September, 15 2008, 03:34pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Michelle Tafoya, NPCA, 406.862.6722
National Parks Conservation Association Hosts Free Public Lecture Series About Climate Issues
KALISPELL, Mont.
The public is invited to attend a series of free lectures starting Thursday, September 25, at Flathead Valley Community College (FVCC) in Kalispell. The series, "Montana's Changing Climate: Science, Solutions & You," is sponsored by the nonprofit National Parks Conservation Association in partnership with the Montana Department of Agriculture, Montana Audubon, Headwaters Montana, PPL Montana, Montanans for a Healthy Climate, the Clark Fork Coalition, and the FVCC Green Team.
"Climate change has the potential to
alter - irreversibly in some cases - the environment and economy that the
Flathead Valley depends on," said lecture series coordinator Michelle
Tafoya of the National Parks Conservation Association. "This lecture
series seeks to inform residents about these changes and provide an
opportunity to discuss policy options to address climate change."
The first lecture in the series will be hosted by Dr.
Steve Running, the state's leading climatologist and resident
researcher at the University of Montana, Missoula, since 1979. Dr.
Running's lecture, "Climate Change in the Northern Rockies: It's all
about Water" will offer highlights from his research and development of
global and regional climate models, including his concern that local
temperature changes brought about by climate change will be easier to
adapt to than changes in local water availability.
"Dr. Running's talk will provide a great opportunity
for Flathead Valley residents to learn firsthand about climate change
and what we can do here at home to address the threat," said Dave
Hadden, Director of Headwaters Montana, a local conservation
organization.
Dr. Running is as a lead author of the fourth
Assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and shared
the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. He is an elected fellow of the American
Geophysical Union and is designated a Highly Cited Researcher by the
Institute for Scientific Information.
All lectures will be held in the FVCC Arts and
Technology Building, in room 139, starting Thursday, September 25, and
running through Tuesday, October 28. Lectures begin at 7:00 P.M. and
are free and open to the public.
NPCA is a non-profit, private organization dedicated to protecting, preserving, and enhancing the U.S. National Park System.
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