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The Blue Ridge near Abingdon, VA, looking eastward.
Photo by Bill Kovarik.
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SEJ's 18th annual conference is hosted by
Virginia Tech University in Roanoke, VA,
Wednesday-Sunday, October 15-19, 2008. The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center is SEJ's headquarters hotel for the 2008 annual conference ( maps and driving directions).
NOTE: This agenda is a draft only. All information is subject to change. Please check back often;
details will be added as speakers
confirm. Conference speakers and other information on SEJ's web agenda is posted as
soon as it comes in. We will fact-check and edit later in the process. In the
meantime, if you see misspellings or other errors, please alert SEJ web manager Cindy MacDonald.
Page Menu
Wednesday, October
15
Thursday, October
16
Friday, October
17
Saturday, October
18
Sunday, October
19
Back to the main conference page.
AGENDA
SEJ's 2008 Annual Conference
officially begins Wednesday evening,
October 15, with a dinner reception,
special welcomes, and
the
SEJ awards ceremony.
Sunday-Wednesday, October 12-15: The Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center
110 Shenandoah Avenue, Roanoke, VA. Maps and driving directions.
Environmental Reporting Boot Camp
Whether you're new to the beat or a veteran wanting to bolster
your toolbox, SEJ's second pre-conference boot camp offers
something for everyone. Michigan State University's Knight
Center for Environmental Journalism will train journalists at a
three-day workshop in Roanoke. Boot Camp includes sessions on
computer-assisted reporting, investigative techniques, writing,
ethics, and topical issues. It includes the all-day Wednesday workshop
(see below). Check MSU's Knight Center for details and application. July 28, 2008, deadline. NOTE: U.S. journalists of color can compete for full fellowships that also cover transportation to and from Roanoke.
Wednesday, October
15: The Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center
110 Shenandoah Avenue, Roanoke, VA. Maps and driving directions.
Covering Climate Change and Our Energy
Future in Rural America
8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Breakfast
and lunch are included. Pre-registration and $60 fee required. SEJ members only.
The past, present, and future of coal in Appalachia and the southeastern
United States — and therefore much of the nation's energy future — come
into sharp focus in a penetrating, day-long analysis kicking off SEJ's
annual conference at Virginia Tech.
From the scientific perspective on global climate change to the satellite
perspective on changing land patterns; from the ins, outs, and maybes of
carbon capture and sequestration, to the science, economics — and wrenching
emotional aspects — of mountaintop removal strip-mining; from
internationally recognized energy experts like Amory Lovins to a panel of
expert journalists steeped in mining these stories....
It's part of a special, in-depth, day-long immersion into coal, climate and
the interdependent future of both, sponsored by SEJ with the Institute for
Rural Journalism and Community Issues, Virginia Tech, and the Yale Project
on Climate Change\Yale Forum on Climate Change & The Media.
See below for a full agenda.
Registered reporters will head home with practical insights and expert news
sources on issues that play right to the heart of their hometown audiences.
Hear from leading regional and local reporters bringing collective decades
of newsroom experience in covering and uncovering some of journalism's most
compelling stories on energy, coal, and climate change.
All sessions will be at the Hotel Roanoke. Breakfast and lunch are included.
Pre-registration and $60 fee required. SEJ members only. (Members: If you've already registered for the conference and wish to add this workshop to your registration, please call Convention Management Services at 800-878-5131 or 517-485-2309 between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. EDT.)
Reporting TODAY on America's Emerging Energy Future: Coal, Climate Change, and Energy Options in a Time of Extraordinary Change
8:00 - 8:30 a.m.
Continental Breakfast and Registration
8:30 - 9:00 a.m.
Program Overview and Introductions
Emcee:
Bud Ward, Editor, The Yale Forum on Climate Change & The Media
9:00 - 9:35 a.m.
The Climate Challenge: Setting the Context for Considering our Energy
Future Options
Speaker:
Jacob Sewall, Assistant Professor of Geosciences, College of Science, Virginia Tech
9:35 - 10:15 a.m.
What on Earth? Observed Changes in Land Features in North America and
Eastern U.S. as Shown by Satellite Images
Speaker:
Kirsten de Beurs, Assistant Professor of Geography, College of Natural
Resources, Virginia Tech
10:15 - 10:30
Refreshment Break
10:30 a.m. - Noon
Mountaintop Removal in Context
Moderator:
Ken Ward Jr., Reporter, The Charleston Gazette
Speakers:
Gene Kitts, Senior Vice President, Mining Services, International Coal Group; Joe Lovett, Executive Director, Appalachian
Center for the Economy & the Environment; Ben Stout, Associate Professor of Biology, Wheeling Jesuit
University
Noon - 12:45 p.m
Lunch and Informal Discussion
12:45 - 1:25 p.m.
