Thursday, May 28, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Art and the Environment: Furoshiki
Saturday May 23 at 1pm
Furoshiki: Art, Tradition and History of Folding Cloth and Wrapping Gifts or Treasures.
Wrapping an object is like dressing it in a costume. It is a language that speaks without words at the center. Like skin. Even in Japanese prints you see men and women carrying their food and clothing and belongings in cloth-wrapped parcels. The Japanese for many centuries have used squares of cloth called furoshiki which have a life of their own dating back to the Nara period when the (big) cloths were used to tie up and identify the possessions of the nobles attending the baths--thus (furo--bath and shiki --mat) Not just a scarf, napkin or wall-hanging you can wrap just about anything of any size or shape in a these cloths. Furoshiki (thinking) inspired me to write a series of poems that evolved into a collaborative piece with composer (D Berlin) and dance company (H Boda) performed six times this year and which before an Arts Institute in Valley Forge, PA.
Only when wrapped around something does the square take on a three-dimensional form. You take the inspiration from the item itself--watermelon, bottle, stone, book. computer--even a baby or kimono-ed lady can be folded in a square. How to present a present? How to wrap your belongings? How to wrap yourself? How to wrap an idea? Recently there has been a flurry of interest worldwide in this practical and aesthetic alternative to the ubiquitous non-recyclable plastic bag.
Furoshiki have traditionally been associated with certain occasions and have never gone out of style. You can design your own square of cloth and easily carry with you to use over and over again or present as part of a gift. You can create your own crests or ways of identifying the cloths--a furoshiki can be a comment on what's inside or on the person who receives what you are giving.
We will review the background and history of furoshiki thinking (listen to a bit of Roffman's collaboration) and examine some traditional and modern furoshiki. Bring a treasure to wrap, a bottle, and/or a box if you can (reasonable sizes) and square(s) of cloth (light and silky in texture) if you can. We will have some samples you can practice with if necessary and we will learn to fold and tie square pieces of cloth and create environmentally friendly containers for carrying different objects.
Registration is required. For more information call the Reference Desk. 412-531-1912.
The presentation will be given by Rosaly Roffman, poet and Professor Emeritus (Indiana University of PA). Rosaly has lived in Hawaii and Japan and remembers seeing even heavy machinery wrapped in furoshiki. In Japan she taught at Aoyama Gakuin and Gakushuin Universities and traveled to Hokkaido with Peggy Guggenheim and John Cage. She founded a myth and folklore studies center at Indiana University of PA and helped develop an Asian Studies Program that included Japanese and Chinese Literature in Translation and a Japanese film course. Her sixteenth collaborative piece "Furoshiki" represents her fascination with the subtle connections between content and container in Japanese culture
Furoshiki: Art, Tradition and History of Folding Cloth and Wrapping Gifts or Treasures.
Wrapping an object is like dressing it in a costume. It is a language that speaks without words at the center. Like skin. Even in Japanese prints you see men and women carrying their food and clothing and belongings in cloth-wrapped parcels. The Japanese for many centuries have used squares of cloth called furoshiki which have a life of their own dating back to the Nara period when the (big) cloths were used to tie up and identify the possessions of the nobles attending the baths--thus (furo--bath and shiki --mat) Not just a scarf, napkin or wall-hanging you can wrap just about anything of any size or shape in a these cloths. Furoshiki (thinking) inspired me to write a series of poems that evolved into a collaborative piece with composer (D Berlin) and dance company (H Boda) performed six times this year and which before an Arts Institute in Valley Forge, PA.
Only when wrapped around something does the square take on a three-dimensional form. You take the inspiration from the item itself--watermelon, bottle, stone, book. computer--even a baby or kimono-ed lady can be folded in a square. How to present a present? How to wrap your belongings? How to wrap yourself? How to wrap an idea? Recently there has been a flurry of interest worldwide in this practical and aesthetic alternative to the ubiquitous non-recyclable plastic bag.
Furoshiki have traditionally been associated with certain occasions and have never gone out of style. You can design your own square of cloth and easily carry with you to use over and over again or present as part of a gift. You can create your own crests or ways of identifying the cloths--a furoshiki can be a comment on what's inside or on the person who receives what you are giving.
We will review the background and history of furoshiki thinking (listen to a bit of Roffman's collaboration) and examine some traditional and modern furoshiki. Bring a treasure to wrap, a bottle, and/or a box if you can (reasonable sizes) and square(s) of cloth (light and silky in texture) if you can. We will have some samples you can practice with if necessary and we will learn to fold and tie square pieces of cloth and create environmentally friendly containers for carrying different objects.
Registration is required. For more information call the Reference Desk. 412-531-1912.
