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Bruce Babbitt | Tue., Apr. 22, 2008 | 7:00 p.m.

"Nebraska’s Water Future: Feast or Famine"
Bruce Babbitt was appointed Secretary of Interior from 1993 to 2001 by President Clinton.  He led the creation of several environmental policies and conservation acts that included the creation of the forest plan in the Pacific Northwest, restoration of the Florida Everglades, passage of the California Desert Protection Act, and legislation for the National Wildlife Refuge system.  Mr. Babbitt also pioneered the use of habitat conservation plans under the Endangered Species Act and worked with Clinton to create 22 new national monuments.  He is the author of “Cities in the Wilderness,” and currently serves as director of the World Wildlife Fund.

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Reverend Richard Cizik | Mon., Feb. 25, 2008 | 7:00 p.m.

"For God's Sake"
The Reverend Richard Cizik is vice president for governmental affairs of the National Association of Evangelicals. His responsibilities include setting NAE's policy direction on issues before Congress, the White House and Supreme Court, as well as service as a national spokesperson on issues of concern to evangelicals. He is the author of over 100 published articles, editorials and books including The High Cost of Indifference: Can Christians Afford Not to Act. Cizik calls climate change a crisis of "biblical proportions."

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Amory Lovins | Tue., Feb. 12, 2008 | 7:00 p.m.

"Winning the Oil Endgame" [The Lewis E. Harris Lecture on Public Policy]
Amory Lovins is the co-founder, chairperson and chief scientist of the Rocky Mountain Institute, an independent, market-oriented, nonprofit, nonpartisan think-and-do tank. Much of its work on the efficient and restorative use of resources as well as innovative business strategies is detailed in the book Natural Capitalism. Lovins, a MacArthur Fellow, has advised the energy industry and other businesses as well as the U.S. Departments of Energy and Defense. Lovins' latest book, Winning the Oil Endgame, was co-sponsored by the Pentagon.

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Joel Sartore | Thu., Sept. 13, 2007 | 7:00 p.m.

"Grounded: A Reflection on the Use of Life and Land"
A life-long Nebraskan, photographer Joel Sartore has covered everything from the remote Amazon rainforest to beer-drinking, mountain-racing firefighters in the United Kingdom. In addition to his celebrated work for National Geographic with often focuses on conservation, endangered species and land use issues, Sartore's work has been featured in Time, Life, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, and numerous books. Sartore and his career have been the subject of several national broadcasts including "National Geographic's Explorer," the "NBC Nightly News," NPR's "Weekend Edition" and "CBS Sunday Morning" as well as an hour-long PBS documentary, At Close Range.

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Douglas Durante & Jerry Taylor | Mon., Oct. 15, 2007 | 7:00 p.m.

"Ethanol: Fueling Debate" [The Charles and Linda Wilson Dialogue on Domestic Issues]

Is ethanol a genuine answer to climate crisis and energy woes or a smoke-and-mirrors solution with no real benefit? Designed to explore all sides of this many-faceted issue, the inaugural Charles and Linda Wilson Dialogue on Domestic Issues brings together two noted experts for a moderated debate on this topic of critical interest to our nation and our state.

Douglas A. Durante - Executive Director, Clean Fuels Development Coalition
Douglas Durante has worked in the fields of energy, transportation, and the environment since 1977. He was the Director of Public Affairs for the National Alcohol Fuels Commission and served as a Special Assistant in the Office of Alcohol Fuels at the U.S. Department of Energy. Mr. Durante has served on numerous state and federal advisory committees, including Chair of the Fuels Subcommittee of the Federal Biomass Advisory Committee and on the Governors' Ethanol Coalition's Biomass Advisory Committee. He also served on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Fuels Advisory Committee, and the Department of Energy's Business Roundtable Advisory Group. In 1987, Durante helped form the Clean Fuels Development Coalition (CFDC), a non-profit organization. The CFDC works in support of renewable alcohols and has a broad-based membership including automotive, agricultural, and other alternative energy interests.

Jerry Taylor - Senior Fellow, Cato Institute
Jerry Taylor is the most widely cited and influential right-of-center critic of federal energy and environmental policy in the nation. Taylor is a frequent contributor to the Wall Street Journal and National Review and has published op-eds in the Washington Post, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and virtually every other important newspaper in the country. He is a regular guest on CNBC and Bloomberg Radio and has also appeared frequently on the major news networks as well as CNN, NPR, MSNBC, Fox News, Public Radio International, and the BBC. Taylor has served on numerous congressional advisory bodies and has testified frequently on Capitol Hill regarding various energy and environmental policy matters. He is the author or coauthor of numerous policy studies and has contributed to several anthologies, including Energy & American Society - 13 Myths, Market Liberalism: A New Paradigm for the 21st Century, The Cato Handbook for Congress, China as a Global Economic Power: Market Reforms and the New Millennium, and Earth Report 2000: Revisiting the True State of the Planet.

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Sunita Narain | Mon., Nov. 12, 2007 | 7:00 p.m.

"Changing Nature in an Unequal World"
Sunita Narain is the director of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) in Delhi, India. She is also the director of the Society for Environmental Communications and the publisher of Down To Earth magazine. Since joining CSE in 1982, Narain has studied the relationship between environment and the development and the role of local, participatory democracy in that development. Her recent work focuses on water-related issues, especially water harvesting.

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