Winning the Oil Endgame: Principles of and Progress Toward an Oil-Free
America
Speaker:
Amory Lovins, Co-Founder, Chairman and Chief Scientist, Rocky Mountain Institute
1:25 - 2:05 p.m.
Exploring Carbon Sequestration: Potential Options
Speaker:
Jim Dooley, Senior Scientist, Joint Global Change Research
Institute
2:05 - 2:45 p.m.
Future Energy
Speaker:
David Roper, Professor Emeritus of Physics, College of Science, Virginia Tech
2:45 - 3:00 p.m.
Refreshment Break
3:00 - 3:40 p.m.
Winning the Coal Endgame: The Megawatt and Micropower Revolutions
Speaker:
Amory Lovins, Co-Founder, Chairman and Chief Scientist, Rocky Mountain Institute
3:40 - 4:45 p.m.
Reporters and Editors Roundtable
Speakers:
James Bruggers, Environmental Reporter, The (Louisville) Courier-Journal;
Robert J. Byers, City Editor, The Charleston Gazette
4:45 p.m.
Concluding Remarks and Adjournment
Location: Shenandoah Room
Registration
2:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Please check in at registration upon arrival to obtain your conference materials and name badge, which you will need to access events, including tonight's opening reception and awards presentation. Sign up for Friday beat dinners and Saturday mini-tours at the nearby SEJ table. If you didn't sign up ahead of time for the Saturday breakfast session, night party or the Sunday morning breakfast and program, there may still be room — just check at registration.
Location: North Entry Foyer
Scientists Poster Session
2:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Come down early and meet with Virginia Tech scientists to get an inside peek at their environmental research. Forty posters will cover such topics as forestry and carbon exchange, wood waste for energy, passive thermal building construction, lemurs and their predators in Madagascar, value-added products from the Blue Ridge forest, recycling of used pallets into flooring and other products, fisheries and wildlife issues, bird habitats on reclaimed mine lands in Virginia, and much more.
Location: Roanoke Foyer
Meet the Authors
3:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Join old friends and meet new ones at this informal gathering of SEJ authors. We'll have coffee tables and easy chairs, and the Virginia Tech bookstore will have a pile of books on display and for sale. Listen to short readings, chat with the authors and get your books signed. Cash bar.
Location: Roanoke Foyer
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Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, left, and West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin will welcome conference attendees to the Appalachian region during Wednesday's reception. Photo by Steven Wayne Rotsch, West Virginia Governor's Office.
Click to enlarge.
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Opening Reception and Dinner at the Hotel Roanoke
5:00 - 8:00 p.m.
Virginia
Governor Tim Kaine and West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin will welcome us to the region, with dinner and drinks at this grand, historic, and beautifully restored
railroad hotel, the site of most conference activities this year. Joining them to welcome SEJ
members to Appalachia will be Grammy Award-winning country singer Kathy
Mattea. This West Virginia native will entertain us with a couple of
songs from "Coal," her current album of traditional mining songs.
This evening's dinner reception and awards ceremony are sponsored by Animal Planet and Planet Green.
Location: Roanoke Ballroom
SEJ Awards for Reporting on the Environment
8:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Philippe and Alexandra Cousteau, grandchildren of the legendary ocean explorer, present SEJ plaques to the winners in the most comprehensive environmental journalism competition in the world. Come see highlights from 234 entries in newspapers, television, radio, online, print, and a new Rachel Carson Book Award. Co-hosted by SEJ board member and NBC Miami reporter Jeff Burnside, this year's SEJ awards gala will be one you won't want to miss.
Location: Roanoke Ballroom
"Oceans" with Philippe and Alexandra Cousteau (Documentary Sneak Peek)
9:15 - 10:30 p.m.
Philippe and Alexandra Cousteau preview clips from their new series "Oceans" for BBC and the Discovery Channel. The series is set to air in the U.S. in 2009. The two will also discuss their family's legacy, including the legacy of their filmmaker father (Philippe Cousteau Sr.) and famed grandfather, ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau. The "Oceans" series tells fascinating stories from the world of underwater archaeology, geology, marine biology and anthropology; from seas including the Southern Ocean, the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea, the Arctic Ocean and the Mediterranean.
