An award-winning journalist who has traveled the world will speak at Eastern Kentucky University about humanity’s current struggle to maintain peace in a time of unprecedented change.
Dr. Christian Parenti’s lecture on Thursday, Dec. 1, will address the threat that climate change poses to the current world order, providing a unique and relevant perspective on a topic that fits the Chautauqua theme, “Order and Chaos.” His talk, titled “War and Development in the Age of Climate Change,” will be free, open to the public, and will begin at 7:30 p.m. in O’Donnell Hall of the Whitlock Building.
Parenti is no stranger to the global effects of climate change. In his 2011 book, “Tropic of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence,” he explored how climate change is already causing violence in parts of the world. He traveled the Global South and researched for several years to prepare for writing the book. It has been lauded as “a must-read” and “a harrowing tour-de-force.”
During his career as a journalist, Parenti has reported extensively from Iraq, Afghanistan, and parts of Africa, Asia, and Latin America, receiving numerous awards for his journalism and documentaries. In 2008, the Society of Professional Journalists gave him the “Best Magazine Writing” award. His work on the documentary “Fixer: The Taking of Ajmal Naqshbandi” earned him an Emmy nomination. He has been published in such major news sources as The New York Times, Fortune, The Washington Post, Mother Jones and The Nation.
As a professor at New York University, Parenti specializes in environmental history, political economy, political ecology and the politics of war. He has also written several books on various political and social issues, some of which are considered social science classics. Currently, he is researching the environmental history of state involvement in American economic development.
The Parenti lecture is sponsored by the School of Justice Studies; the Department of Anthropology, Sociology and Social Work; the African/African American Studies Program; and EKU Honors.
For more information about the Chautauqua lecture series, visit www.chautauqua.eku.edu or contact Chautauqua Lecture Coordinator Erik Liddell at erik.liddell@eku.edu.