The presentation will be given by Rosaly Roffman, poet and Professor Emeritus (Indiana University of PA). Rosaly has lived in Hawaii and Japan and remembers seeing even heavy machinery wrapped in furoshiki. In Japan she taught at Aoyama Gakuin and Gakushuin Universities and traveled to Hokkaido with Peggy Guggenheim and John Cage. She founded a myth and folklore studies center at Indiana University of PA and helped develop an Asian Studies Program that included Japanese and Chinese Literature in Translation and a Japanese film course. Her sixteenth collaborative piece "Furoshiki" represents her fascination with the subtle connections between content and container in Japanese culture
Saturday, May 16, 2009
The Effects of Global Warming on Pennsylvania's Fish and Wildlife.
May 21, 7-8:45pm in Room A
Climate scientists have called global warming the greatest threat to our planet that we have ever faced. Already, every natural system is being affected, from the loss of sea ice in the Arctic, to the breakup of shelf ice in Antarctica, to the northward migration of plants and animals as the planet continues to heat up. Although scientists are sounding the alarm, most of our fellow citizens remain unconcerned, and are unaware of the urgency. Scientists say we have only a few years left to begin reducing our carbon emissions, so it is crucial that we begin acting now. Fortunately, each one of us can take some action that will reduce our carbon foot print.
Ed Perry is an aquatic biologist who retired in 2002 after a 30-year career with the US Fish and Wildlife Service where he supervised the section responsible for stream and wetland protection in Pennsylvania. He now works with the National Wildlife Federation, educating hunters, anglers and conservationists about the impacts of climate change and what actions they can take to reduce this threat to our way of life.
Presenter:
Ed Perry of the National Wildlife Federation Global Warming Campaign
Climate scientists have called global warming the greatest threat to our planet that we have ever faced. Already, every natural system is being affected, from the loss of sea ice in the Arctic, to the breakup of shelf ice in Antarctica, to the northward migration of plants and animals as the planet continues to heat up. Although scientists are sounding the alarm, most of our fellow citizens remain unconcerned, and are unaware of the urgency. Scientists say we have only a few years left to begin reducing our carbon emissions, so it is crucial that we begin acting now. Fortunately, each one of us can take some action that will reduce our carbon foot print.
Ed Perry is an aquatic biologist who retired in 2002 after a 30-year career with the US Fish and Wildlife Service where he supervised the section responsible for stream and wetland protection in Pennsylvania. He now works with the National Wildlife Federation, educating hunters, anglers and conservationists about the impacts of climate change and what actions they can take to reduce this threat to our way of life.
Presenter:
Ed Perry of the National Wildlife Federation Global Warming Campaign
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Globalization Series conclusion
Part 3 – Date: May 16, 2009, 1:00-3:00pm
The Environmental Impact of Globalization
Speaker: Lauren Horne, Regional Program Manager, Labor Climate Project for the Blue Green Alliance .
Questions to be addressed:
What are the links between globalization and environmental issues, especially climate change?
What are green jobs and why are they increasingly important in today’s world?
How can we shape globalization to benefit rather than harm the environment?
For more information on the Blue Green Alliance click here
Here is an interesting link on how to find a green job.
The Environmental Impact of Globalization
Speaker: Lauren Horne, Regional Program Manager, Labor Climate Project for the Blue Green Alliance .
Questions to be addressed:
What are the links between globalization and environmental issues, especially climate change?
What are green jobs and why are they increasingly important in today’s world?
How can we shape globalization to benefit rather than harm the environment?
For more information on the Blue Green Alliance click here
Here is an interesting link on how to find a green job.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Our Globalization Series Continues
Check out this article in the City Paper on the program. It is a good interview of Mr. Kernaghan
Don't forget to attend the second program on Globalization. The main speaker is Charlie Kernaghan. Mr Kernaghan is the director of the National Labor Committee, an independent, non-profit human rights organization focused on the protection of worker rights--especially those of the young women assembling garments, shoes, toys and other products for export to the U.S. in Central America, the Caribbean, China and other developing countries.
Kernaghan became involved in the struggle to defend international labor rights after participating in a peace march through Central America in December 1985. He became the director of the NLC in 1990. Pre-1985, Kernaghan taught at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and at SUNY’s Harry Van Arsdale Labor College in New York City. He worked as a photographer, furniture mover, carpenter and shop steward (Carpenters Union Local 608), and cab driver.
Under Kernaghan’s directorship, the National Labor Committee has played the leading role in bringing the issue of sweatshop abuses and child labor before the American people, including through a number of highly publicized exposés and campaigns focused on, among others, the GAP, Kathie Lee Gifford’s use of child labor, Wal-Mart, Disney, “P Diddy Combs “Sean John” label. Within the last year, Kernaghan and the NLC have released major reports on human trafficking and involuntary servitude in Jordan; sweatshop abuses and the return of child labor to the Harvest Rich garment factory in Bangladesh; tragic worker injuries and the Kaisi Metals furniture parts plant in China, and child labor at the Legumex frozen vegetable processing plant in Guatemala. Through such report, work with the press and public campaigns to introduce legislation that will finally protect the rights of workers in the global economy, Kernaghan and the NLC have kept the issues of sweatshops, child labor and the need to protect workers fundamental rights squarely on the national agenda.