Moderator: Jeff Burnside, Special Projects Reporter, WTVJ NBC 6 News, Miami
Speakers:
Alexandra Cousteau, Co-Founder, EarthEcho International, and Founder, Blue Legacy
Philippe Cousteau, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, EarthEcho International
Location: Roanoke Ballroom
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Back to the main conference page.
Thursday, October 16:
In the field, The Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center
110 Shenandoah Avenue, Roanoke, VA. Maps and driving directions.
DRAFT: All Information Subject to
Change
Registration
6:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Please check in at registration upon arrival to obtain your conference materials and name badge, which you will need to access events. Sign up for Friday beat dinners and Saturday mini-tours at the nearby SEJ table. If you didn't sign up ahead of time for the Saturday breakfast session, night party or the Sunday morning breakfast and program, there may still be room — inquire at registration.
Location: North Entry Foyer
Day Tours:
Advance registration is required for all Thursday tours. Attendance
on each tour is strictly limited, so registering early is important.
Departure times vary (see below), but all Thursday tours will
return to the Hotel Roanoke about 5:00 p.m. Planning is still
underway, so please check back for more details. For those
looking for some exercise, tours 6, 7, and 8 are your best options.
Other tours involve moderate exercise. Tours 5 and 9 are best
suited for wheelchair accessibility (contact SEJ headquarters, 215-884-8174, for
details). Please dress for outdoors and bring rain gear.
1. Almost Level 1: Cutting Down Mountains for Coal
_Kayford300.jpg)
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Kayford Mountain, about an hour south of Charleston, WV. Notice how the massive dragline is dwarfed by the scale of the operation.
Photo by Vivian Stockman, OHVEC.
Click to enlarge.
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6:00 a.m. departure, lunch included, $30 fee
Larry Gibson's piece of Kayford Mountain used to be the lowest
peak for miles. Now it's the highest. There's no better place to see
the effects of mountaintop removal coal mining — a practice that
is feeding a growing demand for coal and leveling wide stretches
of Appalachia. See an active mine and hear from people who
live near the mines and the processing plants and coal trucks
that serve them. See mine reclamation and hear from industry
representatives who'll tell you why what they're doing is good
and necessary. Driving time — 6 hours total. But there will be beautiful
scenery, informative speakers, and documentaries on the
way. Also, see related event: Mountaintop removal
flyovers, available to SEJ members from independent sponsors Friday
and Saturday.
Tour
Leaders:
James Bruggers, Environmental Reporter, The (Louisville) Courier-Journal
Tim Thornton, former Growth and Environment Reporter, The Roanoke Times
Speakers:
Judy Bonds, Co-Director, Coal River Mountain Watch
Jason Bostic, Vice President, West Virginia Coal Association
Theresa Burriss, Assistant Professor of English and Appalachian Studies, and Director of the Learning Assistance and Resource Center, Radford University
Larry Gibson, Keeper of the Mountain
Deborah Murray, Senior Attorney, Southern Environmental Law Center
Bill Raney, President, West Virginia Coal Association
LaJuana Wilcher, Attorney, English Lucas Priest & Owsley, LLP; former Secretary, KY Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet; and former Assistant Administrator for Water, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Carl Zipper, Director, Powell River Project
2. What Are Forests Worth? What Are They For? Can We Sustain Them?
7:00 a.m. departure, lunch included, $30 fee
The southern Appalachians provide a rare look at the changing
face of America's forests. Walk onto an acre that was traditionally
property of companies like International Paper nowadays and
you're likely to find it's owned by something called a REIT or a
TIMO... or maybe just some guy named Bob. See how foresters,
community groups, and others are spurring a new take on sustainable
forestry; how the U.S. Forest Service struggles to balance
recreation demands with timber operations; how invasive species
are literally eating away Appalachian hillsides; and how emerging
"niche" forest products could bolster rural communities. Driving time — 3 hours total.
