Leading Environmental Communications Researchers and Practitioners to Share Ideas at AEJMC Conference

DENVER – Denver, a city at the vanguard of environmental awareness and innovation, will host this year’s Association for Educators in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) conference. The Mile High City is the perfect venue for two conference panels that will offer in-depth analysis of current trends in environmental communication. These events will bring together academic researchers from multiple disciplines and practitioners from different perspectives, providing a unique opportunity to explore developing trends and exchange ideas on best practices. The presentations will take place on Tuesday, August 3, and Thursday, August 5, at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel.

If you missed Stephen Colbert’s recent analysis of the “science catfight” between meteorologists and climate scientists (also covered extensively in the “mainstream” media), you will be able to hear directly from Kris Wilson (University of Texas), a key researcher on the project, as part of a pre-conference panel on communicating climate change (and other environmental issues) on Tuesday, August 3, 2-5 pm.

This preconference session will include two panels featuring ten communications experts whose combined work comprises hundreds of articles, books, presentations and media interviews in the academic and popular press. Maxwell Boykoff (University of Colorado at Boulder) is an international expert on media coverage of the climate change issue, who has been featured in Andrew C. Revkin’s “dotearth” blog at nytimes.com. Matthew Nisbet (American University) is highly cited for his insights on media framing of environmental and scientific issues, and Susanna Hornig Priest is editor of the journal Science Communication. David Hosansky, head of media relations for University Corporation for Atmospheric Research will provide scientific perspective, and Drew Kramer (InterMountain Corporate Affairs) and Molly Williams (Craft Interactive) will provide the viewpoint of public relations practitioners. Other panelists will include Michael Palenchar (University of Tennessee), Susan Grantham (University of Hartford), and Ann Marie Major (Pennsylvania State).

The role of modern religion in the communication of environmental values will be explored in the Thursday panel (11:45 am to 1:15 pm). Connie Roser-Renouf (George Mason University) will present data from a recent national survey that connects religiosity variables with environmental attitudes. Mark Neuzil (University of St. Thomas) will provide an overview of how the ancients wrote about the intersection of spirituality and nature and identify common themes that run through various religious traditions, and Tracylee Clarke (California State University Channel Islands) will explore the multiple rhetorical interpretations of the Bible in relation to care of the environment. Rev. Peter Sawtell, founder and Executive Director of Eco-Justice Ministries, will summarize the transformational role religious institutions can have in revisiting deep moral questions related to man and the environment.

Event Details:

Communication and the Environment: Theory and Practice – Tuesday, August 3, 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm, Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel

Environmentalism and Religiosity, Exploring the Connections – Thursday, August 5, 11:45 am to 1:15 pm, Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel

Contact:
Lee Ahern, Penn State University, laa182@psu.edu

If you are interested in attending these sessions, please contact Lee in order to arrange appropriate conference credentials.