Kernaghan has led numerous fact-finding missions to Bangladesh, China, Jordan, Mexico, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Central America. He and the NLC have hosted U.S. tours of workers from Honduras, El Salvador, Haiti, China and Bangladesh. The NLC’s educational videos, Zoned for Slavery (Honduras), Mickey Mouse Goes to Haiti; Something to Hide (El Salvador) and Hidden Face of Globalization have widely used by unions, religious organization and in universities throughout the U.S. and internationally. The NLC’s numerous research reports and many successful international solidarity/corporate campaigns have gained enormous media attention and helped the NLC to develop one of the best social justice networks in the country.
Don't forget to attend the second program on Globalization. The main speaker is Charlie Kernaghan. Mr Kernaghan is the director of the National Labor Committee, an independent, non-profit human rights organization focused on the protection of worker rights--especially those of the young women assembling garments, shoes, toys and other products for export to the U.S. in Central America, the Caribbean, China and other developing countries.
Kernaghan became involved in the struggle to defend international labor rights after participating in a peace march through Central America in December 1985. He became the director of the NLC in 1990. Pre-1985, Kernaghan taught at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and at SUNY’s Harry Van Arsdale Labor College in New York City. He worked as a photographer, furniture mover, carpenter and shop steward (Carpenters Union Local 608), and cab driver.
Under Kernaghan’s directorship, the National Labor Committee has played the leading role in bringing the issue of sweatshop abuses and child labor before the American people, including through a number of highly publicized exposés and campaigns focused on, among others, the GAP, Kathie Lee Gifford’s use of child labor, Wal-Mart, Disney, “P Diddy Combs “Sean John” label. Within the last year, Kernaghan and the NLC have released major reports on human trafficking and involuntary servitude in Jordan; sweatshop abuses and the return of child labor to the Harvest Rich garment factory in Bangladesh; tragic worker injuries and the Kaisi Metals furniture parts plant in China, and child labor at the Legumex frozen vegetable processing plant in Guatemala. Through such report, work with the press and public campaigns to introduce legislation that will finally protect the rights of workers in the global economy, Kernaghan and the NLC have kept the issues of sweatshops, child labor and the need to protect workers fundamental rights squarely on the national agenda.
Kernaghan has led numerous fact-finding missions to Bangladesh, China, Jordan, Mexico, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Central America. He and the NLC have hosted U.S. tours of workers from Honduras, El Salvador, Haiti, China and Bangladesh. The NLC’s educational videos, Zoned for Slavery (Honduras), Mickey Mouse Goes to Haiti; Something to Hide (El Salvador) and Hidden Face of Globalization have widely used by unions, religious organization and in universities throughout the U.S. and internationally. The NLC’s numerous research reports and many successful international solidarity/corporate campaigns have gained enormous media attention and helped the NLC to develop one of the best social justice networks in the country.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Globalization Program Series
Part 2 – April 18, 2009, 1:00-3:00pm
Exposing Globalization’s Dark Side: Sweatshops, Worker Rights and the Fight for Fairness in the World Economy.
Main Speaker: Charlie Kernaghan, internationally-known labor rights advocate and Executive Director of the National Labor Committee and the newly-formed Global Institute for Labor and Human Rights.
How do we change the terms of trade so that more people can benefit (free trade vs. fair trade)?
Charles Kernaghan
Executive Director, National Labor Committee
Part 1 – March 21, 2009, 1:00-3:00pm
Globalization & Its Reach Into Our Lives
Speaker: Kim Miller, National Coordinator of Rapid Response, a national grassroots advocacy program of the United Steelworkers
What are the links between globalization and the current worldwide economic crisis?
Kim Miller has served as the National Coordinator for the United Steelworkers’ (USW) Rapid Response program for the past four years. Rapid Response is a nationwide communication and education network that ensures Steelworker members are aware of legislative decisions and actions that can impact their lives. At critical times, Rapid Response takes action, mobilizing members to influence the political process.
Kim also worked as an organizer for the USW, conducting and taking part in campaigns across the country.
Before joining the USW, Kim worked as a Legislative Assistant and Special Projects Coordinator in the leadership office of former U.S. Representative and Democratic Whip David Bonior, working on trade issues during key Congressional debates. She has also done PAC fundraising for Congressional candidates and served in Americorps, a national service program.
Kim holds a master’s degree in political management from the George Washington University and a bachelor’s in communication from Ohio University.
Kim is a third generation union member. She lives in Mt. Lebanon along with her husband and son, and is active in a number of Pittsburgh-area organizations.
Part 3 – Date: May 16, 2009, 1:00-3:00pm
The Environmental Impact of Globalization
Speaker: Hillary Bright, Associate Regional Representative of the Sierra Club
What are green jobs and why are they increasingly important in today’s world?
Friday, December 19, 2008
New Book
The Green Book: the everyday guide to saving the planet one simple step at a time: is a great little reference guide that provides green information and consumer tips in your workplace and home and suggestions for green shopping alternatives. 333.72 R63--check it out!!
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