Events and Workshops

German Film Screening and Q&A of "LOVEMOBIL"

Tuesday, February 23rd, Wednesday, February 24th, and Friday, February 28th (see times below)

• Tuesday, February 23 | 7 pm-9 pm: Live screening of LOVEMOBIL (in German with English subtitles)
• Wednesday, February 24 | 2 – 3 pm | Join director Elke Margarete Lehrenkrauss in class at GT (in German)
• Sunday, February 28 | 3 – 4 pm |Join director Elke Margarete Lehrenkrauss in Q&A panel at Goethe-Zentrum (in English)

Join us for a virtual screening of LOVEMOBIL (2019) and two Q&A opportunities with director Elke Margarete Lehrenkrauss. The documentary shows snippets of the lives of sex workers from Eastern Europe and Africa who came to Germany in search of a better life. LOVEMOBIL, winner of the German Documentary Film Award 2020, portrays a microcosm that describes a society at the hardest end of globalized capitalism. Please register via Eventbrite to join the live event and/or one or both Q&A events virtually. If you are unable to attend the live screening, you can watch LOVEMOBIL on your own time from February 21-28.

This event is part of the 2021 Global Media Festival, which explores United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #11: Sustainable Cities and Communities. This series is organized by the Georgia Tech School of Modern Languages and co-sponsored by Atlanta Global Studies Center, Office of the Vice-Provost for International Initiatives, and Serve-Learn-Sustain. Learn more about the Global Media Festival here: https://globalmediafest.modlangs.gatech.edu/

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GT Energy Club Southeastern Energy Conference

Thursday, February 25th - Friday, February 26th

The GT Energy Club is hosting their Southeastern Energy Conference on February 25-26, 2021. The conference theme is UN Sustainable Development Goal—Ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all. The planning committee has assembled an exciting agenda that includes a celebration of GT’s 10 under 10 (10 energy alums present), a research competition, and a keynote from President Cabrera. The event is free for all to attend! We encourage participation in the research competition—it’s a great opportunity to polish virtual presentation skills and there are prizes available!

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Alexander von Humboldt's Proto-Ecological Thinking

Friday, February 26th. 12:00m - 1:15pm (Virtual)

Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859) was one of the most important scientific and humanist thinkers of the nineteenth century, with foresights that resonate in many current environmental debates. In accordance with his understanding of nature as spatial, dynamic, and fluid, Humboldt did not limit himself to one single subject matter but worked in fields labeled today as geology, geography, meteorology, biology, physiology, and anthropology. Rather than describing the physical world around him as static, Humboldt focused on processes and interrelations, studying both the distribution of matter and organisms and their interactions, and looking for bridges and connections that have by now become a defining centerpiece of any ecological inquiry.

Part of the Sustainable Development Research Seminar Virtual Series sponsored by RCE Greater Atlanta Higher Education Learning Committee, this talk features Dr. Caroline Schaumann, Professor of German Studies, Emory University.  Dr. Schaumann's current research focuses predominantly on ecocriticism and the environmental humanities, cultural histories of exploration and mountaineering, and the Anthropocene.

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University Global Coalition: SDG Action and Awareness Week

March 1st - 5th

Join the University Global Coalition for SDG Action and Awareness Week, featuring exciting events each day with themes such as sustainability literacy, economic inequality, research to action, zero hunger, quality education, climate change, and more!  Visit the event site for more information about specific events and how to register.

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The New Field of Peace Engineering: Educational Opportunities and Research Themes

Tuesday, March 2nd, 9:30am - 11:00am (Virtual)

Speakers:  General Phil Breedlove, Distinguished Professor and Center for European and Transatlantic Studies (CETS) Senior Fellow, Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, Georgia Tech; retired General of the U.S. Air Force; former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO; Joseph B. Hughes, PhD., P.E., DEE, F.AEESP, University Distinguished Professor; Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering, and Dean of Engineering, Emeritus at Drexel University; and former Karen and John Huff Chair of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Georgia Tech

This event is part of the Atlanta Global Studies Center 'Atlanta Peace Education Talks' webinar series.  

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Landfall (2020) Screening and Discussion with Director Cecilia Aldarondo

Wednesday, March 3rd, 5:00pm - 7:30pm (Virtual)

Join us for a Q&A discussion with director Cecilia Aldarondo and associate producer Lale Namerrow Pastor of the documentary Landfall (2020). Through shard-like glimpses of everyday life in post-Hurricane María Puerto Rico, LANDFALL is a cautionary tale for our times. Set against the backdrop of protests that toppled the US colony’s governor in 2019, the film offers a prismatic portrait of collective trauma and resistance.

