Acclaimed scholars Russ and Cheryl Genet to visit Evergreen, discuss “humanity’s quest for a flourishing earth”
Astronomer Russ Genet and philosopher Cheryl Genet will visit The Evergreen State College on Wednesday, May 17 to lead a program titled “Science, Wisdom, and the Future: Humanity’s Quest for a Flourishing Earth.” The event will be held in Evergreen’s Purce Hall and will begin at 7 p.m.
Russ and Cheryl Genet will raise awareness of the noetic sciences, a multidisciplinary field that combines scientific tools and techniques with subjective ways of knowing to examine human experience. They will also explore methods for empowering citizen scientists and diverse communities, and suggest ways that humanity can begin to shift toward a sustainable future.
Russ Genet is a research scholar in residence at California Polytechnic State University, a professor of astronomy at Cuesta College and is the former director of the Orion Observatory. He pioneered the world’s first digital telescopes and first fully robotic observatory and was featured in the PBS special The Perfect Stargazer. His lecture, titled “Cultural evolutionary forces, citizen science, and a flourishing planet” will explore the role of science as a powerful tool for understanding both natural and cultural evolutionary process.
Cheryl Genet teaches philosophy and world religions at Cuesta College in San Luis Obispo, Calif. She also serves as the managing editor of the Collins Foundation Press, the publishing division of the Collins Educational Foundation. Her scholarship focuses on interdisciplinary relationships between science and theology, including scientific paradigms, cosmological stories, interfaith relations, and understanding emerging global communities. Her lecture, “Living Wisely in a Technological Age?” will address the unique challenges presented by the present scientific and technological era.
“The Genets will define the noetic sciences by drawing upon the evolutionary paths of astronomy and cosmology, as well human systems of natural philosophy, empirical science, technology, language, culture, and communication. We are interested in exploring the intersections between science, story, and sustainability, ”said Evergreen faculty member Rebecca Chamberlain.
Supported by the Evergreen State College Foundation’s Noosphere Endowment Fund, the program is one of many events being hosted by the college leading up to the solar eclipse on August 21, 2017.
Weather-permitting, the event will be followed by a star-hunt led by faculty, students, and local astronomers. Russ and Cheryl Genet will also visit The Evergreen Bookstore to read from their books and sign copies from 12-1 p.m.
Science, Wisdom, and the Future: Humanity’s Quest for a Flourishing Earth
Featuring special guests Russ and Cheryl Genet
Wednesday, May 17 | 7:00 p.m. | Purce Hall (Lecture Hall 1)
Contact: Rebecca Chamberlain ChambReb@evergreen.edu