Tour
Leaders:
Robert McClure, Staff Writer, Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Kevin Miller, Environmental Reporter, Bangor Daily News
Speakers:
Charles and Marilyn Barnes, Family Foresters and Farmers, Cove Branch Farm
David Carr Jr., Director, Public Lands Program, Southern Environmental Law Center
Jim Chamberlain, Researcher, Southern Research Station, U.S. Forest Service
Ted Coffman, Recreation Staff Officer, George Washington and Jefferson National Forests, U.S. Forest Service
Tom Fox, Associate Professor of Forestry, Virginia Tech, and Co-Director, Forest Nutrition Research Cooperative, North Carolina State University/Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Bruce Hull, Professor of Forestry, Virginia Tech
Ed Leonard, Forester, U.S. Forest Service
Tom McAvoy, Lab Specialist, Department of Entomology, Virginia Tech
David Muhly, Regional Staff, Appalachian Regional Office, Sierra Club
Robert Olszewski, Vice President, Corporate and Environmental Affairs, Plum Creek Timber Company
Mark Wagstaff, Associate Professor, Department of Recreation, Parks and Tourism, Radford University
Larry Wiseman, Executive Director, American Forest Foundation
3. Rural Energy: Wind, Hydro, and Development in the Highlands
Note: This tour has been cancelled.
(When we originally planned this tour, construction work on the wind farm and home development projects seemed imminent. However, we understand now that the projects will not be as advanced as we originally anticipated. Since visual elements telling the story of environmental controversy are an important component of an SEJ tour, we decided it would be best to shift our emphasis to the other eight excellent tours.)
4. Healthy Food Shed
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7:30 a.m. departure, lunch included, $30 fee
In the wake of global warming concerns and food-borne
illness outbreaks that could be partly the result of growing
and processing methods used in industrialized
agriculture, consumers are starting to pay attention to
how their food is raised and how far it travels. Farmer,
writer, and speaker Joel Salatin is the poster child of the local food
and farming movement. We'll visit Salatin's 550-acre diversified
Polyface Farm in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley and find out why his
spread is, in the words of Michael Pollan, "one of the most productive
and sustainable farms in America." And we'll hear from other
industrious farmers, policymakers and folks serving up everything from food to fiber
to fuel in their communities. Finally, we'll take a trip back in time as we visit the Frontier Culture Museum of Virginia (where we'll enjoy lunch on Chipotle, a chain restaurant committed to sourcing food locally) and have the opportunity to explore the diverse food ways and farming techniques of the first European settlers to the region as well as the slaves brought over from Africa by force. (We'll even get a chance to sample, and take home, some 300-year-old pre-slavery Nigerian recipes.) Driving time — 3 hours total.
Tour
Leaders:
Joseph Davis, Freelance Journalist and WatchDog Project Director/TipSheet Editor, Society of Environmental Journalists
Christine Heinrichs, Freelance Writer
Dan Sullivan, Senior Editor, The New Farm, Rodale Institute
Speakers:
Eric Bendfeldt, Area Specialist for Community Viability, Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virgina Tech
Tanya Deckle-Cobb, Senior Associate, Institute for Environmental Negotiation
Lyle Estill, Co-Founder, Piedmont Biofuels
Lori Greiner, Communications Manager, CALS Administration, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Virginia Tech
Umebe Onyejekwe, Consultant, Frontier Culture Museum of Virginia
Phil Petrilli, Northeast Region Operations Director, Chipotle
Craig Russell, President, Society for Preservation of Poultry Antiquities
Joel Salatin, Farmer, Writer and Food Activist, Polyface Farm
Andy Sarjahani, Director of Sustainability for Housing/Dining, Virgina Tech
5. A National Treasure at Peril — the Blue Ridge Parkway
8:00 a.m. departure, lunch included, $30 fee
Why are the Blue Ridge Mountains "blue"? Join us for the answer,
traveling along lush ridgetops that were over-forested in the
1900s to the most photographed site on the parkway, Mabry Mill.
The early 1900s community-gathering place today operates as a
restored gristmill, sawmill, and blacksmith shop. As the parkway
approaches its 75th anniversary, however, America's Favorite
Scenic Drive faces environmental issues and federal budgetary
shortfalls resulting in 57 unfilled staff positions. Air pollution
emanates from coal-fired power sources, the mighty hemlocks are
dying, and flourishing development blocks scenic views. Driving time — about 4 hours total.