The event will be hosted on BlueJeans. Upon registration, you will receive an email with a private screening link for the film as well as a BlueJeans link to the event. Watch the film at your leisure, then join us for the discussion.

This event is part of the 2021 Global Media Festival, which explores United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #11: Sustainable Cities and Communities. This series is organized by the Georgia Tech School of Modern Languages and co-sponsored by Atlanta Global Studies Center, Office of the Vice-Provost for International Initiatives, and Serve-Learn-Sustain. Learn more about the Global Media Festival here: https://globalmediafest.modlangs.gatech.edu/

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Climate Change and the Design of the Built Environment: Enterprising Approaches for Industry, Government, and Community

Thursday, March 4th, 9:00am - 5:00pm

The Georgia Institute of Technology Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design Conference: Climate Change and the Design of the Built Environment: Enterprising Approaches for Industry, Government, and Community.

Conference Hosts: Michael Gamble, Shan Arora, and Kim Cobb, along with the Kendeda Living Building Advisory Board

Earth’s climate is changing now faster than any other period in the history of modern civilization; this acceleration is primarily a result of human activities. Global climate change has already resulted in a wide range of impacts across every region of the country, and as we have seen throughout 2020, new approaches are needed to combat pathogen transmission and create next level healthy places. Many sectors of the economy are expected to grow related to climate and health in the coming decades.

Consequently, the design and retrofit of buildings, infrastructure, and cities will be a major part of future efforts.  The design and responsiveness of the built environment is the basis for inviting leading thinkers in the field of climate and sustainability research to help foster creativity, invention and entrepreneurship amongst participants with three primary goals: 

• Develop a baseline understanding of the current impacts and opportunities that the design, development, and responsiveness of the built environment has on climate change, and climate change has on the built environment.
• Increase understanding of the different communities and stakeholders that are involved in climate change debates via immersion in prescient topics formed around the design of the built environment: ethics, economics, health, equity, value, etc.  
• Create valuable dialogue that assists industry, government and academic leaders in understanding their role in how new environments, especially the social and habitable, can be reinvented in relation to emerging sustainability goals.

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Sustainability in Action Roundtable: From Competition to Collaboration: Balancing the Natural, Social, and Built Environments in a Regenerative Economy

Friday, March 5th, 11:00am - 12:30pm (Virtual)

Since the late 1800s Western countries have increasingly adopted linear economy models to sustain themselves; taking materials from the earth, making goods and products, using those goods and products, and finally disposing of them to consume the next generation of goods and products. Prices were inexpensive because materials and labor were cheap, extraction was easy, and industrialization made mass production possible. After two hundred years the bill has come due. Natural resources are depleted and threatened, including those that sustain life. Generations of goods and products, and their manufactures, have created solid waste problems and environmental pollution. The linear economy has exploited impoverished and vulnerable people and communities around the globe, exacerbating systemic oppression, disenfranchisement, and inequity. Humanity is facing a ticking clock with climate change. What if Southface told you there’s a way to beat the clock, create a healthy economy, and eliminate inequity?

Join Southface to learn more about the regenerative economy and how it creates value while simultaneously lifting all people and communities and enhancing natural systems—increasing social, economic and environmental potential without prioritizing one outcome over the other. The discussion will be led by Bill Reed of Regenesis, along with several panelists sharing different components of a regenerative economy.

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2021 Georgia Tech Women's Leadership Conference

Saturday, March 6th. 9:30am - 2:00pm (Virtual)

The Women's Leadership Conference is a gathering of women who have sought to become leaders in the classroom and the boardroom as well as the communities where they reside. Please join us virtually from wherever you are to enjoy a day of workshops, a panel, and an exciting keynote, author and scholar Blair Imani, to strengthen our understanding of each other and how we interact with those around us. Tickets are free for students, $5 for non-students affiliated with the Institute and non-GT students, and $10 for other attendees. 

This year, our theme is centered on intersectionality to underscore our commitment to fostering intersectional feminism in the spaces we find ourselves in. Women’s empowerment is only as effective as the determination for inclusion is strong, and we have a responsibility to uphold values that take into consideration the various identities that affect our ability to achieve gender equality. To us, intersectionality is about building community, cultivating a sense of belonging, and fighting for justice by being active participants in the liberation of all women to combat systemic forms of discrimination and oppression. The conference is based on a quote by poet, feminist, and champion of intersectionality Audre Lorde: “I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different than my own.” 

A workshop sponsored by SLS willl be offered during the breakout workshops, featuring Laurene Hamilton,VP of Programs,  and Eboni Preston, Operations Director of the Greening Youth Foundation.  The Greening Youth Foundation (GYF), a woman and minority-founded and led nonprofit, works with youth and young adults to provide environmental and wellness education and pathways to green careers.

