Fracking, climate change and other energy issues on tap at Coe College in Cedar Rapids

Floyd Sandford

I’m adding these to the events calendar, but wanted to provide this overview of Coe College’s upcoming Thursday Forum classes.

The focus of the March lecture series will be on contemporary energy issues, including topics such as solar and wind energy, fracking, climate change and oil reserves.

Coe’s Lonnie Zingula provided the following information:

Controversial subjects like the XL pipeline, fracking and global climate change provide context for discussion of contemporary energy issues in March at Coe College’s Thursday Forum lecture series.

Will the world really run out of oil in the next 100 years? Are solar and wind energy means of helping supply America’s long-term energy needs or only feasible for limited and local applications? Is global warming a real phenomenon that should impel us to swift corrective action or a hoax perpetrated by out-of-touch scientists and eco-freaks? What is happening in Iowa to encourage greater energy efficiency and more use of renewable sources? Will natural gas become an increasingly important part of the energy picture? These issues, and more, will be addressed in the March Thursday Forum.

To open the series on March 7, Coe Professor Emeritus of Biology Floyd Sandford will give an energy “overview,” including the different forms of energy, “hard” vs. “soft” options, energy laws, fossil fuels, renewable vs. non-renewable, and the climate change debate.

Bob Haug

Iowa Association of Municipal Utilities (IAMU) Executive Director Bob Haug will then discuss the status of renewable energy in Iowa. The focus will be on wind energy and the regional electricity market, including a historical perspective on the electricity business in the United States.

American Public Gas Association President and CEO Bert Kalisch will discuss all things natural gas (e.g. supply and demand, production, transmission and distribution) in the third session. He will also cover the elements of a consumer’s gas bill, current aspects of natural gas research and development, and current issues before policymakers at the state and federal level.

Bert Kalisch

The series concludes with a discussion of energy politics and global warming.

Thursday Forum lectures are held in Kesler Lecture Hall in Hickok Hall on the Coe campus. Each session begins with coffee and pastries from 8:45-9:15 a.m., followed by the class until 11:30 a.m. A luncheon is offered at the conclusion of each series.

The courses are open to all adults. The cost is $30 for a four-week course paid on the first day, or $12 per week. The closing luncheons cost an additional $8. Thursday Forum gift certificates are available. For more information about the Coe College Thursday Forum lecture series, call (319) 399-8619.

Thursday Forum schedule:

“Contemporary Energy Issues” – March 7, 14, 21, 28.

“Great American Film Directors of Hollywood’s ‘Golden Age’” – April 4, 11, 18, 25.