Tour
Leaders:
Tom Denton, former Editorial Page Editor, The Roanoke Times
Don Hopey, Environment Reporter, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Dan Smith, Editor, Blue Ridge Business Journal
Speakers:
Mary Bishop, former Reporter, The Roanoke Times, The Charlotte Observer and The Philadelphia Inquirer
Gregory Brown, Vice President, FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway
Tom Cain, Executive Director, Impact + Amplify
Rupert Cutler, retired City Councilman and official in the Carter Administration
Catharine Gilliam, Virginia Program Manager, National Parks Conservation Association
David Hill, Landscape Architect and Principal, Hill Studio
Nancy McGehee, Associate Professor of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Virginia Tech
Susan Mills, Executive Director, FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway
Cara Modisett, Editor, Blue Ridge Country Magazine
Frank Radford, President, Prudential Radford Realtors
Billy Weitzenfeld, Executive Director, Association of Energy Conservation Professionals
6. Old River, New Challenge
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Two Thursday tours (#6 & 7) offer attendees canoeing and/or kayaking opportunities. Photo of Nick Kovarik by Bill Kovarik.
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8:30 a.m. departure, lunch included, $55 fee
The New River, a misnomer if ever there was one, is one of the
world's oldest rivers. It's also among the most beautiful. We'll
paddle canoes six to eight miles past towering cliffs and rolling
meadows. At the put-in, ecologists from Virginia Tech will conduct
an electro-fishing demonstration and provide a brief presentation
of the New's diverse aquatic species. After taking out, we'll drive
a short distance downstream to where the local power company
is planning to landfill coal-fired power plant ash in the floodplain
of the New. Speakers will address the controversial issue of
managing coal combustion residues. Note: You will encounter
mild whitewater rapids on this run. Basic canoeing skills preferred. Driving time — 3 hours total.
Tour
Leaders:
Gene Dalton, Freelance Writer and Photographer
John Manuel Jr., Freelance Writer
Speakers:
Nathaniel Hitt, Research Associate, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, Virginia Tech
Tim Mallan, Manager, Environmental Affairs, American Electric Power
James McGrath, Chair, Concerned Citizens for Giles County
George Santucci, Executive Director, National Committee for the New River
7. Journey Down the James
9:00 a.m. departure, lunch included, $55 fee
Follow the E. coli and nutrient trail from mountain farms to the
Chesapeake Bay on a canoe journey down the James River. You'll
hear how nutrient and sediment runoff impacts water quality for
everyone. You'll also see why farming in the mountains affects the
bay hundreds of miles downstream as you paddle down about 10
miles of river through farmland and pristine forest. This trip is suitable
for beginners, but expect to be on the water between four
and six hours with several breaks. Canoes and a limited number of
kayaks are available. Driving time — 2 hours total.
Tour
Leaders:
Dina Cappiello, Environment/Energy Reporter, The Associated Press
Sarah Watson, Reporter, The (Lynchburg, VA) News & Advance
Speakers:
Arthur Butt, TMDL Modeling Coordinator, Watershed Programs, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
Anne Marie Clarke, Watershed Coordinator, Robert E. Lee Soil & Water Conservation District
Robert Curd, Beef Cattle Farmer, Amherst County, VA
Amanda Gray, Water Planning Engineer, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
Timothy Mitchell, Director of Utilities, City of Lynchburg
David Sligh, Upper James Riverkeeper, James River Association
Ken Smith, President, Virginia Waterman's Association
8. The Appalachian Trail — Land with a Past
9:30 a.m. departure, lunch included, $30 fee
Like great chunks of the Appalachian Trail, which goes from Georgia
to Maine, the roughly 11 miles of the trail's Catawba Ridge
section pass over land that once held buildings. The jewel of this
ridge is a rocky overlook, McAfee Knob, federally protected since
1987. The trail protection project marked a backward progression
of sorts, from developed to backcountry — a reclamation of
industrial and residential lands. Come and hike the trail to McAfee
Knob and see the Catawba Valley below, which is slowly being
invaded by houses. "See" what used to be on the trail — houses,
a swimming pool, hunting camps. At the top, try your hand at
geocaching, the latest backcountry enterprise. Hiking distance: 7
miles round-trip. Driving time — 1.5 hours total.
