r 8 WWW.GUILFORDIAN.COM FEATURES Tony Blair to open this year’s Bryan Series on Oct. 4 ^ (c,r^A\ Viac cnmp tViincrc which are website states, "The Office of the Quartet Representativ By Emily Cooper Staff Writer accomplishments (md) has some things which are website states. The Office of *e Quartet Representative controversial ... like almost every speaker we have had." works with the Paleshman Authority, the Government of Blair's international relations background includes Israel, international organizations, and NGOs to help ui TheBryanSerieshas_growninsizeandinfameoverthe —gingth^™ “?i t last several years," said President and Professor of Political Science Kent Chabotar. "When it first got started, they had one guest a year." In July, U.S. Airways Magazine did a four-page spread on the Bryan Series. They called it "a window of the arts, humanities, and public affairs with lectures by former h^ds of state, Nobel Prize laureates, and other international here several years ago," said Chabotar. 'T t^mk it s great iicawov.!!. ci.ui.i_, i J . oil ftilc cfiiff frnm thpir own in Kosovo, working with George Mitchell throughout the Though Blair's work can be considered controversial North Ireland peace process, and working with rescue by some, having him as a peaker at the Bryan Series is an missions to prevent genocide. outstanding oppor^nity for Guilford students Whethe^ The Bryan Series provides an informational panel for you rank him with the good, the bad, or the ugly, the chance students, which gives a hands-on learning experience. to hear Blair speak and learn from his experience is one a "We had the same thing for Ralf Reid when he was should not be under-appreciated. . - ■■ I/-W .1.1 ♦./ • figures." The Bryan Series is truly a privilege students should take advantage of. "We don't use a dime of student tuition dollars for any of this; it all comes out of Joe Bryan's endowment and gifts, as well as the corporate sponsorships, ticket sales, and season tickets — talk about a nice arrangement," said Chabotar. that students get to delve into all this stuff from their own majors and educate students about the good, the bad, and the ugly." Students who are aware of "the good, the bad, and the ugly" involving Blair are not blinded by his fame. "While Tony Blair had a long and successful career as Prime Minister and created great reform through the )K.0tS —• id.iK. SDOUl 2. xilLc aaiv* ^ *i * xt i-l.. t l This year the Bryan Series is proud to present former implementation of national councils for North Ireland, Prime Minister of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Tony Scotland, and Wales, he must also be remembered for his Blair as the first speaker. cronyism with the Bush administration and the un(bsclosed "The (Bryan Series') goal is to present speaker programs sums he accepted from international oil hrms with vested that will be educational and enjoyable," said Associate Vice interests in Iraq," said senior political science major Brian President for Communications and Marketing Ty Buckner. Joi^s. ^ u j t3i • ^ Paith "Prime Minister Blair is a world leader who is actively On the other hand, Blair started the Tony Blair involved in promoting Middle East peace, the eradication Foundation, a program to ^ of poverty, and other issues that are important to people at respect among religions. Blair believes that faith is beneficia Guilford. Hopefully, the opportunity to hear directly from to those facing challenges attaining globalization, someone who is on the world stage will be beneficial for The Tony Blair Sports Foundation promotes participation om students." sports and encourages children who feel excluded to It is not a secret that Blair's career has been controversial partake. The program also helps adults become trained at times. "Tony Blair has had a very long career in the British government," said Chabotar. "He has some clear coaches to help children. • _ . ^ • i' Blair currently works for the Office of the Quartet speakers on Tuesday, Oct. 4. His current work involves preparing Representative. The mission statement on the office's Palestine for statehood. Former Prime Minister of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Tony Blair will become the first of this year's Bryan Series Green and Reduce your carbon footprint: eat less meat By Briana Halliwell Staff Writer The consumption of meat has many facets to it — how it affects the health of the consumer, the ethical dimension of animal slaughter, the cost of current day meat production — but one of the most pertinent elements of meat-eating to the condition of the world today is its impact on the environment. Reducing the amount of meat you eat is easy at Guilford College. The difficulty lies in the realization of why this should be done. or more other species who inhabit our Earth. Studies conducted by the International Water Management Institute show that industrial agriculture is the heaviest user of water on our planet. The authors of the 2004 edition of World Watch Magazine suggest that the most effective way to reduce the substantial amount of water that humans use, and thus prevent a depletion of fresh water, is to reduce the amount of meat that we eat. cattle, poultry, and hogs over long distances are two signs that support the idea that the concentration of the meat industry in certain locations has had, and will continue to have, significantly detrimental effects on human health and the overall environment," asserted Jim Hood, professor of English. Hood is currently teaching the EYE "What Should We Eat," which focuses on the various impacts — environmental, social, and ethical — of the human diet. In order to prevent global starvation due to lack of land used for food production, the Worldwatch Institute believes that "only one major option remains: to cut back sharply on meat consumption, because conversion of grazing land to food crops will increase the amount of food produced." For our water 4,200 gallons. According to Richard Schwartz, author of "Judaism and Vegetarianism," this is the standard amount of water that meat-eating Americans require to function every day. It is used for animals' drinking water, irrigation, processing, washing, and cooking. A person on a vegan (animal-product-free) diet, on the other hand, requires only 300 gallons of water per day. Fresh water is a resource that many people take for granted, but it's one that has its limits. According to the Worldwatch Institute, an organization dedicated to sustainable living, humans are consuming about half the available fresh water on the planet, leaving the other half for the million You could lessen your environmental impact more by refraining from eating an extra pound of meat every day man by not driving an extra mile every day. For our atmosphere "Livestock operations account for more greenhouse gas emissions than the transportation sector," says Dr. Ward Robinson, medical director of the Guilford County Department of Public Health. This means that you could lessen your environmental impact more by refraining from eating an extra pound of meat every day than by not driving an extra mile every day. "The greenhouse gas emissions of livestock and the fossil fuel used in transporting For our land According to John Robbins, author of the Pulitzer Prize-nominated "Diet for a New America," over 260 million acres of U.S. forest have been cleared in order to accommodate concentrated animal feeding operations. Fifty-six million of these acres are producing hay for livestock. Only 4 million acres are actually producing vegetables for direct human consumption, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce's 2004 Census of Agriculture. On the brighter side Guilford professors, such as Hood, and experts all over the world are raising awareness about the effects that eating meat has on our Earth. "I was curious about the production of food; where does it come from?" explained Hood. "I decided to teach this FYE because I realized I didn't know what the answer was. I wanted to make my problem other people's problem and introduce students to how to face academic, as well as global, issues with a rational, confident attitude." This curiosity and confident attitude may revolutionize how humanity views eating meat. While the arguments for animal rights are many, the argument for eating less meat can be simple; it's better for the environment, and therefore, for you. You don't have to go full vegan, but try opting for a veggie burger at the Grill tomorrow, or sharing these facts with friends and family who care about the well-being of the Earth. We can lessen our impact on the environment if we all work together.

Page Text

This is the computer-generated OCR text representation of this newspaper page. It may be empty, if no text could be automatically recognized. This data is also available in Plain Text and XML formats.

Return to page view