Here’s information sent to us about an event that’s part of this year’s Eden Mills Writers’ Festival: a discussion by Naomi Klein about climate change and the role of money.
Climate change, Klein argues in her latest book, This Changes Everything; Capitalism vs. The Climate, is a civilizational wake-up call, a powerful message delivered in the language of fires, floods, storms, and droughts. Confronting it is no longer about changing the light bulbs. It’s about changing the world. We have been told that humanity is too greedy and selfish to rise to this challenge. In fact, all around the world, the fight for the next economy and against reckless extraction is already succeeding in ways both surprising and inspiring.
On September 12, Klein will be in Guelph to discuss the most profound threat humanity has ever faced: the war our economic model is waging against life on earth. Klein’s talk will be followed by a discussion moderated by Dr. Barry Smit, Professor of Geography, University of Guelph. The afternoon will wrap up with an opportunity for you to have Klein sign your copy of This Changes Everything.
This Changes Everything was the 2014 winner of the prestigious Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction and recently won the 2015 American Book Award. An instant bestseller when published in September 2014, it debuted at #5 on the New York Times list and was named to multiple Best of 2014 lists, including the New York Times 100 Notable Books. It was also shortlisted for the 2015 PEN Literary Awards in the nonfiction category. This Changes Everything is being translated into over 20 languages.
Our event host, Barry Smit, is Professor Emeritus in Geography at the University of Guelph. His research and practice on climate change impacts and adaptation span more than 30 years. He has authored over 100 scientific papers and 4 books.
His work has been influential in international negotiations on climate change and has been applied in development initiatives in Asia, Africa, the Americas, the Pacific and the Arctic. Smit has collaborated with major UNITED NATIONS organizations and international development agencies and has advised governments in countries as diverse as Norway, the USA, Bangladesh, the UK and Samoa. In Canada, Smit has counselled federal and provincial governments, the Senate and business and community groups. He served on Ontario’s Expert Panel on Climate Change Adaptation. As a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Smit was a recipient of the 2007 NOBEL PEACE PRIZE. For service to Canadian society, he was invested into the Order of Ontario, 2013 and received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. In 2013, Smit was awarded the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Gold Medal – SSHRC’s highest honour.
The Eden Mills Writers’ Festival and the College of Arts, University of Guelph, are thrilled to be hosting this important event as part of this year’s festival. Join us on September 12 for what will undoubtedly be a powerful talk and thought-provoking discussion.
In Conversation with Naomi Klein
September 12, 1 pm
War Memorial Hall, University of Guelph (SE Corner of Gordon St and College St.)
Tickets: $10 / $5 with student ID
Available at The Bookshelf, EMWFtix.ca and the gate