Tour
Leaders:
Amy Gahran, Freelance Journalist
Christine Woodside, Freelance Journalist
Speakers:
Clem Henriksen, Geographic Information System (GIS) Professional and Market Analyst, ESRI
Roger Holnback, Executive Director, Western Virginia Land Trust
George Kegley, retired Reporter, The Roanoke Times
Jeffrey Marion, Field Station Leader, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, U.S. Geological Survey and Adjunct Professor, Department of Forestry, Virginia Tech
David Startzell, Executive Director, Appalachian Trail Conservancy
9. Nuclear Power — from Ore to Volts
10:00 a.m. departure, lunch included, $30 fee
There are five stages in the life of nuclear power: mining, processing
ore, enrichment of uranium to commercial or weapons grade,
fuel fabrication, and utilization in a nuclear power plant. This
tour covers the nuclear cycle with visits encompassing three of
these stages. We'll visit a 1,000-acre farm proposed as the U.S.'s first uranium mine
outside the Southwest. Next, we tour a fuel fabrication facility and
a full-scale nuclear plant training center, owned by the French
nuclear giant AREVA NP Inc. We'll watch an actual production run,
from delivery of the enriched uranium through to the completion
of 12-foot-long nuclear fuel rods that power the nation's 104 commercial
reactors. At the training center, we will see the inside of a
nuclear power plant, with full-sized cutaways of steam generators,
reactors, and other equipment. Driving time — 3 hours total.
Tour
Leaders:
Thomas Henry, Environmental Writer, The (Toledo) Blade
Dan Radmacher, Editorial Page Editor, The Roanoke Times
Roger Witherspoon, Contributing Editor, US Black Engineer and Information Technology
Speakers:
Joseph Aylor, Chief Geologist, Virginia Uranium, Inc.
Jim Beard, Curator of Earth Sciences, Virginia Museum of Natural History and Adjunct Professor of Geology, Virginia Tech
Linda Gunter, Media and Development Director, Beyond Nuclear
Jeffrey Johnston, Dan River Basin Association and retired Geologist
David Lochbaum, Director, Nuclear Safety Project, Union of Concerned Scientists
Mick Mastilovic, Vice President of Operations, Virginia Uranium, Inc.
Norm Reynolds, President, Chief Executive Officer and Director, Virginia Uranium, Inc.
Katherine Slaughter, Senior Attorney, Southern Environmental Law Center and Virginia special projects, former Mayor of Charlottesville, and founding member and former President of Virginia Conservation Network
Commissioner, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, TBA
And several experts from Areva TBA
Independent Hospitality Receptions and Exhibitor Sneak Peek
5:00 - 9:00 p.m.
After a day of adventure, wind down with old friends and new
acquaintances in the maze of exhibits and receptions throughout
the Hotel Roanoke. Wine and dine with environment and
technology exhibitors and independent hosts. Festivities kick off
immediately following your return from tours. (Lists of receptions and exhibitors
will also be in your registration folder.)
Location: Crystal Ballrooms, Roanoke Ballrooms, Buck Mountain Room, Roanoke Foyer, Crystal/Roanoke Shared Foyer, Crystal Foyer
"Appalachia" with Ross Spears and Jamie Ross (Documentary Premier)
9:15 - 10:30 p.m.
"Appalachia: A History of Mountains and People" chronicles the riveting history of one of the world's oldest mountain ranges and the diverse peoples who have inhabited them. The series, narrated by Sissy Spacek, will air on PBS in 2009. SEJ members will see episode three of the four-part series, "Mountain Revolutions," at the premier.
Location: Washington Lecture Hall
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Friday, October 17:
The Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center
110 Shenandoah Avenue, Roanoke, VA. Maps and driving directions.
Each year, SEJ welcomes a diverse group of attendees to its annual conference, including representatives of business, government and environmental groups as well as working journalists, academics and students. Because non-journalists are here, you may see or hear responses to presentations that you might not expect from mainstream journalists. Please bear in mind that these responses — like the presentations themselves — do not necessarily reflect the views of SEJ or any of its members.
Please note that SEJ
members will be given preference in
question-and-answer sessions.
DRAFT: All Information Subject to
Change
All day, 7:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
-
Registration
Please check in at registration upon
arrival to obtain your conference materials and name badge. Your name
badge will be needed for access to events. If you didn't preregister for the Saturday breakfast session, night party or the Sunday morning breakfast and program, there may still be room — inquire at registration.
Location: North Entry Foyer
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SEJ Information
Table
Sign up here for Friday beat dinners and Saturday mini-tours. Find information about membership and services, pick up copies
of SEJournal, TipSheet, FOI WatchDog and other publications. Browse through winning entries of SEJ's Awards for Reporting on the Environment.
Location: North Entry Foyer
Birding Walk Along the Roanoke River Greenway
6:00 - 8:00 a.m.