We hope that you will attend to learn how to raise your voice to transform your workplace, community, and the world. We look forward to seeing you there!

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Hafu: The Mixed Race Experience in Japan (Film Screening and Discussion)

Thursday, March 11, 9:30am - 11:30am

Please join us for a virtual screening and discussion of the award-winning documentary film Hafu: The Mixed-Race Experience in Japan (2013). The film explores multiculturalism in Japanese society through the experiences of mixed-race Japanese people. The screening will be followed by a roundtable on multiculturalism and community sustainability with director Megumi Nishikura, Dr. Aurora Tsai from the University of Tokyo, and Dr. Tiffiny Hughes-Troutman, director of CARE at Georgia Tech.

This event will be hosted on Bluejeans. Upon registration, you will receive an e-mail with a Bluejeans link to the event.

This event is part of the 2021 Global Media Festival, which explores United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #11: Sustainable Cities and Communities. This series is organized by the Georgia Tech School of Modern Languages and co-sponsored by Atlanta Global Studies Center, Office of the Vice-Provost for International Initiatives, and Serve-Learn-Sustain. Learn more about the Global Media Festival here: https://globalmediafest.modlangs.gatech.edu/

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EQUINOX 2021

Monday, March 15th, 10:00am - 3:00pm

Join us for the 4th Annual EQUINOX Symposium: United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The EQUINOX seeks to catalyze pathways of multidisciplinary scholarship and partnership on the UN SDGs among institutions of higher education, professionals, policymakers, stakeholders, community members, and advocates. Specifically, this year, the symposium focuses on the intersections of Good Health and Well-being & Climate Action.  Registration is FREE, but REQUIRED.

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Sustainable Construction Neighborhood: The Way Forward

Friday, March 19th, 12:00pm - 1:15pm (Virtual)

Part of the Sustainable Development Research Seminar Virtual Series sponsored by RCE Greater Atlanta Higher Education Learning Committee, this talk features Dr. Ali Keyvanfar, Assistant Professor of Construction Management, Kennesaw State University.

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Virtual Film Festivals: Global and Local

Friday, March 26th, 1:00pm - 2:00pm

How has COVID-19 impacted film festivals around the world?

Join us for a VIRTUAL ROUNDTABLE with Sten Saluveer, Head of NEXT/ Marche Du Film - Festival de Cannes, Catherine Manci, Public Programming Specialist at Georgia Tech, and Matthew Foster, Director of the Dragon Con Film Festival. The conversation will begin with a screening of a short film by Georgia Climate Project and will be moderated by Dr. Gregory Zinman, Georgia Tech School of Literature, Media, and Communication.

Upon registration, you will receive a Bluejeans Link to join the event.

This event is organized by the School of Modern Languages and co-sponsored by the Atlanta Global Studies Center, the Office of the Vice-Provost for International Initiatives, and Serve-Learn-Sustain at Georgia Tech. This event is part of the 2021 Global Media Festival, which explores Sustainable Cities and Communities.

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Convergence Innovation Competition

APPLICATION DEADLINE: April 11th, 11:59pm

The Spring 2021 Convergence Innovation Competition (CIC) is now accepting submissions! Submissions are due Sunday, April 11, at 11:59 p.m. (ET). The Convergence Areas for the competition include the Institute for People and Technology’s research pillars, the Georgia Tech strategic plan and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. The competition is particularly interested in the intersections of the convergence areas (i.e., a project that combines a focus on health and well-being with issues of environmental justice and poverty).

In addition, we recently launched the Problems Worth Solving project, a collaborative tool where researchers, faculty and industry partners can submit interesting problems for students to develop solutions against. Teams are encouraged to review the tool to help spark new ideas! The competition organizers are hosting office hours to discuss project ideas with students throughout February and March. Please contact rnoc-lab-staff@lists.gatech.edu to schedule a mutually convenient time.

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Atlanta Global Studies Symposium: A Vision of Global Resilience Guided by the U.N. SDGs

April 20th - 23rd (Virtual)

Explore what the past year has taught us about global interdependence.  Celebrate our individual and collective resilience.  Discover the rewards and possibilities of interdisciplinary collaboration.  Sessions will include a track presented by RCE Greater Atlanta focused on Building Partnerships for Climate Action: Academics Reflect on Collaboration with Nonprofit Organizations/Nonprofit Leaders Reflect on Collaboration with Academia, as well as a virtual youth conference session led by students from RCE Greater Atlanta and RCE Georgetown.

Visit our website to sign up for updates!

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