UF students, Gainesville Mayor Pegeen Hanrahan and local businesses will join forces today in an effort to boost global warming awareness with events from morning until night.
After an 11 a.m. fair on the Reitz Union North Lawn, a campus-wide program called Focus The Gator Nation Teach-in will begin at 3 p.m. in the Ustler Hall Atrium, said Laura Ruhl, UF graduate student and one of the event's organizers.
Focus the Nation, a national initiative to pursue solutions to climate change, is the largest teach-in in U.S. history, according to the program's Web site. More than 1,750 universities, K-12 schools and businesses are involved nationwide.
"This has been a grassroots effort," Ruhl said. "It's really remarkable that we've all joined together."
Following climate-change presentations from two UF professors, Mayor Hanrahan will discuss the role that leaders have in sustainability, Ruhl said. Her appearance is scheduled for 4 p.m.
Gator Dining will provide refreshments during the event, Ruhl added.
Following the leadership forum is a 6 p.m. energy debate. UF faculty and experts from industries that produce solar, wind, ethanol and hydroelectric power will weigh the pros and cons of each alternative energy source, said Rainer Shaw, UF wildlife ecology and conservation senior and co-director of the teach-in.
"We really can't expect people to act on anything or to make a change in their lives without knowing any of the real information about it," Shaw said.