Bring your binoculars and join naturalist and Roanoke resident Rupert Cutler for a leisurely birding walk along the river. Cutler is a former National Wildlife magazine editor and Carter Administration assistant secretary of agriculture for conservation, research, and education.
Location: North Entry Foyer
All Day Exhibit Displays
7:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Come and browse the wealth of information in this year's exhibits. Talk with experts about their hopes for new environmentally
friendly innovations. Learn about educational opportunities. Add to your list of sources. You'll find a list of exhibitors here, as well as in your registration folder.
Location: Roanoke Foyer, Crystal/Roanoke Shared Foyer, Crystal Foyer
Almost Level 2: Mountaintop Removal Flyovers
The Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition is teaming up with
SouthWings to give journalists a bird's-eye view of one of the
most environmentally controversial industry practices in Appalachia.
Volunteer pilots will fly participants from the Roanoke
Regional Airport into West Virginia for a loop around the coalfields.
Morning and afternoon flights are planned for Friday and
a morning flight on Saturday, all weather permitting. Tour takes
about 3 hours. Space very limited. SEJ members only. Cost: $40, payable to Ohio Valley
Environmental Coalition. Participants register in advance and schedule a
flight time with Tonya Adkins at OHVEC, 4themountains@gmail.com
or 606/286-1442. For more information on the independent organizers of
this tour, visit SouthWings and OHVEC. Registration deadline is September 15.
Breakfast with Exhibitors and Craft Breakout Sessions
7:00 - 8:45 a.m.
Join us bright and early for continental breakfast with exhibitors and green technology enthusiasts. Browse the exhibits and talk with experts about a myriad of environmental issues. Then join your colleagues for roundtable discussions on a wide range of craft-related topics (see below).
Location: Roanoke Foyer, Crystal Foyer
Breakout Breakfast Sessions:
7:30 - 8:45 a.m.
The following three breakouts, concurrent with the Exhibitor Breakfast above, will be filled on a first-come,
first-served basis.
- Making the Science Sing: A Multimedia Workshop for Journalists, Communicators and Researchers
This breakfast session will take a case-study approach. We'll take a close-up look at a recent piece of environmental research that got heavy coverage in the press. What happened? What are the proper roles of journalists, public-relations practitioners and scientists in translating the rarified language of peer-reviewed science for mass audiences? How are those roles changing with the rise of the Internet? We'll look at all the hits and misses in the coverage of a high-profile study, and will identify lessons to guide future coverage of cutting-edge science.
Moderator: Dan Fagin, Director, Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program, New York University
Speakers:
Ben Halpern, Project Coordinator, Ecosystem-based Management Program, National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis, University of California, Santa Barbara
John Nielsen, Environment Correspondent, National Public Radio, and Author, Condor: To the Brink and Back — The Life and Times of One Giant Bird
Location: TBA
- Covering Tragedies and Disasters: Trauma on Both Sides of the Pen, Computer and Camera
Whether you're covering a campus shooting or the worst hurricane in U.S. history, the victims of trauma can be both the subjects of news stories and reporters covering them. A reporter will explain the difficulties of treating hurricane victims with respect while still getting the stories. A Virginia Tech official will discuss the challenges of protecting his school's shooting victims while attempting to meet the media's demands. And an expert on the effects of disasters on journalists will discuss the pitfalls trauma poses for both journalists and those they cover, and what can be done about it.
Moderator: Mark Schleifstein, Environment Reporter, The Times-Picayune
Speakers:
Lawrence Hincker, Associate Vice President, University Relations, Virginia Tech
Bruce Shapiro, Executive Director, Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma, University of Washington
Location: TBA
- How to Be Your Own FOIA Lawyer
Never filed a public records request and want to learn how? Filed one
and decided it took too long to get a response? Been turned down and
want to know how to fight for the records you want? In this
now-traditional SEJ session, a law professor and a former government
FOIA officer will teach you all you need to know.
Moderator: Rebecca Daugherty, former Director, FOI Service Center, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, and Board Liaison, SEJ First Amendment Task Force
Speakers:
Richard Huff, former Co-Director, Office of Information and Privacy, U.S. Department of Justice
Patrick McGinley, Judge Charles H. Haden Professor of Law, West Virginia University College of Law
Location: TBA
Welcoming Remarks
9:00 - 9:15 a.m.
Emcees: SEJ's 2008 Conference Co-Chairs Bill Kovarik, Professor, School of Communication, Radford University and Ken Ward Jr., Reporter, The Charleston Gazette
Location: Roanoke Ballroom
Opening Plenary
Old King Coal: What's His Role in America's Energy Future?
