Appalachian Studies Program, Dr. Ann Kingsolver, along with co-organizer and a postdoctoral scholar at the center, Sasikumar Balasundaram, have wrangled together a broad community of people interested in what mountain regions the world over have to contribute to each other and the global community at large.
With topics ranging from the perspective of children to the contribution of bees, each conference session pairs one member of the Appalachian community with that of others from places as wide ranging as Ecuador, Wales, Pakistan, and the People’s Republic of China. The conversations had in these sessions will not end there and the goal of the conference organizers is to preserve the conversations in the form of a book so that the lessons learned carry on.
Seven UK students created a project redefining community service. The group established a small-scale farm in Owsley County, Ky., revitalizing 10 acres of land owned by the school district, which will yield 100 percent of the produce for the local schools and aims to strengthen the county's economy.
As university graduates increasingly require international perspectives, skills and knowledge, UK is using a new program called Global Classroom Connections that allows students to use new technologies to gain international experiences independent of financial or other constraints.
The Appalachian Center and University Press of Kentucky are hosting three events to celebrate Appalachia-related books published during this academic year.
In April of 2012, Ron Eller delivered the annual Distinguished Professor Lecture. Eller is a professor in the Department of History and has spent more than 40 years teaching and writing about the Appalachian region. His lecture was entitled “Seeking the Good Life in America: Lessons from the Appalachian Past,” and is available in this podcast in its entirety. Opening remarks were given by the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Mark Kornbluh.
Eller served as the director for the UK Appalachian Center for 16 years. Eller has also served as chairman of the Governor’s Kentucky Appalachian Task Force, the first chairman of the Kentucky Appalachian Commission and as a member of the Sustainable Communities Task Force of President Clinton’s Council on Sustainable Development.
The University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences will present the Distinguished Professor Lecture, featuring History Professor Ron Eller at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, April 12 in the William T. Young Library auditorium.
The UK Appalachian Center and Appalachian Studies Program will host the author, director, full cast and technical crew of Silas House's new play, "This is My Heart For You," fresh from its world premiere at Berea College.
Spring is on its way! Gardens will be growing, and fruits and vegetables will be ready to eat - or preserve, pickle, freeze or dry! Lisa Conley is a graduate student in the Department of Sociology, and has been working on a documentary film about home food preservation methods in Appalachia since 2009.
In this podcast, Conley discusses her research for the film, as well as an upcoming event. On April 5th, 2012, Conley will be presenting at the Appalachian Forum on Home Food Preservation in Eastern Kentucky, which will include a panel discussion, an excerpt from Conley’s film, and a question and answer session about food safety. The forum is from 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. in Room 206 of the UK Student Center.
