Last winter, Helen Munn spent about a quarter of her monthly income to heat her little three-bedroom house outside Asheville, North Carolina. It can get bitterly cold in these mountains, but many homes still lack proper insulation. A group of college students are now making Helen’s community a warmer place, one home at a time.
Just as climate change has become a very real issue globally, its potential impact regionally cannot be ignored. In the Southern Appalachians, a biological "hot spot" with varied ecosystems, the issue poses a growing challenge to the environment, economy and community life. It is against this backdrop that the first Headwaters Gathering is being held March 27-29 at Warren Wilson
The gathering has a theme of "Southern Appalachia at the Crossroads: A Call to Action." The three-day agenda, which seeks to bring together a diverse group in a collaborative environment, includes a number of people at the forefront of climate-change issues.
Info: Margo Flood, mflood@warren-wilson.edu
The first Headwaters Gathering is being held March 27-29 on the Warren Wilson campus with a theme of “Southern Appalachia at the Crossroads: A Call to Action.” Online registration is required.
A 2004 interview with Carol Browner, chosen by the President-elect for the new position of coordinator of energy and climate policy, can be read in Warren Wilson’s Heartstone Journal here.
"Obama Team Keeps Grass Roots Growing" – December 15, 2008 — As the president-elect staffs the top rungs of his administration, his team is paying close attention to their grass-roots network, urging Obama supporters across the country to hold house parties in an effort to turn activists and volunteers into an effective political organization.
The fall resident assistant and resident director selection process involved 17 students who participated in an intensive selection process that resulted in eight students being offered positions for the 2009 spring semester.
In my September report I described how changes in the economy might affect the college. Although I’m confident Warren Wilson will thrive in the years ahead, I now have a better idea of the steps we must take to ensure that it does. After addressing some general fiscal challenges, this report mentions some recent decisions that will enhance our mission while still responding to new budgetary pressures.
Gideon Burdick, a Warren Wilson College junior from Cleveland Heights, Ohio, has been selected as a 2008 National Wildlife Federation Campus Ecology Fellow.
The Swannanoa Gathering, a series of folk arts workshops held each summer on the Warren Wilson campus, has won a 2008 Players’ Choice Award in competition sponsored by Acoustic Guitar magazine.
Caucus co-convener Gideon Burdick ’10 has received a grant from President Pfeiffer’s Climate Action Fund. Gideon will work with John Moon, a Cambrian University (Canada) professor on sabbatical at Warren Wilson, to create a real-time energy monitoring system for the College. If you’d like to get involved with the project, email gburdick@warren-wilson.edu. For information about the Climate Action Fund, contact Margo Flood, mflood@warren-wilson.edu.