9:15 - 10:30 a.m.
Coal provides half of America's electricity and is the nation's most
abundant domestic fuel source. But burning coal is a major source
of greenhouse gases. And mining coal takes a toll on workers,
mountains, streams, and forests. What role can — and should —
coal have in the nation's future energy diet? Experts on all sides will debate the issue.
Moderator: Bob Edwards, XM Satellite Radio (formerly of NPR)
Speakers:
Nick Atkins, Executive Vice President for Generation, American Electric Power
Jeff Goodell, Journalist and Author, Big Coal: The Dirty Secret Behind American's Energy Future
Cindy Rank, Mining Committee Chair, West Virginia Highlands Conservancy
Location: Roanoke Ballroom
Beverage Break
10:30 - 10:45 a.m.
Location: Roanoke Foyer, Crystal Foyer
Concurrent Sessions
1
10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
COAL
Almost Level: Mountaintop Removal Overview
Over the last 20 years, coal operators have blasted the tops off countless Appalachian mountains, and buried more than 700 miles of streams with the leftover rock and dirt. Environmental groups and many scientists say the practice is destroying sensitive mountain streams and diverse forests. Coal industry officials and most regional politicians say mountaintop removal provides much needed jobs, flattens the land for future development and really isn't that bad on the environment. Hear from all sides in this lively overview of the most controversial environmental issue in the region.
Moderator: Greg Collard, News Director, WFAE, Charlotte, NC
Panelists:
Steven Gardner, President, Engineering Consulting Services
Wade Gilley, former Chairman, West Virginia Governor's Task Force on Mountaintop Removal
Jack Spadaro, Mining Engineer, Government Whistleblower and Activist
Location: Buck Mountain Room
ENERGY
Must We Grow? The Tensions Between Consumerism and Saving the Planet
As hybrid SUVs and carbon-neutral air travel flood the marketplace, it's not clear if we are getting enough environmental good out of all the greenness we are buying. Can a consumer by definition even be considered green? Is a shopping-oriented society environmentally sustainable? We'll explore what going green means and what needs to happen to get the global economy in step with the environment.
Moderator: Beth Daley, Staff Reporter, The Boston Globe
Panelists:
James Barrett, Executive Director, Redefining Progress
Scot Case, Vice President, TerraChoice Environmental Marketing Inc.
Brian Czech, President, Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy
Location: Crystal Ballroom A
THE CLIMATE
Climate Change and Agriculture
Global warming is already having a significant impact on how we produce our food worldwide. Regions that currently face the most difficult challenges feeding their populations are most likely to be hit hardest as the planet heats up. Some agriculture and development experts say the answer lies in more Green Revolution-type technology, while others argue for a more whole-systems approach that addresses long-term sustainability. Does the answer lie in biotechnology? Precision farming? Eschewing petroleum-based chemicals for a more biological approach? Embracing indigenous knowledge? Come help us find the answers.
Moderator: Dennis Dimick, Executive Editor, National Geographic Magazine
Panelists:
Theo Dillaha, Professor of Biological Systems Engineering, Virginia Tech, and Program Director, Sustainable Agriculture and Natural Resource Management Collaborative Research Support Program
Doug Gurian-Sherman, Senior Scientist, Food and Environment, Union of Concerned Scientists
William Hohenstien, Director, Global Climate Change Program, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Jeffery Moyer, Farm Director, Rodale Institute and Vice Chair, Crops Committee, National Organic Standards Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Location: Crystal Ballroom E
THE WATER
Can This Bay Be Saved?
Billions of taxpayer dollars have been spent on cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay, North America's largest and historically most productive estuary. The compact between the federal government and the states bordering the bay is often held up as a model of regional collaboration to correct environmental problems. Yet the Chesapeake's water quality today is little better than it was when the effort began 25 years ago. Why not? Hear from veterans of the long-running restoration struggle about the political, scientific and demographic hurdles they've encountered in trying to bring back the bay, and what portents this saga may hold for saving the nation's other coastal ecosystems.
Moderator: Tim Wheeler, Reporter, The Baltimore Sun
Panelists:
Richard Batiuk, Associate Director for Science, Chesapeake Bay Program, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Ann Pesiri Swanson, Executive Director, Chesapeake Bay Commission
Bill Street, Executive Director, James River Association
Location: Crystal Ballroom B
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