Robert Glennon, one of the nation’s foremost scholars on water policy and law, will deliver a free public address titled “Our Thirst for Energy in a Warming, Water-Stressed World” at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 16, in Allegheny College’s Ford Chapel.
During his visit, Glennon also will receive the inaugural Ewalt Environmental Prize from the college for his research exploring solutions to worsening water shortages, especially in the western United States. He will meet with Allegheny students during a lunchtime program on Wednesday, Oct. 17.
The Ewalt Prize was established through the support of Henry “Bing” Ewalt, a 1962 Allegheny graduate, and his wife, Mary. The prize brings professionals to campus to teach about their expertise in environmental issues, especially those relating to freshwater supplies. “Professor Glennon is an ideal selection as our first lecturer,” Bing Ewalt said. “The combination of his disciplines and extensive experience have provided him with both a theoretical and practical perspective concerning this salient issue in our time of climate change.”
“Professor Glennon understands the challenges our country faces with respect to water policy and what we can do to build a sustainable water future,” said Professor Rachel O’Brien, Geology Department chair at Allegheny. “I have used his book in my first-year seminar (Freshwater Around the World) since it was published. The students learn from his technical knowledge as well as his writing style.”
Glennon is a Regents Professor and the Morris K. Udall Professor of Law and Policy at the James E. Rogers College of Law at the University of Arizona. He received his law degree from Boston College Law School and his doctorate from Brandeis University. He is the recipient of two National Science Foundation grants and serves as an advisor to governments, corporations, non-governmental organizations, and law firms looking to solve serious challenges around water-use sustainability. Glennon is also the author of “Unquenchable: America’s Water Crisis and What to Do About It,” which in 2010 received the Rachel Carson Book Award for reporting on the environment from the Society of Environmental Journalists.
The Ewalt fund has provided three copies of “Unquenchable: America’s Water Crisis and What to Do About It” for circulation at the Meadville Public Library. Interested community members are invited to read the book prior to his visit.
Bing Ewalt is a retired lawyer who earned his law degree at the University of Michigan. He also is a decorated U.S. Army veteran, having been awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star. Mary is a retired teacher and business manager. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Rice University and her master’s degree from Northwestern University.